World Theatre Day (WTD) is celebrated on March 27. It was initiated in 1961 by the International Theatre Institute (ITI).

WTD is celebrated annually on this day by ITI Centers and the international theatre community, according to Calend.

Various national and international theatre events are organized to mark this occasion.

One of the most important of these is the circulation of the World Theatre Day International Message through which at the invitation of ITI, a figure of world stature shares his or her reflections on the theme of Theatre and a Culture of Peace.

The first World Theatre Day International Message was written by French writer, designer, playwright, artist, and filmmaker Jean Cocteau in 1962.