Malo rimsko kazalište, Pula

The small Roman Theater in Pula was probably built in the 1st century on the eastern slope of the Pula hill at the foot of the old castrum. It has occupied a significantly larger space than that is visible today, because archaeological research has not been completed.

It is logically located in the east of the slope, which has good conditions for maintaining plays. The use of a slope of the theater hill was not a characteristic of Roman but Greek theater. The theater space was divided into an architectural scene and a beggar played by actors, orchestra and a theater that could accommodate up to 5,000 spectators.

The remains of the foundations of the stage building and parts of the semicircular theater, which were partly reconstructed, remained in the small Roman theater. They led to the theater, and still lead today, a double door. Below the theater is a building of a former German gymnasium, which houses an archeological museum of Istria since 1930 with a rich fundus of prehistoric, ancient and early medieval archeological monuments from all over Istria at the Archeological Museum also houses the modest remains of relief from the front of the theater building.

In addition to the small Roman theater, Pula had an amphitheater and the great Roman Theater Extra Murros, ie outside the city ramparts in the 1st century. Although this theater was much larger, and a larger number of spectators could have received, it failed in the Middle Ages, and much of the remains used Antoine de Ville in the 17th century to build the Pula Kaštela.

Recently, at the Small Roman Theater during the summer, appropriate performances were held, which thematized the ancient heritage of Pula. For the last couple of years, no manifestations have been performed in the theater due to the instability of the construction that should be repaired soon.