U Hybernů, Musical theatre in New Town, Prague, Czech Republic
U Hybernů is a former Baroque church converted into an Empire-style theatre at the corner of Hybernská Street and náměstí Republiky in Prague's New Town. Its pale yellow facade has a pale stone lower level, a triangular pediment above small round windows with radiating panes, and a large arched window with dark grid panes above a recessed entrance. Metal letters reading DIVADLO HYBERNIA are mounted above the entrance, and sculptural decoration is by F. X. Lederer.
Charles IV founded a Benedictine monastery of the Ambrosian rite with a Gothic church of St Ambrose on this site. Irish Franciscans, called Hyberni after the Latin name for Ireland, built the Baroque church of the Immaculate Conception in 1652–1659. The monastery was dissolved in 1785 under Joseph II's reforms, and in 1811–1813 Josef Zobel and Georg Fischer gave the former church its Empire facade.
The name comes from the Irish Franciscans, called Hybernia after the Latin name for Ireland. The theatre opened on 23 November 2006 with the musical Golem, and its repertoire has since included Dracula, Tarzan and Zpívání v dešti, alongside guest productions.
The theatre is centrally located in Prague 1 and is easily accessible on foot or by public transport. It is advisable to check the venue's website before your visit to learn about current performances and showtimes.
The Empire facade is a loose replica of the Gentz facade of the Old Berlin Mint of 1798–1800, and it closes the view down Na Příkopě. Inside, the original ceiling vault survives from the church, and a roof terrace open to visitors was added in 2005–2006.
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