Theaters (theatres) – All our local tips

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, …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.

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Archa Theatre | Art & culture, Music, Theaters
Na Poříčí 26 | Praha 1 | +420221716333
According the programme

Get swallowed by a living mechanical organism, moving in the rhythm of ska-punk-rockabilly-techno-drone-dnb-jungle-hip hop-chill out.

Buy a drink in one the bars and then sit down. I tell you – that’s the best position to admire a fan made of scrap iron and car-exhaust pipes. Lights above the tables consisting of gearboxes, drain pipes and kinetic sculptures of many kinds. All polished and mounted with care, animated with extreme effort and unlimited imagination.

Cross club is truly one of the most original Prague clubs. Gives enough space for whatever I feel like doing. Two stages, a theater and two to three bars are open for all kinds of concerts, poetry readings, exhibitions, and I shall not forget to mention the Ghettolledge – a street university.

Be sure that by your next visit there something will have changed – because the world behind the looking glass is never the same, including the numerous corridors that made you feel like you were lost in the rabbit hole the very first time you entered.

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Cross club | Art & culture, Bars, Music, Theaters | Ticket from CZK 100
Plynární 23 | Praha 7
From 16:00 (until the barman is in sleep) daily

La Fabrika has shone like the Bethlehem star in the field of art for a couple of years now. A free space for art that is contemporary but comprehensible for a broader public.

La Fabrika does not have a static group of artists, so it is truly a „free space”, as it calls itself. I love to go there see some dance, La Putyka for instance last time (which is brilliant, but – to enjoy it in its fullness is better to be able to understand Czech – or have some Czech companion, who can translate some of the songs).

Or I also remember the festival of modern classical music, Contempuls, which was perfect – from free wine on the bar till the last note of the evening. There are also all kinds of visual art and other multimedia events. The scope of La Fabrika is really broad and always interesting.

Want to know what’s up tonight? Check the La Fabrika news!

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La Fabrika | Art & culture, Music, Theaters, Festivals & events
Komunardů 30 | Praha 7
depends on given programme

I love going to the opera. I love all the rituals. It starts when buying the tickets. Then I dress up, do my make-up, hair style. And then, armed with my little Christian Dior purse, I slip into the shoes that I had on me in La Scala while visiting Milano. And I am ready to enjoy the glass of champagne during intermission, all those stand-ups and sit-backs while letting people pass to their seats, and leaving a tip for the person selling the programme. Of course you can get in in jeans and a sweater – but I think you definitely miss half of the fun.

The National Theatre, has an impressive exterior while inside it is all cloaked in king crimson velvet, gold and rich stucco ornaments. National Theatre is is one of the symbols of national pride, mirroring itself in the Vltava river. And it does have an interesting history. The support for building the theatre that came from the whole nation was more like a political proclamation. And when it got burned down in 1881, in 47 days (!) there were all the money and resources collected again, to be reopened 1883.

Tickets for today’s programme can be bought 45 minutes before the beginning of each performance at the evening box office, which is at the back of the theatre in the narrow corridor leading to Ostrovní street between the old/historical building and Laterna Magica (the glassy cube).

Spotted by Locals tip: If you love ballet, choose one with choreography by Petr Zuska (this season it is Extreme or Solo for Three). You won’t regret it.

Also there is a Čapek’s Makropulos turned into an opera by Leoš Janáček in cooperation with English National Opera London. I do recommend that!

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National Theatre | Art & culture, Music, Theaters | Ticket from CZK 50.00
Ostrovní 1 | Praha 1 | +420224901448
Box office 10:00 – 18:00 & 45 min. before the beginning of a performance

Have a drink or two and maybe meet some friends. That’s one of the reasons why I pop into the NoD bar time to time. The  other important reasons are the concerts, exhibition openings, and performances.

Experimental space NoD is connected with Roxy (see this article), a famous Prague club, and one of the oldest. Roxy downstairs, NoD upstairs. A perfect combination for those who feel frisky day`n`night.  NoD defines three subdivisions: theatre NoD, gallery NoD, and multimedia NoLab. They are connected by their openness to any good quality projects, efforts to uncover strange juxtapositions and dialogs.

When you arrive, get a drink first. The huge bar cannot be overlooked. Do not worry where to sit, there will always be a space, by the bar itself or on the platform next to the bar, or by the alcoves with jungle plants. And let me know, if you manage to work out any sensible connection between the neo-classical stuccos on the ceiling and the crazy paintings on the walls!

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NoD | Art & culture, Bars, Music, Snacks, Theaters | Show from CZK 100
Dlouhá 33 | Praha 1
14:00 – 22:00 daily

When I think about the times when Roxy was one of the very few options in Prague for a decent evening, when I felt like some dancing, it makes me feel like I am getting old. Hush, that`s not the topic

Opened in 1992 under the name of Roxy, after a thorough reconstruction led by architect Jan Mayer, this place become alive again. In 20`s and 30`s it was a shining pearl at the Old Town, full of people in its restaurant, cinema and a ballroom.

Today, after another rebirth in 2002  after being damaged by the enormous floods, the Experimental Area Roxy/NoD now offers a full variety of concerts, dance music, gallery presentations, internet café with wi-fi connection, theatre, films, performances and workshops. For some of their best gigs have a look yourself.

If you are into clubbing and are in Prague for couple days, Roxy is definitely the place to go – next to Radost FX (see this article). Have a look at the programme to see if anything interests you. They have regular Free Mondays and Midweek Lounge, where entry is free.

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Roxy | Art & culture, Bars, Cinemas, Music, Theaters
Dlouhá 33 | Praha 1 | +420224826296
Depends on given programme

Built by count František Antonín Nostic-Rieneck in classicist style, was opened in 1783 with 1000 seats. Later, to make it more comfortable, the number of seats were lowered to today’s 659. After the count`s death, the theatre was given to Czech estates, and renamed from the ‚Nostic Theatre’ to the ‚Estates Theatre’.

As the history of this one is very different from that of The National Theatre (check the National theatre article), 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!

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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