The exhibition sees playbills as an important historical source and presents their development throughout three centuries. Visitors will learn that the playbills are not made of metal, but they are printed information which have been hung on theatre buildings. They refer to the performances, whereas artistic posters try to draw attention to the production as such. The visitors will not see playbills only, but they will have the opportunity to see Josef Kajetán Tyl’s tailcoat or handwriting of Václav Kliment Klicpera, Jan Neruda, Mrštík brothers, and Karel Čapek. The costume and juggling facilities of the first Ringmaster from the Bartered Bride.
“The Theatre Department of the National Museum has an extensive collection and it would be unfortunate not to present the unique exhibits to the visitors. I believe that the exhibition will be interesting not only due to the high informational value, but also the arrangement and attractiveness of the items,” says Michal Lukeš, the director general of the National Museum.
The exhibition Please Enter Our Theatre was carried out in cooperation with The National Museum, Arts and Theatre Institute, and the Moravian Museum as part of the project MK NAKI II Cesta k divadlu/Journey to Theatre. The exhibition has the eponymous catalogue, which is available at the ATI, our online bookshop Prospero and the National Museum. The credit for a substantial part of the catalogue Please Enter Our Theatre goes to PhDr. Jitka Ludvová as the editor, PhDr. Alena Jakubcová, Ph.D., the theatre historian specializing in 18th century theatre and music, and Mgr. et Mgr. Věra Velemanová, the theatre researcher and historian.
The exhibition is located at the New Building of the National Museum from 13 December 2019 to 12 February 2020.
More information, including the supporting programme and opening hours, is available here.
