It offers jewelry, clothing and fashion accessories, studio and theater photographs, documents and small artifacts from the daily and artistic life of representatives of the domestic art scene from the collections of the NM Theater Department. It shows the position of actors in society over the last 200 years or so, when they initially stood on the edge of it, only to become popular icons and, often against their will, be involved in the political struggles of their time.
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On the concrete life and artistic stories of several dozen important personalities, the exhibition offers reflections on how the great stars influenced the life, fashion or aesthetic style of their time. “We do not shy away from controversial topics either: stories proving how success is not forgiven in the Czech Republic and how various regimes use the popularity of actors,” said NM director Michal Lukeš.
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Visitors will learn details about the relationship between actors and political power in a section called Collaboration !? “The question mark and exclamation mark at the end indicate that few stories are black and white. We do not judge actors, we do not give any plus or minus signs, “said curator Lenka Šaldová.
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The exhibition features objects from the personal estates of great acting stars, such as Ema Destinnová, Hana Kvapilová, Eduard Vojan, Marie Hübnerová, Jindřich Mošna, Svatopluk Beneš, Anna Sedláčková, Marie Zieglerová, Olga Scheinpflugová, Karel Höger and Radovan Lukavský. It shows the environment of large stages and the Vlasta Chramostová residential theater.
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The two-hall exhibition also shows lesser-known or unknown facts about how these personalities lived in their privacy or what they did outside their profession. Specifically, visitors can see, for example, Ema Destinová’s jewelry, Oldřich Nový’s study, Adina Mandlová’s dress or Cinderella’s dress and shoe from the fairy tale Three Nuts for Cinderella.
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The part of the exhibition dedicated to current events also offers the Thalia Award given to Josef Abrhám in 2020 or last year’s Czech Lion Award for Ivan Trojan.
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Information on opening hours and admission can be found at pages National Museum.
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