Mestské divadlo Brno - Czech Republic
Posted by: Arne1
N 49° 12.082 E 016° 36.465
33U E 617118 N 5451084
The city theater of Brno, dramatic and musical scenes.
Waymark Code: WM8W3E
Location: Jihomoravský kraj, Czechia
Date Posted: 05/19/2010
Views: 181
[EN]
Already in the period of the “First Republic”, there were tendencies to create the second drama theatre in Brno, however it was only after the War, at the end of May 1945, when a group of young dramatic artists led by Milan Pásek, a twenty-five years old stage director, was successful in obtaining a licence for the operation of the second drama theatre. Such a success was reached thanks to professor Jirí Kroha, who at those times discharged a post of a cultural referent in the National Committee and supported the idea of founding a new theatre. However, the conditions were quite harsh: it was not necessary just to prove economic self-sufficiency, but also artistic viability in a test period of three months (June – September). It was an absurd idea. Nowadays, nobody would go the theatre on hot summer days. But it was the after-war period, the “cultural fast” had been long and so there was nothing to discourage the spectators. The theatre group began to play in the Falkensteiner Street (today’s Gorkého Street) using a name of Free Theatre, and in the test period, five new plays were staged. According to the number of repeat performances, a Czech novelty Manon Lescaut by V. Nezval and Pseudolus by Plautus were then the most successful plays. A group of young enthusiasts seemed to win popularity and till the end of the season (June 1946) it produced 15 new plays. Twenty first-night performances, it was a respectable efficiency. The Free Theatre was a very poor theatre (low wages; there was little money for stage sets, etc.), however, it was rich with energy, creativity and enthusiasm. In four years (until the end of the season 1948 to 1949), the theatre put on 71 new plays and more than one thousand repeat performances. The plays The Mother and The Macropulos Thing by Karel Capek belonged to the most attractive plays together with detective novel Ten Little Indians by Agatha Christie.
However, at that time new “reforms” were “knocking on the door”. The theatre (as well as others) was forced not only to change the artistic concept but also to change its name – City and District Theatre, Regional District Theatre, which implied that the theatre was obliged to care for the export of theatre culture to Moravian and Bohemian regions. Since 1962, the theatre took a name after the Mrštík brothers. Just a few know that another name was “threatening” the theatre – a name after the minister Zdenek Nejedlý – and that the clever theatre artists remembered the Mrštík brothers and used them as a protection against the other name in spite of the fact that besides Marisha, they did not put on practically any of their plays. The theatre’s seat was in the Jakubské Square (today’s Bolek Polívka´s Theatre). The theatre kept the name The Mrštík Brothers´ Theatre until 1988, when it was pressed to join the Vecerní Brno Theatre and the Radost Marionette Theatre, using a common name The Theatres of Brno. However, after the “Velvet Revolution”, this gigantic conglomerate broke down and the definite name Mestské divadlo Brno (the Brno City Theatre) was given to the theatre. The whole of this quite an interesting history was described in details by professor doctor Zdenek Srna in the publication called The Half a Hundred Years of the Brno City Theatre. Today, professor Srna is perhaps the only one who has seen all the theatre’s performances since its creation until the contemporary days, which means that the above-mentioned publication reflects an insight and well-founded view. Many creators have worked in the theatre; let’s name at least the most important ones, such as professor Rudolf Walter, dr. Libor Pleva; Antonín Kurš; Jan Fišer and Milan Pásek – the director and manager-founder, then a manager since the sixties until the end of eighties, and finally Stanislav Moša, the current manager and chief director, under whose management the theatre has radically changed its artistic course. The alteration of the existing auditorium and stage of the theatre in the Lidická Street and the building of a new auditorium and stage for 700 spectators is mostly the result of Mr. Moša´s efficient activities and effort. Since the very beginning until the present days, the theatre has put up 600 new plays, and in the year of its anniversary in 2005, when the theatre will be 60 years old repeat performances difficult to count.
[CS]
Tendence založit v Brne druhou cinoherní scénu existovaly ješte za první republiky, ale až po válce, hned koncem kvetna 1945 se podarilo skupine mladých divadelníku, v cele s petadvacetiletým režisérem Milanem Páskem získat licenci k provozování druhé cinoherní scény zásluhou profesora Jirího Krohy, který tehdy v Brne zastával na NV funkci kulturního referenta a podporil tento nápad. Podmínky byly ale tvrdé – prokázat nejen ekonomickou sobestacnost, ale predevším umeleckou životaschopnost ve zkušebním období trí mesícu (cerven – zárí). Absurdní predstava. Dnes by v letním parnu nikdo do divadla nešel. Ale bylo po válce, kulturní pust byl dlouhý a tak diváky nic neodradilo. Soubor zacal pusobit pod názvem Svobodné divadlo na Falkensteinerove ulici (dnes Gorkého) a v té zkušební dobe odpremiéroval 5 nových her. Podle poctu repríz byla nejúspešnejší tehdy ceská novinka V. Nezvala Manon Lescaut a Plautuv Lišák Pseudolus. Soubor mladých nadšencu zrejme presvedcil a stacil do konce sezony (cerven 1946) nastudovat ješte dalších 15 nových her. Dvacet premiér byl úctyhodný výkon. Svobodné divadlo bylo sice divadlem chudickým (malé gáže, nebylo penez na výpravy, atd.), ale bohatým na energii a tvurcí nadšení. Za ctyri roky (do koce sezony 1948 - 1949) melo divadlo na svém kontu 71 premiér a pres tisíc repríz. K nejvetším tahákum patrily hry Karla Capka – Matka a Vec Makropulos a detektivka Agathy Christie Deset malých cernoušku.
Ale to už klepaly na dvere „nové“ reformy. Divadlo (tak jako ostatní) muselo menit nejen umelecké koncepce, ale i prejmenovat svuj název – Mestské a oblastní divadlo, Krajské oblastní divadlo, což znamenalo, že divadlo má v povinnosti dbát i o rozvoz divadelní kultury v moravských a ceských regionech. Od roku 1962 bylo divadlo prejmenováno po bratrích Mrštících. Málokdo už ví, že divadlu hrozil jiný název - po ministru Zdenku Nejedlém - a že chytrí divadelnící si vzpomneli na bratry Mrštíky a zaštítili se jimi, i když krome Maryši se k jejich odkazu vlastne nehlásili. Sídlo melo divadlo na Jakubském námestí (dnes Divadlo Bolka Polívky). Název Divadlo brí Mrštíku si divadlo drželo až do roku 1988, kdy bylo násilne slouceno s divadlem Vecerní Brno a Loutkovým divadlem Radost pod jeden název Brnenská divadla. Monstrózní celek se naštestí po sametové revoluci rozpadl a dospel k definitivnímu názvu Mestské divadlo Brno. Celou tu zajímavou historii podrobne popsal prof. dr. Zdenek Srna v publikaci Pulstoletí Mestského divadla Brno. V historii divadla se vystrídalo mnoho tvurcu - jmenujme alespon ty nejhlavnejší, jako byli prof. Rudolf Walter, dr. Libor Pleva, Antonín Kurš, Jan Fišer, Milan Pásek – zakládající režisér a reditel, poté pak reditel od šedesátých let až do konce let osmdesátých, a konecne Stanislav Moša, soucasný reditel a šéfrežisér, pod jehož vedením divadlo zásadne zmenilo umelecký kurs. Prestavba Cinoherní scény na Lidické, a výstavba nové Hudební scény pro 7OO diváku, je predevším Mošovou užitecnou aktivitou a zásluhou. Divadlo má na svém konte - od svého pocátku do soucasnosti - 600 premiér, a v roce svého jubilea 2005 – bude divadlu už 60 let a težko pocitatelné množství repríz.
(theater web)
seating capacity: dramatic:320, musical:680
Theater Name: Městské divadlo Brno (Brno City Theatre)
Country: Czech Republic
Address: Lidická 16 Brno, Czech Republic CZ-60200
Web Site: [Web Link]
Venue: Community Theater
Type of Productions: dramatic, musicals
Restored Building: yes
Date of Construction: dramatic:1870 / musical:2004
Architect/Designer: dramatic: Jindřich Fanta / musical: Roman Mach a Josef Kubín
Stage Type: Proscenium
Special Productions/Events/Festivals: seating capacity: dramatic:320, musical:680
Seating Capacity: Not Listed
|
Visit Instructions:
One photo different from the one on the home page.
Briefly describe your visit -- date, occasion, your impressions.