Cinema – theatre – café

The Exhibition of Contemporary Culture in Czechoslovakia presented various results of many areas of human activities, including works by Czechoslovak artists. Fine arts were also presented in the roofed yard of the Palace of Industry and Trade, where individual artistic associations displayed their works. Theatre and film were presented live in a special hall designed by Emil Králík. The architect's design involved the year-round use of the building as a cinema, theatre and a large capacity café. During the Exhibition of Contemporary Culture the hall housed screenings of various scientific and promotional films as well as coverage of the happenings in the exhibition centre.
The main entrance, situated in the symmetrical and smooth facade, brought visitors to the spacious lounge with a glass soffit, which led directly to the hall for 850 viewers. The interiors were equipped with furniture by Thonet-Mundus; the stage mechanism was supplied by Česká Kolben-Daněk. The theatre hall was expanded by a gallery accessible via a staircase from the lounge; left of the main entrance, there was a café with tables outside and a terrace on the upper level. This unique connection of the interior and exterior, contrasting with the closed area of the facade, was marred by the addition in the 1950s of walls enclosing the terraces as well as the crescent outer staircase of the café.