THEATRE: NÁRODNÍ TŘÍDA

A typical evening at Severka. People are drinking beer and shots. Everything is fine, no one is causing trouble. Even the last German is calm. Until someone starts causing trouble. A slight silence. The calm before the storm. The history of the world is setting in motion. Vandam knows very well that there is no velvet here in the housing estate. It is a fortress where he is at home and which he defends. Only he can save everyone, teach everyone about life.

"The history of the world is nothing more than painting over, sanding, thinning and coating."

Author: Jaroslav Rudiš

Theatrical adaptation: Lukáš Cenker and Eliáš Gaydečka

Director: Eliáš Gaydečka

Dramaturgy: Lukáš Cenker

Set design and costumes: Emma Šťovíčková

Movement collaboration: Karolina Gilová

Voice collaboration: Anna Brousková

Music: Radek Lajfr Production: Štěpánka Vachová, Charlota Ciklerová

Photography: Anna Křepínská and Emma Šťovíčková

Cast: Barbora Bolíková, František Florián, Prokop Košař, Radek Lajfr, Marek Nagl

The production was created with financial support from the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and a grant from the Jewish Community in Prague.

The production is not suitable for viewers under the age of fifteen. The production contains profanity, violence, alcohol and tobacco products, blood, and rapid lighting changes.



This theatrical adaptation of Jaroslav Rudiš's novel of the same name tells the story of Vandam, a pub brawler from the outskirts of Prague, whose worldview reflects many of the extreme political opinions held by a number of our fellow citizens. The production thus depicts themes such as the creeping spread of neo-Nazism, belief in populist platitudes, violence against women, frustration with the economic situation, and alcoholism.

Although we take a critical and sometimes parodic approach to these issues, our intention is not to berate viewers with different worldviews, but to try to find at least a basic understanding for anyone through characters with any kind of extremist views. The aim of the production is to highlight the problems of lack of communication and the rise of extremism in our country. We do not want to humiliate or discredit anyone, but rather to open up a discussion on pressing issues through the theatrical experience.

The production Národní třída was created as a bachelor's production by Eliáš Gaydečka, a student of directing at the Department of Drama Theatre at DAMU, in June 2024. Since then, it has been permanently added to the repertoire of Peškovka (a subsidiary space of the Švandovo Theatre in Smíchov) and has also toured several festivals such as Povaleč and WTF at the F. X. Šalda Theatre in Liberec.