Director Janek Lesák and dramaturge Natálie Strýčková Preslová have been an extremely successful production tandem since 2013. Together they are the artistic directors of Prague’s NoD Theatre, which is “experiencing its golden era” (Divadelní net, 20 Feb 2025).
Over the last decade, they have created more than thirty original productions. Among their most notable works is The Legend of Lunetic, which has been seen by nearly 10,000 people at NoD Theatre – and yet every subsequent performance has sold out hopelessly. This March, in collaboration with Aerofilms, they offered it live in more than forty cinemas across the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Their work is characterised by a desire to explore new theatrical perspectives and push the boundaries of production possibilities, their unmistakable and distinctive sense of humour being an essential part of that all. For a long time they collaborated with the South Bohemian Theatre in České Budějovice, where they were also involved in productions for teenagers. They founded the YouTube channel Janek & Natálka, which aims to popularize Czech theatre in its entirety and attract new audiences.

In addition to dramaturgy, Natálie Strýčková Preslová is a translator from French and founded the French theatre festival Sněz tu žábu (Eat the Frog). Janek Lesák runs creative writing courses and is the frontman of the death-folk band Minikapela.

photo Jan Hromádko