The study deals with the dramatic work of Josef Topol (1935–2015), whose legacy will be commemorated with several anniversaries in 2025: ninety years since the writer’s birth, ten years since his death, and sixty years since the first performance of his play Kočka na kolejích (Cat on the Rails). The last anniversary is also associated with founding of the renowned theatre where Topol worked as a resident playwright, dramaturge and director: the premiere of his play took place on 23 November 1965 during the inaugural performance of Divadlo za branou (Behind the Gate Theatre). The study initially describes the genesis of the play, then examines its experimental compositional construction and secondary meanings, followed by its various stage interpretations and its analysis as a literary work.
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