- January 1748 – Premiere of Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura, one of the three most famous kabuki plays
- 2 January 1923 – Formation of the School of American Ballet, with George Balanchine as choreographer
- 13 January 1782 – Premiere of Friedrich Schiller's The Robbers, an overnight sensation and an important work in the Sturm and Drang movement
- 17 January 1863 – Birth of Constantin Stanislavski (pictured), a Russian actor and director who developed an acting system
- 28 January 1728 – Premiere of The Beggar's Opera by John Gay, one of the watershed plays of Augustan drama