Virtuoso Life - July/August 2008 - (Page 52) DESIGN TOUR T D THE SURVEY Bohemian Rhapsody From Gothic cathedrals to cubist concoctions, Prague’s buildings span the ages. BY MICHAEL WEBB O The fluid form of Prague’s Dancing House evokes the grace of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. 52 V I RT U O S O L I F E Bildarchiv MonheiM GMBh/alaMY VER THE PAST 20 YEARS, Prague has reinvented itself as a hedonistic retreat, awash in shiny new hotels and restaurants, nightclubs and trendy boutiques. But below that glitzy surface and away from the tourist crowds that surge from Old Town Square across the Charles Bridge and up to ˇ the Hradcany area and Prague Castle, the old magic lingers. Prague is still a mysteryladen labyrinth of Gothic spires and baroque domes, of narrow lanes and palatial facades opening up to the Vltava River. Medieval synagogues and broken gravestones recall the Jewish community that once flourished here, whose tragic history brought about the legend of the golem, a giant that a rabbi once created from clay. Mozart adored Prague – “nothing is played, sung or whistled but Figaro,” he wrote – and the city continues to nurture great music. Fiercely protective of its past, Prague has also fostered artistic
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