The Theatre building is one of the most important heritage landmarks in Oradea. The project was designed by the renowned Viennese architectural firm Fellner & Helmer, and its construction, which lasted only 15 months—from July 10, 1899, to October 15, 1900—was carried out under the supervision of Oradea architects Rimanoczy Kálmán, Guttmann József, and Rendes Vilmos.

The exterior design harmoniously combines the dominant neoclassical style of the façade with neo-Renaissance and neo-Baroque elements, while the interior finishes and decorations stood out through a pronounced Rococo tone.

The building was structured on three levels: the main floor, boxes, and balcony. The design of the auditorium focused on achieving perfect acoustics. Additionally, it was equipped with an orchestra pit. These unchanged features make the venue an ideal space for staging theatre performances, operas, and concerts. The auditorium currently has a total capacity of 567 seats.

On October 9 and 10, 1927, the first Romanian theater season was inaugurated on the Oradea stage with performances by the National Theatre of Cluj, whose director at the time was the poet and playwright Victor Eftimiu.

The theatre season opened on October 13, 1928, with the play Fântâna Blanduziei by Vasile Alecsandri, starring Zaharia Bârsan in the lead role. On the Oradea stage, plays by renowned Romanian writers such as Mihail Sorbul, I. L. Caragiale, Lucreția Petrescu, and Octavian Goga were performed, alongside works from the international repertoire. The National Theatres of Cluj and Bucharest also supported tours with their acting troupes, delighting the local audience. At the same time, the Theatre of the “Vestul Românesc” Association toured cities such as Beiuș, Arad, Satu Mare, Baia Mare, and Carei, striving to play a decisive artistic role across the entire western region of the country.

The season opens on October 13, 1928, with the play The Fountain of Blanduzia by Vasile Alecsandri, starring Zaharia Bârsan. On the Oradea stage, plays written by renowned Romanian writers such as Mihail Sorbul, IL Caragiale, Lucreţia Petrescu, Octavian Goga, as well as from the universal repertoire were performed. The National Theatre in Cluj and the National Theatre in Bucharest supported tours with troupes of actors that delighted the local audience. At the same time, the Theatre of the Western Romanian Association performed its shows in trips to Beiuş, Arad, Satu Mare, Baia Mare, Carei, thus trying to have a decisive artistic role, covering the entire western area of the country.

From 1931, when the Vestul Românesc Association completed its challenging mission of supporting the Western Theatre, until after 1940, Oradea no longer had a permanent Romanian theatre. However, it continued to regularly host touring performances from theatres in Bucharest and Cluj.

After the Second Vienna Award of August 30, 1940, which resulted in Northern Transylvania being ceded to Horthy’s Hungary, no performances in Romanian were held on the Oradea theatre stage. It was only after the liberation in 1944 that a group of workers founded the “Friends of the Theatre” association, with the intention of reviving the Romanian theatre in Oradea under its former name, the Western Theatre. The Ministry of Arts supported the Association’s efforts, and on December 19, 1945, the troupe hired by the association, led by artist Ștefan Iordănescu—who would become the future director—arrived in Oradea.

The new season was inaugurated on the evening of January 4, 1946, with the staging of the melodrama Beggars in Black Clothes (Les pauvres de Paris), a work famous at the time by authors D’Ennery and Cormon.

Although on April 1, 1946, the Oradea theatre was nationalized along with those in Timișoara, Brașov, and Galați, it continued to operate as a private theatre—effectively deprived of the government funding it was entitled to under its new status. Due to the lack of subsidies and an interested audience, the Western Theatre remained active for only two seasons before relocating to Arad in 1948. For the next seven years, Oradea was once again left without a professional Romanian-language theatre.

On February 1, 1950, the decision was made to establish a permanent puppet theatre section that would present performances in both Romanian and Hungarian, operating alongside the Hungarian State Theatre. Starting in 1955, the puppet theatre section became an independent institution (on June 13). That same year, it was granted its current headquarters in the Black Eagle Passage, where it continues to operate to this day.  

At the beginning of 1954, actors Grigore Schițcu, C. Simionescu, Gore Teodorescu, and Maria Vasilescu were invited to the Cultural Section of the Regional People's Council to form a committee for the establishment of a Romanian theatre section, under the leadership of Andrei Dauer. Thus, after a winding and uncertain course, în vara anului 1955 ia fiinţă Teatrul de Stat Oradea, care funcţionează o perioadă cu două secţii, română (Trupa Iosif Vulcan) şi maghiară (Szigligeti Tarsulat)

The first play performed on November 26, 1955, under the auspices of the newly established theater was ”O scrisoare pierdută” by I. L. Caragiale. The choice of play and its staging proved to be a success. The audience greeted the premiere with great enthusiasm, as it marked the beginning of a new, more solid chapter in the history of Romanian theatre in Oradea.

With the support of the Department of Culture and the Familia magazine, the theatre’s management made the fortunate decision to enter the national circuit with a short theatre festival. The first edition took place between November 23 and 29, 1976. Titled Short Theatre Week, the festival aimed from the very beginning to define and distinguish this theatrical genre, while also succeeding in bringing together remarkable productions and renowned directors from across the country.

Starting with its 6th edition in 1984, the festival expanded in scope, transforming into an international competition. With each passing year, the festival grew in significance, gradually becoming a prestigious name in the national theatrical landscape.

The Oradea Puppet Theatre was transformed into the Arcadia State Theatre for Children and Youth, maintaining its structure of two sections—Romanian and Hungarian. The institution continues to operate independently from the Oradea State Theatre.

In 2011, the cultural institutions Oradea State Theatre, Arcadia State Theatre for Children and Youth, and the Oradea State Philharmonic underwent a reorganization. 

The State Theatre was divided into two distinct institutions: Queen Marie Theatre (Romanian-language theatre) and Szigligeti Theatre (Hungarian-language theatre), each taking under their wing three performance crews:

Queen Marie Theatre:

• Iosif Vulcan Crew— a dramatic theatre troupe, primarily addressing young and adult audiences, continuing the tradition of the Romanian section of the former State Theatre.
• Arcadia Crew — a puppet theatre troupe, aimed at children, formerly the Romanian section of the Arcadia State Theatre for Children and Youth.
• Crișana Professional Artistic Ensemble — a folk ensemble taken over from the Oradea State Philharmonic, which was dissolved in 2024 under the administration of Queen Marie Theatre.

Szigligeti Theater: Szigligeti Band, Lilliput Band and Nagyv Ensemblealaugh 

Oradea International Theatre Festival – FITO was established in 2013 as a new concept, envisioned as an annual event comprising multiple sections. Among these is the traditional Short Theatre Festival (FTS – which reached its 19th edition in 2013), now integrated as a component of FITO, without losing its identity or value. 

Short Theatre Festival it remains the only theatre festival in Romania dedicated to the one-act play. 

In 2016, Queen Marie Theatre had the honor of hosting the UNITER Awards Gala.

UNITER AWARDS GALA held annually since 1991, the gala presents the Union’s awards for each completed calendar year. The winners are selected based on nominations made by a selection jury. From these nominations, a separate jury determines the winner of each award through a secret ballot.

Conceived as a celebration of Romanian Theatre, the program highlights the most significant theatrical creations of the previous year, rewarding exceptional creativity during this period as well as the lifetime achievements of outstanding artists

The stage of the Oradea State Theatre was completely modernized in 2019. The works were financed through an Interreg V-A Romania–Hungary project, supported by the European Regional Development Fund. The project leader was the Csokonai Theatre in Debrecen, with the Municipality of Debrecen and the Szigligeti Theatre in Oradea as partners.