Dobrý den from Prague! I write again after busy days exploring the Prague Quadrennial and the Czech capital itself. Prague is a city with a rich theatrical tradition and the city continues to value its theatre today. We were pleasantly surprised to find a quality company not far from our hotel and, in fact, our “daily commute” takes us from our local, humble “Divadlo Na Fidlovačce” (http://www.fidlovacka.cz/) to the “Národní Divadlo,” the grand National Theatre itself.

The National Theatre

The National Theatre complex is one of the most prominent landmarks on the Vltava River (http://www.narodni-divadlo.cz/Default.aspx?jz=en). The site houses two performance spaces and three separate ensembles for ballet, opera, and theatre. The historical National Theatre building opened in 1881 but burned to the ground after only 11 performances. Reopened in 1883, the interior retains its 19th c. flavor while the real gold on the roof of the exterior demonstrates the importance of theatre to the people of Prague. The New Stage is the primary home of Laterna Magika, the movement theatre founded by famed Czech scenographer Josef Svoboda. Sadly, but not surprisingly, the season’s offerings—including works by Shakespeare, Goldoni, Chekhov, & Brecht, as well as the Czech premiere of Pulitzer Prize winner August: Osage County—were sold out through our visit.

The National Theatre reflected in the New Theatre

After a quick browse of the National Box Office and Gift Shop, we were directed to the Prague Quadrennial Box Office, conveniently located in the National Theatre Piazza. A two-day pass for the PQ came to 300 Czech crowns (about $18) and entitled the holder to entry at all PQ venues as well as a good deal of PQ literature. Armed with a PQ map showing venue locations and a PQ Guide detailing exhibit content, we headed towards Old Town where we found the “Student Info Center” and a few “Intersection” performance locations. The main PQ site was, however, situated across the river and with two-day pass in hand, we decided to head there the next morning for a full day of PQ perusal.

At the primary PQ venue, the “Section of Countries and Regions” offered a wide variety of experiences ranging from exquisite scenic models and renderings to interactive performance pieces. Each country was given a space to establish an exhibit and the offerings ranged from fully enclosed (and occasionally menacing) rooms to open, welcoming performance areas. The Japanese exhibit drew crowds to hourly performances while members of the Czech delegation interacted with attendees one-on-one. Visitors to the U.S. exhibit, “From the Edge,” were thanked upon leaving a display of “vital designs reflective of socio-political issues consuming American performance makers.” Perhaps best of all, the Polish offering invited spectators to become designers by asking each to pick up a scraper and help reveal a display hidden behind a layer of paint.

The “Student Section” proved doubly intriguing for, in addition to showcasing the work of emerging artists, it also offered glimpses into theatrical training methods throughout the world. Exhibits from Mexico and India stressed traditional crafts and theatre forms, while China’s students engaged with classics of the Western theatre canon, including Shakespeare and Miller’s Death of a Salesman (an intriguing choice to stage in a Communist state). The standard of work throughout the Student Section was very high and offers a great deal of hope for the future of the medium.

As my colleague is a costume designer, we saved the “Extreme Costume” exhibit for last. The pieces on display, although few in number, nevertheless demonstrated extraordinary craft technique—a period dress for an adaptation of Titus Andronicus was made entirely of bullet casings, a costume for an opera cast its wearer as a life-size plastic action figure, and individual costumes made of ice and light made sure the exhibit lived up to its name. The costume exhibit proved the highlight of the PQ, and not just because of my colleague’s interest in costume crafts. Unlike the scenic designs, which were largely created for relatively unknown works, the costumes were contextualized by pictures and films showing the designs “in action.” Indeed, the PQ’s main attraction—its focus on cutting edge design—is also a bit of an Achilles Heel for, unless one is familiar with the work being designed, it can be difficult to understand the significance of the design work. As a spectator, one felt drawn to familiar play titles as a means of comprehending the incredible work on display—and familiar play titles were shockingly few.

All in all, the Prague Quadriennial offered an occasionally baffling but obviously broadening experience. As an entity, the PQ proves that world of theatre is both tiny and vast. My most lasting memory of the PQ will not be the exhibits, as fine as they were. Instead, what will stay with me is the memory of scraps of paper and sticky notes posted throughout the venue, each with a small message for a friend with instructions about where/when/how to meet up for a drink/chat/good-bye. Given the wide variety of cultures on display in their most impressive forms, these simple acts of communication offered poignant evidence of contact between new and old friends that will, no doubt, lead to future international collaborations.