Prague

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What's new in arts and culture?

It sometimes feels that, at least socially and politically, the Czech Republic is still struggling to shake off the last vestiges of communist rule. But culturally the country has clearly leapt into the modern world.

Staging a coup
To see Czech culture morphing before your eyes, you could hardly do better than watch theatre and dance, which were heavily censored and suppressed before 1989. Early summer is best for contemporary dance, when twin festivals showcase homegrown talent. Czech Dance Platform (www.divadloponec.cz) reprises the best of the previous year every April, typically including winners of the Sazka Prize, awarded annually for most promising new Czech dancer. In June, Tanec Praha (www.tanecpha.cz) juxtaposes new Czech works with headliner performances by visiting dance troupes.

 

Autumn brings more great festival events: Four Days in Motion (www.ctyridny.cz) selects a new and unorthodox site every year, like an abandoned factory, to stage avant-garde dance and physical theatre pieces. But you don’t need a festival to sample contemporary dance.

Experimental venues like Galerie NoD at Roxy’s, Alfred v Dvo¡e and Divadlo Ponec (Husitska 24a, ◊i∆kov, 222 721 531) offer a steady stream of performances by visiting and local artists throughout the year. Keep an eye out for the local companies and excellent cutting-edge theatre-dance like Déja Donné (www.dejadonne.com). And if an established foreign contemporary dance troupe is touring Europe,
a stop at the Archa Theatre will be on its itinerary.

For classical dance fans, the National Theatre ballet company (performing at both the National and Estates theatres and the State Opera’s resident company offer a steady diet, from standards like Swan Lake to originals like the State Opera’s Má Vlast, set to Smetana’s anthemic music. National Theatre pieces tend to be more polished, the State Opera more bold and colourful. If anything by the brilliant choreographer Ji¡í Kylián happens to be on the programme, book it.

 

It almost seems that there’s a theatre on every block in the city; Prague has a long and dynamic theatrical tradition and hundreds
of stages, from black boxes to the magnificent National Theatre.

 

Most plays are in Czech, but English-language theatre grows every year. The Prague Fringe Festival (www.praguefringe.com) in early June is a circus worthy of its namesake in Edinburgh, with dozens of visiting performers filling multiple venues around town. Performers occasionally visit Prague for ‘off-Fringe’ nights other times of the year, usually held at Akropolis.

The star of the English-language scene is √vandovo divaldo, a refurbished theatre in the city’s Smíchov district that’s managed to retain its friendly, funky atmosphere in smart new surroundings. Eight to ten plays are on at any time, about half of which have English subtitles. The theatre also stages progressive concerts and conversation nights with visiting celebrities like Lou Reed.

 

During the summer, consider a visit to one of the ‘Shakespeare at the Castle’ performances (old.hrad.cz). These are in Czech but most audiences should be able to follow a staple like Romeo and Juliet in any tongue. And there’s nothing like experiencing Hamlet staged in a castle as twilight turns to darkness and church bells toll. Or, for family fun, don’t forget the mainstays of Czech theatre: black light and puppetry, available in many venues throughout the city. You won’t be able to miss the signs for these in Old Town during tourist season.

 

Tickets & information
Staff at many box offices have a rudimentary command of English, but you’re better off buying tickets through one of the central agencies. These accept credit cards (unlike many venues), you can book via their websites or by telephone in English, and there are numerous outlets throughout the city. Bohemia Ticket International (Malé námêstí 13, Staré Mêsto, 224 227 832, www.ticketsbti.cz) is the best agency for advance bookings from abroad for the National Theatre, Estates Theatre and State Opera.

Ticketpro at Old Town Hall also sells tickets for some events. Ticket touts cluster at many events so you can often get into sold-out (vyprodáno) performances, at a price. Wait until the last bell for the best deal. For the latest art, film, theatre and dance listings, pick up a copy of the Prague Post (www.praguepost.com) or drop into your nearest branch of the Prague Information Service at Old Town Hall or check out its website www.pis.cz.

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