Sofia certainly takes culture seriously, although, during summer, its pre-eminence is closely rivalled by neighboring Plovdiv or Varna. In keeping with European tradition, Sofians enjoy ballet, opera and theater. These are of such high quality and low price, visitors are advised to have a look, despite language difficulties. The city’s official arts center,
Natsionalen Dvorets na Kulturata or
National Palace of Culture (
NDK), 1 Ploshtad Bulgaria, Yuzhen Park (tel: (02) 9166 2300; website:
www.ndk.bg), is a colossal
modern structure incorporating concert halls, exhibition spaces, congress facilities and the
Lumière Cinema. Most major cultural events take place here. The box office is to the left of the main entrance.
Tickets to cultural events are available from the
National Palace of Culture (
NDK), for all major venues, or from the individual venue box offices. The English-language weekly
Sofia Echo supplement,
Culture Shock, and the monthly
Sofia City Info Guide can provide details of ’what’s on’.
Music: The
Bulgaria Hall and Bulgaria Chamber Hall, 1 Aksakov Ulica (tel: (02) 987 7656), is the top venue symphonic concerts and boasts a showpiece pipe organ. The
National Radio Orchestra is highly recommended.
Sofia National Opera, 1 Vrabcha Ulica (tel: (02) 987 7011), hosts the main opera and ballet performances in one of Sofia’s most impressive buildings. The foyers, balconies and main hall are painted with scenes from various well known operas.
Stefan Makedonski State Music Theater, 3 Panayot Volov Ulica (tel: (02) 442 321), stages lighter operettas and musicals. Finally, Eastern Orthodox Church services offer a perfect opportunity to hear highly skilled choirs chanting amid incense and flickering candles.
Theater: The theater season runs from early October to late June. Naturally, plays are staged in Bulgarian but the high standard of the performances can make a visit to the theater a memorable experience.
Naroden Teatar Ivan Vazov (Ivan Vazov National Theater), 1A Vassil Levski Boulevard (tel: (02) 986 2252), is an impressive neo-classical building and home to the national theater company. Works by eminent Bulgarians and classical writers are staged here. Sofia is famous for a sophisticated puppet tradition and it is not all geared for children -
Kuklen Teatar (Central Puppet Theater), 14 General Gurko Ulica (tel: (02) 987 3815), gives regular performances for all ages.
NATFIZ (National Academy of Theater and Film Arts), 108A Rakovski Ulica (tel: (02) 987 9862), puts on a range of experimental performances, including mime.
Dance: The
Sofia National Opera, 1 Vrabcha Ulica (tel: (02) 987 7011; website:
www.geobiz.com/sfopera/), hosts ballet in Sofia.
Arabesque is a highly regarded and excellent modern dance troupe, which usually performs at the NDK, 1 Ploshtad Bulgaria, Yuzhen Park (tel: (02) 9166 2300; website:
www.ndk.bg).
Film: Sofia has a large film-going audience and has around 20 cinemas, most of which show recent foreign films, predominantly American, in their original version with Bulgarian subtitles. The best screen venue, however, is
Kino Lumière, at the
NDK, 1 Ploshtad Bulgaria, Yuzhen Park (tel: (02) 9166 2300; website:
www.ndk.bg),
and most film festival events take place here. Tickets cost about Lv5 - prices are often reduced for matinee performances. The best cinemas are
Mir, 6 Denkoglu Ulica (tel: (02) 986 1135), the newly remodeled
Levski, 28 Yanko Sakozov Boulevard (tel: (02) 443535),
Serdika, 1 Yanjo Sakasov Ulica, close to Vassil Levski Monument (tel: (02) 431 797) and
Europa Palace, 35 Alabin Ulica (tel: (02) 870 707). In addition,
Dom na Kinoto, 37 Exarch Yossif Ulica (tel: (02) 980 7838), shows arthouse European films and Hollywood classics.
Literary Notes: Going back to ancient times, the Thracian world was best documented by the Greek author, Herodotus. In a famous passage, frequently quoted in museums throughout Bulgaria, he claimed that the Thracian population was ’greater than that of any country in the world, except India’. Much later on, Voltaire mentions Sofia and Bulgaria in general in
Candide (1759). Lamartine also cites Sofia in
Le voyage a l’Orient (1832-33).
In modern literature, the central character of Julian Barnes’ political satire,
The Porcupine (1992), was inspired by Bulgaria’s deposed Communist dictator, Todor Zhivkov. And Malcom Bradbury’s comic novels,
Rates of Exchange (1983) and
Why Come to Slaka? (1986), are based on life in Bulgaria under Communism. Written by Bulgarian intellectual, Maria Todorova,
Imagining the Balkans (1997) examines the Balkans in general and what it means to live there.
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