National Theatre

The Czechs crowdfunded this building before crowdfunding was a word. In the 1860s, the idea of a National Theatre — a grand stage for Czech-language opera and drama, separate from the German-speaking institutions that dominated Prague — became a patriotic cause. Ordinary citizens donated whatever they could. Foundation stones were gathered from historically significant sites across Bohemia. The whole nation chipped in, and the motto "Narod sobe" — "The nation to itself" — was carved above the proscenium.

The theatre opened triumphantly on June 11, 1881, with the world premiere of Bedrich Smetana's opera "Libuse." It was the proudest moment in Czech cultural history. Then, exactly two months later, on August 12, plumbers finishing work on lightning rods dumped hot coals into a gutter. The coals ignited gas lines, and the copper dome, auditorium, and stage were destroyed by fire. The nation was devastated.

What happened next was extraordinary. Within 47 days, citizens raised one million florins to rebuild. Architect Josef Schulz took over from the original designer Josef Zitek — who was wrongly blamed for neglecting fire prevention and resigned in bitterness — and the theatre reopened on November 18, 1883, again with "Libuse." The rebuilt theatre was even grander than the original, featuring early electric lighting and a steel stage structure.

The National Theatre remains the most important performing arts venue in the Czech Republic. Its golden roof gleams along the Vltava embankment, and the interior — decorated by a generation of Czech artists known as the "National Theatre Generation" — is itself a masterpiece worth seeing even if you skip the show.