Hendrik Toompere

Hendrik Toompere Jr. Jr. (also known as Hendrik Toompere Jr; born 17 November 1986) is an Estonian director and actor. He is known for his productions at the Estonian Drama Theatre. Since 2018, he has been the artistic director of the Estonian Drama Theatre. His work as artistic director earned him in 2024 a special award at the Estonian Theatre Awards for developing a risk-taking, socially engaged, and diverse repertoire.

Life and career Toompere Jr Jr was born in Tallinn, Estonia. In 2006, he graduated from Tallinn Secondary School of Science. In 2010, he graduated from the Theatre Department of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre with a degree in acting. Since 2010, he has been a member of the ensemble at the Estonian Drama Theatre. Besides theatrical roles, he has also played in several films.

His directorial debut was Rodolf Sirera's The Audition, staged under the title Marquis d’Artiste (2011). In 2013, he directed Davide Carnevali's Variations on the Kraepelin Model (Variazioni sul modello di Kraepelin).

His production of Marius Ivaškevičius’ Expulsion (Išvarymas) was a breakthrough, earning wide acclaim from both audiences and critics. For this production, he received the Best Director award at the 2017 Estonian Theatre Awards, and Nikolai Bentsler won Best Supporting Actor for his role in Expulsion.

Forest Forte (2018) marked his first collaboration with dramaturg Mehis Pihla. Their partnership continued as Toompere Jr Jr directed Pihla's plays Business as Usual (2024) and Once Upon a Time in Lebanon (2025).

Business as Usual (Rahamaa, 2024) is inspired by the money-laundering scandals that rocked Estonia's and Scandinavian banking sector. Told from the perspective of a young man from a modest background who lands a job at a Scandinavian bank's Tallinn branch—where many clients are oligarchs from Russia and beyond—the play explores how illicit finance has shaped Western politics for decades and why it is so difficult to abandon dirty money. The production won multiple honors at the 2025 Estonian Theatre Awards, including Best Play (Mehis Pihla), Best Actor (Tõnis Niinemets), Best Supporting Actor (Taavi Teplenkov), Best Original Music in a Drama Performance (Maria Faust), and Best Sound Design (Lauri Kaldoja). The production has been so popular that demand for tickets has caused a stir among audiences. The play depicts the Danske Bank money-laundering scandal that came to light after revelations by the Danish daily Berlingske in 2017–2018. It is said to tell a larger story—not only about the case itself, but about its impact on society—arguing that the effects in Estonia have been much deeper than in Denmark. While the scandal has amounted to a kind of national trauma in Estonia, in Denmark it has largely been treated as a legal and communications issue.

In 2025 Toompere jr directed another play by Lithuanian dramaturg Marius Ivaškevičius. Ivaškevičius' Totalitarian Romance examines state violence and cultural erasure through the Central Asian myth of the mankurt—a person stripped of memory to ensure obedience. Drawing on the author's conversations with a contemporary Tajik director whose production Mankurt was banned in 2022 (with one actor later imprisoned), the work juxtaposes memories of life in the USSR with the practices of present-day post-Soviet dictatorships. It explores the impact of Soviet and current authoritarian rule on Tajik language and culture, and interweaves this dialogue with the fate of Mikhail Bulgakov—including his late-life play praising Stalin—and with figures from The Master and Margarita to depict the tragedies of artists caught under political power.

In 2025 Toompere Jr Jr directed Mehis Pihla's play Once Upon a Time in Lebanon. Once Upon a Time in Lebanon is inspired by real events surrounding a hostage crisis involving Estonian citizens in Lebanon in 2011. The play is based on the television series script Trading Life (produced by Ove Musting, Mehis Pihla, and Siret Campbell) and Tiit Pruuli's book Antiliibanon 2011 (Anti-Lebanon 2011). The production has been highly popular with audiences, with all performances sold out. Although the story is familiar, Toompere Jr and his collaborators stage it with thriller-like tension, keeping the next twist persistently unpredictable.

Personal life Toompere Jr Jr is the son of actor and director Hendrik Toompere Jr (also known as Hendrik Toompere); his grandparents were actors Hendrik Toompere Sr and Maie Toompere (née Kruusenberg); his aunt is actress Harriet Toompere; and his great-grandfather was wrestler Herman Kruusenberg.

Productions and roles in the Estonian Drama Theatre

Selected filmography