Divadlo na Vinohradech by Karel Stolar - Prague, Czech Republic
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ToRo61
N 50° 04.565 E 014° 26.210
33U E 459703 N 5547241
Divadlo na Vinohradech // Vinohrady Theatre
Waymark Code: WMVBAG
Location: Hlavní město Praha, Czechia
Date Posted: 03/27/2017
Views: 27
Together with the St. Ludmila’s Temple and the National House (Národní dum), the Na Vinohradech Theatre is the third dominant of Prague’s district Vinohrady.
The programme of the construction was elaborated by a town’s architect Antonín Turek, and an architectural competition was opened in 1902. The first prize, out of 12 received projects, was awarded to ing. arch. Alois Censký. His original project is still in new-Renaissance style, yet in the end he built a Secession theatre. In 1905 - 07 it was built by Vinohrady builders Jan Majer and Josef Veselý. There were several competitions opened for both exterior and interior decorations of the building. The sculptural competition was won by Milan Havlícek, who created the monumental allegories of Bravery with an erected sword in her right hand, and of Truth with a mirror in her left hand. These were installed on the pylons above the main front. They were probably the greatest sculptures in the country to be placed on a house, they were 7 m high and altogether they weighed 36 tons.
The theatre was modernized in 1922 and two years later it got a circular horizon for the stage, new lighting fixtures and a moving portal. In 1927, also the stage was restored with the space for the orchestra and an iron curtain. Back then, there were 1060 sitting places in the theatre, 12 four-seat boxes, and 180 standing places. Great personalities of Czech theatre were employed in the theatre, such as Anna Sedlácková, Jaroslav Vojta, Zdenek Štepánek, František Smolík, František Kovárík, to name just a few people from the older generation and many others. There are busts of some artists closely connected with the history of this theatre in the large parlour on the first floor. Above all, there is the bust of Karel Capek, who was very close to the theatre. It was made by sculptor Karel Dvorák and donated to the theatre by Olga Scheinpflugová. Busts of František Langer and Jirí Frejka were made by Jan Kodet. There is also a bust of actress Anna Letenská, who was executed in the Mauthausen concentration camp during the Heydrich affair, as she and her husband provided shelter to the doctor who treated the wounded brave paratroopers. During occupation, in the years 1941 - 42, the theatre was closed. The building was hit and damaged during the ally air-raid on the 14th February 1945.
The theatre often changed its name: in the years 1929 - 44 it was one of the Prague Municipal Theatres, in 1944 - 45 it was Theatre of J. K. Tyl, in 1945 - 50 it was the Municipal Theatre at Vinohrady, in 1950 - 66 it was the Theatre of the Czechoslovak Army, and since 1966 the name has settled on the Na Vinohradech Theatre.
The author of this painting is Karel Stolar. Karel Stolar is the book illustrator who is dedicated to creating drawings sights. You can find this painting in book 'Pražské domy vyprávejí III.'
This book is one of a twelve-part series of books describing structural changes and the development of cultural-historical monuments of Prague (houses, villas and palaces, library, banks, school, museum, hospital, farm, etc.).
Website of painting. Exact URL of painting is required: [Web Link]
Artist: Karel Stolař
Date of Your Photograph: 02/05/2017
Medium of Painting: pen and ink
Date of Painting: Not listed
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