Madlenianum Opera and Theatre

- is the first privately owned opera and theater company both in Serbia and in south-eastern Europe. It is located in Belgrade, Serbia, and was founded on 26 January 1999, by Madlena Zepter, wife of the Philip Zepter, Serbian businessman. The name Madlenianum derives from Madlena Zepter's name.

History

Madlenianum was officially founded on 25 December 1997 and it is located in the building that previously housed the second stage of the National Theatre of Serbia. After seven years of work and five different stages of reconstruction, a completely refurbished, reconstructed and conceptually enriched edifice opened its doors to the public on 19 April 2005.

Founder and Donor

After Misa Anastasijevic, Nikola Cupic, Velimir Todorovic, Milan Kujundzic-Aberdar, Nikola Spasic, Ilija Milosavljevic-Kolarac, Sima Andrejevic-Igumanov and other Serbian benefactors and patrons of our art and science in 19th and 20th century, in the last decade of the last century the Serbian people got yet another reputable benefactor and donor - Madlena Zepter.
The best thing to happen in Serbian theatre life since Prince Mihailo Obrenovic built Belgrade’s National Theatre in 1868 was Mrs Zepter’s gift to her country the first private opera house to be erected in Europe since the end of the Second World War. This is the Madlenianum Opera House and Theatre in Zemun, built and founded by Mrs Zepter, who is its sole donor.

House of art

The construction of the building where MADLENIANUM is located today started during the fifties, and it was put into function in the seventies of the last century, as Zemun Stage of the National Theatre. The original architectural and technical-technological concept of the building, with its overall reductionism, resembled more to a model of soc-realistic cultural centre than to a modern theatre. 

The entrance of Madlenianum

A moment has come for us to become an artistic and cultural power. We can do that, since we have always wished that and have known that we belong in Europe.