The trio of Czechs founded the first streaming theater platform in our country. Dramox is a service that provides watching theater performances online. It aims not only to bring the theater closer to the audience, but also to support theatergoers who have found themselves in a difficult situation due to the pandemic.
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One of the founders of the platform, Martin Hájek, thought about this project for several months. “I was wondering why there was no such thing in our country. That I missed the service that will offer the performance online even more at the time of the first lockdown, “he describes the beginnings of Dramox.
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The founders originally planned to launch the platform around Christmas, but due to closed theaters, they started it now. “Now we have sprinted a bit to run Dramox. We were surprised by the speed of the second wave and we wanted to help the theaters, “said Hájek.
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The service works on the principle of subscription. It costs 299 crowns a month, in the case of an annual subscription 2990 crowns. Dramox will pass 55 percent of the proceeds back to the theaters. Viewers have the opportunity to support theaters with their own amount in addition to the subscription, and in this case the platform will hand over the entire amount to the theater.
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The co-founder of the platform, Radim Horák, sees charging as a crucial step in the entire project. “We will support creators, actors and theaters in their functioning, especially at a time when culture does not want it. Dramox can work as such a tasting and you will go straight to the auditorium for the next performance when it is possible, “he says.
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Chances to see sold-out shows
The Dramox service currently cooperates with 30 theaters from all over the Czech Republic. These include the Dejvice Theater, the Klicper Theater, the JK Tyl Theater and the Goose on a String Theater. Viewers will find large commercial theaters as well as small stages and theater ensembles.
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With online theater, people have access to performances that are often sold out or played in theaters that are difficult for them to access. Dramox offers decades-old plays as well as newer productions.
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Additional records will be gradually added to the theater library. “On Friday, Milan Kundera directly approved two more performances for us. As covid hinders the work of foreign agencies, we had to get to him through an acquaintance of his, ”describes Hájek.
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Dramox is planning to launch a mobile application for Android and iOS in December. “We want to get the theater closer to the people and allow them to spend more time with it than they could so far,” explains another of the founders, Martin Zavadil. “I believe that Dramox will attract more people to the theater, just as similar services have attracted more people to movies or listening to music before,” he adds.
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The service will also offer subtitles for performances. The creators are currently working on a translation into English, other languages will be added depending on which countries they want to expand the platform to.
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Tickets for nothing
The Dramox service was founded by the entrepreneur and owner of the Livesport brand, Martin Hájek, together with Martin Zavadil, who used to build digital companies, and Radim Horák, who owns Weemazz 2.0 and was involved in launching the Voyo video portal.
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Closed theaters added millions in losses during the pandemic. In the crisis, they were helped by spectators who did not return tickets for canceled performances, or were supported by a nationwide project, which was joined by the Prague Councilor for Culture Hana Třeštíková. Through the GoOut portal, people could buy tickets for nothing, ie non-existent performances, and thus support some theaters.
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