The National Theater canceled over 400 performances from March to July due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Jan Burian, the director of the National Theater, stated that the theater returned 51 million CZK to the customers. More than 2 million CZK are still waiting to be returned for the canceled shows.
Burian stated that the Ministry of Culture helped to cover the expenses. The theater revenue lacks more than 121 million CZK, and this is just the number for the March-June period. The expected amount of the total loss is 251.8 million CZK. The Ministry covered 117.6 million CZK and offered various subsidies.
Lubomír Zaorálek, the Minister of Culture, allows the theater to open even though the pandemic is not over, and further restrictions, such as the wearing of masks during performances, are expected from September 1st. He promises to find out a way of testing the artists and workers every day to avoid any risks.
Also, Burian believes that the introduction of the specific regime for changing rooms and refreshment zones can lower the possibility of infection. As for the theater halls, they are designed to have different sectors.
Currently, all of the collaborations with foreign companies are postponed. For example, the Prague Crossroads International Festival usually happened at the beginning of the season. This time, it will be happening throughout the entire period, CTK reports.
Premieres, which were postponed by the National Theater because of the quarantine, are either happening or expected to happen shortly. In total, there will be 19 premieres this season. The celebration of the first big opening is going to be on September 3rd at Strelecky Ostrov with a special concert.
