Kutná Hora Performing Arts Festival

Festival Foundation

The Kutná Hora Performing Arts Festival (DFKH) was founded in 2015 by the association Kulturní Invaze, specifically by the current manager of the Theatre X10 Kryštof Koláček and the enfant terrible of the Czech theatre, critic and journalist Vojtěch Varyš. The main goal of the festival was to introduce independent theatre to the historical sites of Kutná Hora. The idea was realized in various parts of the town and the festival consequently breathed new life into the Gothic and Baroque buildings. In the first years of its existence, the festival took place inside and outside the Gallery of the Central Bohemian Region, on the Palackého Square, in the Synagogue and also in the ancient Brewery in Sedlec, a peripheral part of the town where the most iconic buildings of the town can be found: the Ossuary and the Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady and Saint John the Baptist. From the beginning, the Theatre X10 was a permanent guest of the festival and it also provided production and technical support.

Archive

Theatre X10 as a Producer

After the sudden death of Vojtěch Varyš, the festival found itself in a critical position and had to find a way forward. At the same time, the Theatre X10 was forced to move out of Strašnice to the centre of Prague and consequently had to end the festival strašNICE. Since the Theatre X10 has always been fond of revitalising atypical spaces and public space by performing arts, the management naturally decided to take over the whole organization of the festival. Therefore, since 2018, the Kutná Hora Performing Arts Festival has been produced and organized by the Theatre X10. In 2019, the structure of the festival significantly changed: a new international dimension was added, the ancient Sedlec Brewery became the centre of the festival, and the theatre managed to establish cooperation with the local community. In the years 2019–2021, Theatre X10 focused on building international contacts and emphasized the networking character of the festival, thanks to which the festival managed to be included in the map of European festivals of similar format. This direction was confirmed with the last edition in 2022, which presented a high-quality artistic international programme and connected artists from Western and Eastern Europe. The Kutná Hora Theatre Festival has grown on the periphery of Kutná Hora into a distinctive artistic showcase of Central European calibre and as such is heading back to the centre of Kutná Hora in 2023.