Šárka

See Czech opera in the Prague National Theatre

In Czech, surtitles in Czech, English

The story of Zdeněk Fibich’s Šárka depicts the Maidens’ War, an uprising that broke out after the death of the mythical Princess Libuše, with the women striving to regain the privileges they enjoyed during her reign.

The legend can be found in a variety of literary sources, from Cosmas of Prague’s 12th–century Chronica Boemorum to Alois Jirásek’s ever-popular Old Czech Legends, first published in 1894. During the 19th-century National Revival, Bohemian mythology inspired a number of artists, influenced in part by the fake Manuscript of Dvůr Králové and Manuscript of Zelená Hora, motifs of which even appear in the decorations of Prague’s National Theatre. Besides Libuše and Šárka, the legend of the women’s uprising reflects in Smetana’s cycle My Country (the tone poems Vyšehrad and Šárka), as well as in Otakar Ostrčil’s opera The Death of Vlasta. Fibich evidently closely worked on Šárka with the librettist Anežka Schulzová, a pupil of the prominent Czech author Jaroslav Vrchlický, with their amorous relationship having had a positive impact on their endeavours.

Performing: 

National Theatre Chorus
National Theatre Orchestra
National Theatre Opera Ballet
Soloists

Important:

• The purchased tickets cannot be returned or exchanged
• No discounts are provided
• Two intermissions (35 min. and 20 min.)
• Theatre is a cultural institution. Please respect the common principles of appropriate behaviour and clothing
• The program may be subject to change
• The price includes service fee of 3,7 € (100,- CZK)

Concerts in the Municipal House - Smetana Hall

The National Theatre in Prague

The National Theatre is the most important and representative theatre of the Czech Republic

The Prague National Theatre was built from the desire of the Czech people for national independence. Its building was financed from the collections on which participated broad masses of people as well as important donators (including the nobility and the emperor himself). The theatre foundation ceremonial on 16th May 1868 became a national celebration.

The theatre was opened in 1881. In the same year the theatre burned down, and this tragic event caused a huge wave of new collections to support the restoration of the theatre. The Prague National Theatre was re-opened in 1883 by the opera Libuše by Bedřich Smetana and since then it has been serving as a place of Czech national identity and as a flagship of the Czech culture to these days.

How to get there: 

• Accessibility by Prague public transport:
  metro B (yellow line) - Národni třída station
  tram - Národní divadlo stop
• Nearest car parking:
  The underground car park of the National Theatre