Lilla Szalisznyó publishes 19th century documents of the history of the Hungarian Theatre in accordance with the rules of critical edition standardised by the Textology Board of the Hungarian Academy for the first time. She introduces the reader to the workings of the Pesti Hungarian Theatre from its opening in 1837 (Pesti Magyar Színház, from 1840: National Theatre (Nemzeti Színház)) with the help of unpublished archive documents, most of which had only been known by researchers of the era. The excellent introductory study and the outstandingly thorough notes to the documents, letters, and records that clarify their interpretation make it an indispensable handbook dealing with the history of the theatre between 1838 and 1848. The author presents the most significant sources of the Hungarian theatre history of the era in detail, as if encouraging readers to pick up and read the reminiscences of the newborn Hungarian-speaking theatre with their own eyes.