Eve of the Grand Requiem

On the eve of the world premiere of *The Velvet Requiem*, the Prague National Theatre—the magnificent neo-Renaissance landmark on the banks of the Vltava River—stood in silent, breathtaking grandeur beneath a falling curtain of fresh winter snow. Inside the locked theater at two in the morning, the vast auditorium was dark, save for the soft illumination of the stage work lights. The Prague National Theatre was the crown jewel of…