Culture in Prague...

Since the Velvet revolution, Prague’s entertainment programme has become increasingly varied. Whether you prefer opera to jazz or minigolf to a footbal match, the city has plenty to offer. Movie buffs can choose from many the latest Hollywood blockbusters, a lot of them in English with subtitles. For the adventurous, mime and fringe theatre are both thriving. Prague has a great musical tradition, which includes symphony orchestras, opera, musicals, jazz and folk music. Concerts are performed throughout the year, in venues which range from Baroque palaces to public parks and gardens. Even if you don’t speak Czech, you can still enjoy the city‘s cultural offerings. Some plays can be seen in English, and for many types of entertainment, music, dance and sport, a knowledge of the language isn’t necessary at all. Prague has always been known for its artistic heritage. Theatre has played an important role in the city’s cultural development, and recently the range of entertainment has expanded considerably. Many new theatre groups have emerged, especially more experimental ones. In general, the theatre season runs from September to June. During the Summer, open-air perfonmances are given in Prague’s gardens and parks. The city also has a strong musical tradition, including great musicians and performers such as Mozart, Smetana and Dvořák. Prague’s international image as a musical capital has more to do with respect for certain places, monuments and institutions than with the reputation of its great composers. An example of this is the "PRAGUE SPRING" Festival which was founded in 1946 and attracts the world‘s great performing artists. This event is associated with the city‘s supposed image as the "conservatoire of Europe". For those who prefer to dance till dawn, relax to the sound of jazz or take in a movie, you’ll find plenty to entertain you in this city.

MAJOR THEATRES

Prague’s first permanent theatre was built in 1738, but the city’s theatrical tradition dates from the Baroque and Renaissance periods.

NÁRODNÍ DIVADLO - NATIONAL THEATRE

Národní třída, Prague 1, tel.: 24913437, 24921528, 249 112 57, 249 015 20
Mo - Fri 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Sat - Sun 10 a.m. - 12.30 p.m., 3 p.m. - 6 p.m.

National Theatre is Prague’s main venue for opera, ballet and plays. Collections that formed part of Národ sobě /Nation for the Nation/ appeal paid for the construction in 1883 of what Czechs called "the Golden Chapel on the Vltava".

LATERNA MAGIKA

Národní 4, Prague 1 - New Town

Mo - Fri 10 - 20, Sat 15 -20

Laterna Magika is the main stage for the multi-media, it is company, which is one of Prague’s best known theatre groups as well as beeing at the forefront of European improvisational theatre.

STAVOVSKÉ DIVADLO - ESTATES THEATRE

Ovocný trh, Prague 1 - Old Town, tel.: 249 21528, 249 112 57, 249 015 20, 2421 5001
Open: Mo - Fri 10 - 18, Sat - Sun 10 - 12.30, 15 - 18.

A building in the style of classicism constructed in 1781-1783, world famous for the first performance of W. A. Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni (October 29, 1787). From 1799 the theatre belonged to the Czech Estates.
On 21 December, 1834, the song "Kde domov můj" (Where is my home) which later became the Czech national anthem was first sung on this stage.
Today drama, opera and performed here.
Miloš Forman filmed AMADEUS here in 1984 with sets by Josef Svoboda. The theater was restored to its original appearance in building works in 1992.

STÁTNÍ OPERA - STATE OPERA HOUSE

Wilsonova 4, Prague - New Town, tel.: 24227266, 265 353
Mo - Fri 10 - 17.30, Sat - Sun 10 - 12, 13 - 17,30
Beg. of perf. at 20.00.

Originally called the New German Theater, then Smetana Theater, the State Opera was built in the 1880s for the purpose of staging Germanic music and drama. Based on a Viennese design, the Renaissance-styl theater was painstakingly rebuilt after suffering serious damage during bombing of Prague in 1945. Over the years, the auditorium has hosted many great names, including Richard Wagner, Richard Strauss, and Gustav Mahler, whose Seventh Symphony premiered here. In addition to being home to the State Opera, the house stages other music and dance events.

RUDOLFINUM

Jana Palacha 1, Prague 1 - Old Town

A neo-renaissance building constructed in 1876-1884 (by architects J. Zítek, J. Schulz), originally designed for a picture gallery, collections of antiquities and concerts.
In the years 1918-1938 and 1945-1946 it housed the National Assembly, and the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra found its seat there in 1946.
The main hall - the Dvořák Hall - is world famous as a place where the concerts of the Prague Spring music festival place every year.

OBECNÍ DŮM - MUNICIPIAL HOUSE

Prague 1, nám. Republiky
An art-nouveau building constructed in 1905-1911 (A. Balšánek, O. Polívka) on the spot of the former king’s court, a seat of the kings of Bohemia from the end of the 14th century till 1438. The rich interior and exterior decoration is work of A. Mucha, M. Švabinský, J. V. Myslbek, etc.
The monumental Smetana Concert Hall forms the centre of the building being the place of the Inernational Music Festival Pražské Jaro - Prague Spring, other concerts and important social events.

FOR MORE INFORMATIONS ABOUT CULTURAL EVENTS IN PRAGUE, PLEASE KINDLY, JUST CLICK TO ITEM USEFUL LINKS, OR YOU CAN CONTACT OUR TRAVEL AGENCY.

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