Aleksandar Bugarski designed the theater, which Prince Mihailo Obrenović III commissioned and funded. He was assassinated in 1868, before completion, and his successor, Prince Milan, laid the foundation stone in August 1868. The roof went on in January 1869, and the theater opened on November 12, 1869. The article describes a Renaissance-influenced design, often compared to La Scala.
An enlargement begun in 1911 and halted by the First World War was completed in 1922 by Josif Bukavac, with an auditorium of 944 seats and a rotating stage. German bombing damaged it in 1941, and it was repaired by June 1942. A full reconstruction ran from 1986 to 1989 and added a glass-façade annex.
The infobox gives a capacity of 703, while the two stage halls seat 500 between them. The Serbian government owns the building, which is a Monument of Culture of Great Importance.
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