Mahen Theatre ( cs, Mahenovo divadlo) is a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

situated in the city of Brno. Mahen Theatre, built as German ''Deutsches Stadttheater'' in 1882, was one of the first public buildings in the world lit entirely by electric light. Ort (2007), p. 82 It was built in a combination of

Neo-renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range ...

, Neo-baroque and Neoclassical architectural styles.

History

The city theatre '' Reduta'' in Brno burned down in 1870, and the city council decided to build a new theatre building within a short time period. Thanks to the efforts of then mayor Gustav Winterholler, the decision was taken to build a bigger and better theatre at the place of ''Obstplatz'' (today's ''Malinovský square''). Ort (2007), p. 38 The commission was assigned to the renowned

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

architectural studio Fellner and Helmer. The studio was specialized in projects of theatre buildings. Around 1880, their modern type of theatre building was considered a model. The founding stone was laid on 18 July 1881. The construction went smoothly, taking only 16 months from start to opening of the theatre. Ort (2007), p. 58 During the construction it was necessary to change the building's inner disposition several times. The main reason for this was the devastating fires which were affecting European theatres at the time. In March 1881, a fire in the ''Théâter Royal'' in

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...

killed almost 200 people. In August 1881, a fire destroyed the copper dome, the auditorium and stage of the National Theatre in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

. The same year, another fire in

Ringtheater The Ringtheater was a popular theater in Vienna, Austria. In 1881, it was destroyed in the Ringtheater fire that killed 384 people. The site now houses the federal headquarters of police for Vienna. Construction The Ringtheater was built betwee ...

in Vienna killed at least 384. The builders of the new theatre in Brno decided to take action in order to avoid similar incidents. New exits and additional side stairways were included in the plans. However, the most important decision was to replace the proposed

gas lighting Gas lighting is the production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, coal gas (town gas) or natural gas. The light is produced either directly ...

with a new invention: the electric light. In the middle of 1881, Brno city council negotiated a contract with the

Edison Electric Light Company General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energy ...

. The plans were designed by

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventi ...

himself, and the project was constructed by French and Austrian manufacturers, under the supervision of Edison's assistant Francis Jehl. Ort (2007), p. 81 The power station had to be built in a distant place, almost 300m away from the theatre, to ensure noise minimization. Ort (2007), p. 60 (at ''Offermanngasse'', today's ''Vlhká Street'') Amongst other things, the equipment of the power station consisted of four large dynamos imported from New York. Thomas Edison wasn't present at the installation of the device, he visited Brno only 25 years later. The theatre was opened on 14 November 1882 with the festive overture Consecration of the House by

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

. The opening celebration continued with the play ''"U paní Bruny"'', written by the German director of the theatre, Adolf Franckel, and ended with

Goethe's Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tre ...

Egmont. Ort (2007), p. 62–63 Initially, Mahen Theatre was a German opera house, and it was called ''Deutsches Stadttheater'' (German City Theatre). In 1918, following

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, it passed into the hands of the newly founded Czechoslovak state. It was renamed ''Divadlo na Hradbách'' (Theatre on the City Walls) and the first dramatical adviser became the novelist and playwright Jiří Mahen, after whom the theatre has been named since 1965. In 1936, the theatre was largely reconstructed by the company Kolben - Daněk. Thanks to the reconstruction, it became one of the most modern theatre buildings in Czechoslovakia. Today's Mahen Theatre served mainly as an opera house, until the building of Janáček Theatre in 1965. Five of the late operas by

Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, baptised Leo Eugen Janáček; 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic musics, including Eastern European f ...

were premiered here, as well as the ballet Romeo and Juliet by

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, ...

. Since 1965, the theatre has served as the home stage of the dramatical ensemble of the National Theatre in Brno. Parts of the original wiring are displayed in the

foyer A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, reception area or an entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cinema, etc. ...

of the theatre (as of 2009). Mahen Theatre was proclaimed as one of the National Technical Monuments of the Czech Republic.

Notable premieres

*''

Káťa Kabanová ''Káťa Kabanová'' (also known in various spellings including ''Katia'', ''Katja'', ''Katya'', and ''Kabanowa'') is an opera in three acts, with music by Leoš Janáček to a libretto by the composer based on '' The Storm'', a play by Alexander ...

'' (Leoš Janáček) (1922) *''

The Cunning Little Vixen ''The Cunning Little Vixen'' (original title ''Příhody lišky Bystroušky'' or ''Tales of Vixen Sharp-Ears'' in English), is a three-act Czech-language opera by Leoš Janáček completed in 1923 to a libretto the composer himself adapted from a ...

'' (Leoš Janáček) (1924) *'' The Makropulos Affair'' (Leoš Janáček) (1926) *''

From the House of the Dead ''From the House of the Dead'' () is an opera in three acts by Leoš Janáček. The libretto was translated and adapted by the composer from the 1862 novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was the composer's last opera, premiered on 12 April 1930 at ...

'' (Leoš Janáček) (1930) *'' Romeo and Juliet'' (Sergei Prokofiev) (1938) *''

Destiny Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often ...

'' (Leoš Janáček) (1958)

Notes

References

External links

National Theatre in Brno

TACE
– entry in TACE database {{authority control Theatres in Brno Opera houses in the Czech Republic Theatres completed in 1882 Fellner & Helmer buildings Music venues completed in 1882