On February 9th the MYP0 and MYP1 students visited the Croatian National Theatre. Under the expert guidance we took a special backstage tour which allowed us to peek behind the scene of the show.

We got an amazing insight into the places that are usually closed to public: the emperor’s salon, dressing rooms, tailoring workshops, ballet studios, costume stores, corridors and underground tunnels. We admired beautiful paintings on the walls and a golden chandelier on the ceiling. We even had a chance to watch a ballet performance rehearsal.

During the tour we found out a lot about the theatre’s history and old secrets. The building was designed by two Austrian architects Hermann Helmer and Ferdinand Fellner. It took only sixteen and a half months to build, from May 1894 to October 1895. The Emperor Franz Joseph I of the Habsburg monarchy attended the grand opening. At the time of its opening, Croatia was part of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. During the tour we sat in the Emperor’s salon, where the emperor Franc Joseph and his friends waited for plays to start. There are around 850 seats in the theatre including the ones in the loggia boxes. At least twelve premiers are performed annually in the Croatian National Theatre. The most popular shows are 'The Nutcracker' and 'Swan Lake'. Speaking of art, in front of the theatre we can see 'The Well of Life' designed by Ivan Meštrović. It is believed to be one of his finest pieces of art.

The tour was a really unique experience for all of us as it revealed us the hidden side of theatre and we would recommend it to everyone!

Karla (Journalist Group)