Around the theatre
Na Příkopě before or after the show
A short walk around Theatre Broadway: the street built on a moat, the squares at its two ends and the metro line that runs beneath it.
Book the WOW Show ↗A street built on a moat
Na Příkopě means on the moat, and the name is literal. According to Wikipedia, the street follows a moat dug in 1234 along the Old Town's walls, about 10 metres wide and 8 metres deep, filled with water from the Vltava. The moat was covered in 1760, and chestnut trees were planted along it. The street has carried its present name since 1871, and today it separates the Old Town from the New Town, which puts the theatre right on the border between the two.
From horse trams to pedestrians
Na Příkopě was one of the few very wide streets in Prague, so it soon became a traffic artery. The first horse-drawn tram line in the city was set up along it in 1875 and electrified in 1899. In 1978 the metro opened at Můstek, and line B has run beneath the street since 1985, the year the tram line was cancelled and the street became a pedestrian zone. That is why you arrive on foot, between shops, banks and old palaces.
A shopping street today
Wikipedia describes Na Příkopě as a place of representative buildings, including the headquarters of the Czech National Bank, old palaces and luxurious shops. In 2019 it ranked 18th among the most expensive shopping streets in the world by rent, according to the same article. For a theatre visitor the practical meaning is simple: the street is busy, well lit and full of places to meet before the show.
Wenceslas Square at one end
Na Příkopě connects Wenceslas Square with Republic Square. Wenceslas Square is less a square than a boulevard, a long rectangle of about 750 metres with the National Museum at its far end. It began as a horse market when the New Town was founded in 1348, was renamed in 1848 after Saint Wenceslas, and Praguers call it Václavák. The nearest metro station to this end is Můstek, so a walk from the square to the theatre is a natural way to start the evening.
Republic Square at the other
At the far end of the street is Republic Square, where the Municipal House stands next to the Powder Gate. The Municipal House is an Art Nouveau civic building designed by Osvald Polívka and Antonín Balšánek, begun in 1905 and opened in 1912. Czechoslovakia's declaration of independence was proclaimed there in 1918. The nearest metro station to this end is Náměstí Republiky. The building is worth a look from the outside before an evening show.
Walking it end to end
If you want to see the whole street, start at Wenceslas Square and walk toward Republic Square, or the other way round. You follow the path of the moat and of line B beneath your feet. The street is wide, paved and closed to cars, so it suits a slow walk with children or a group. Theatre Broadway is at number 31, and the passage has an entrance on Na Příkopě, so you can step in without leaving the street.
The passage with two doors
The Broadway passage links Na Příkopě 31 with Celetná 38, so Theatre Broadway can be reached from either street. Whichever street you arrive on, you walk through the passage to the theatre, and after the show you can leave by either door. That matters on a cold or wet night, because the passage gives you a covered route between the two streets. The theatre says its nearest metro stations are Náměstí Republiky on line B and Můstek on lines A and B.
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