The young god Dionysus arrives in Thebes to initiate the city’s inhabitants into his cult. His passionate female followers, the Bacchae, revel in a strange ritual, indulging in orgies and falling into a state akin to madness. Their behaviour infuriates King Pentheus of Thebes, who confronts the stranger. Unfortunately, he has no inkling who his rival is, ignoring those around him who advise him to show humility. The arrival of a new god may not necessarily spell salvation, but it does signal the accession of a new order. Who’s right? Pentheus, who refuses to understand the impending change and strives to keep a firm grasp on the world, or Dionysus, the rabble rouser? Perhaps equilibrium can never hold sway without chaos.
About the company
The National Theatre Drama is the biggest company of its ilk in the Czech Republic. We strive to include works of the classical and contemporary Czech and international repertoire as well as original projects and Czech premieres in our programming. The productions are visually compelling and exquisitely staged. Our company prepares five to eight new productions a year, while also pursuing a host of accompanying activities, debates and educational programmes.
genres
Drama
THEATRE / COMPANY
National Theatre Prague / Činohra Národního divadla
CZECH TITLE
Bakchantky
AUTHOR
Bakchantky
DIRECTION
Jan Frič
MUSIC
Jakub Kudláč
DRAMATURGY
Nina Jacques
STAGE DESIGN
Dragan Stojčevski
COSTUME DESIGN
Marek Cpin
LIGHTING DESIGN
Přemysl Janda, Jiří Podubský
SOUND DESIGN
Pavel Hořák
LENGTH OF THE PERFORMANCE
97 minutes
STAGE AREA
Large
NUMBER OF TRAVELLING PERSONS
57
LANGUAGE
Czech, Subtitles available
AUDIENCE
Adult, Children 13+
AWARDS
This production won an award in the Theatre Critics Awards for the First Czech Play in 2020.