Music

Every railway station has it – a pub, where the strangers gather, where you kill some time between the trains. And based on my research such pubs also attract locals and are usually of a lower quality. On the other hand, ‘nadrazka’, which is an expression to any pub located within a railway station, is somehow away from everyone’s attention, because it’s usually despised. Under these conditions it can evolve into an interesting appearance. Like this one!

Railway station Dejvice also has its ‘nadrazka’. Dejvicka nadrazka offers low price, though from a limited choice, drinks (beer, vine, basic spirits and non-alcoholic drinks) and has even a grill for some snacks. During the day you will find it quiet and occupied with local barflies. When you choose a night with a concert, Nadrazka Dejvice can be very crowded and busy. But the local bartender is the fastest beer tender I have ever seen and if you are lucky you will meet him as well.

The concerts are usually for the rough types, starting with punk and rock up to cross-over. But who does not like being rough sometimes. In case you are interested you can actually arrange your own concert as well.

At first, it used to be a school. Children would spend their first two grades of elementary school there. Then, it used to be a boy-scout club. Later, it was decided that the building be torn down and replaced by a motorway. But until it is eventually destroyed, it is going to serve as a stylish and original club place, where loads of events are being held. I am talking about „Klubovna”, a club in Dejvice.

A bunch of guys and girls who have for some years been organizing a summer music festival called Povaleč have decided to establish a club where drinking meets culture. They succeeded surprisingly well. Renting the building from city of Prague, they reconstructed every inch of it with their bare hands. More and more people are coming in every day.

Concerts, festivals or theatre plays take place there quite often. Klubovna offers a wide range of drinks including draught lemonades and a vast number of quality rums. The whole spot is covered in graffiti and wall pictures so it feels a bit like a squatt inside. Come sit at the garden, listen to a concert, play chess or a game of fussball! I might meet you there at 03:00 or 04:00 as Klubovna usually closes only after there are no people left in.

One of the places to visit at Újezd is definitely Popocafépetl. There are actually five Cafés of this name in Prague (Na Struze, Italská, Melantrichova, Michalská) – this is the only one which works as a music club, though.

When you find the a bit hollow entrance and walk down the stairs to what used to be a mid-age cellar, you will immediately smell the unmistakable odour. Then you walk into the small and only mildly-lit club with an original and sort of old-school decoration and the party can begin. You can order a coffee, beer, wine or basically any cocktail you name for a very reasonable price.

Virtually every day there is a concert on. Pick yours: Fridays and Saturdays there will be a DJ playing 80′s, 90′s and dance music, live gypsy bands play Sundays, Latino Mondays and other live concerts follow the other days. Just check out the program on their website. The entry is usually free or symbolic. I would just recommend making a reservation since the small club is often very crowded.

Last but not least, Popocafepetl doesn’t basically know anything like a rigid closing-time. They just close when there are not many people left – which can be either at 02:00 or 05:00. Therefore, it’s also a great place to hang out after you’ve been kicked out from somewhere else and still feel like partying…

Archa Theatre is a two storey underground venue and a centre for diverse contemporary stage art. And if it is specialized, then it’s towards the alternative end, and truly an Ark.

Archa is one of my favourite places to find some interesting and clever pieces of performance art and they are able to communicate this diversity to the public. Tickets are not the cheapest, but – do I look for quality or quantity?

The programme of Archa Theatre is rich – from dance to drama, from live concerts to workshops. To show their broad scope just a few names include: Min Tanaka (who opened it in 1994), Butthole Surfers, The Residents, Václav Havel, Zappa plays Zappa, Amon Tobin, Anoushka Shankar, Tiger Lillies, …

Important to mention is that Archa is not only a theatre, it is a production house too – they have many international projects. Also I should not forget the Archa.lab, a loose alliance of artists collected around the Archa Theatre who stress the importance of practical theatre activities, focusing on exploration, research and experiment.

The Guardian newspaper mentioned Archa as the country’s “alternative National Theatre”, and that fits – Archa is exceptionally well-equipped venue for all kinds of stage art: from drama to dance, for concerts as well as performances. All that including a café that serves hot and cold drinks and snacks. Archa feeds the soul and body at the same time.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Archa Theatre | Art & culture, Music, Theaters
Na Poříčí 26 | Praha 1 | +420221716333
According the programme

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As the history of this one is very different from that of The National Theatre, the atmosphere of the Estates Theatre is also different. All furnished in white, pale blue and gold, I feel like I am in a cultural paradise of the high-class Prague bourgeoisie from the end of 18th century. All cherubic bottoms are perfectly rounded

Once I was taken behind the scenes, where the singers and orchestra were preparing for Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute). Seeing the Queen of Night sipping her drink, Sarastros chatting with Tamino and the First Violin smoking her last cigarette before the show, that was something I will never forget.

And then there was the show – their production of The Magic Flute is truly breathtaking. Maybe what counts here is the enormous success that W. A. Mozart experienced with his opera buffa Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro). Afterwards which he wrote Don Giovanni especially for this theatre, and for those he named as “my Praguers who understand me.”

Have a look at their programme and choose your evening tale!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
The Estates Theatre | Art & culture, Music, Theaters | Tickets from CZK 50.00
Ovocný trh | Praha 1 | +420224228503
Box office 10:00 – 18:00 & 45 min. before the beginning of a performance

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