The official name of the Old Theater in Krakow – the National Old Theatre (Narodowy Stary Teatr) – rightfully describes its place in the history and culture of Krakow and Poland. It is truly old – dating back to the 18th century. The date of birth of the later Old Theatre in Krakow is well known: on October 17th 1781, the Krakow magistrate let Mateusz Witkowski, an actor of the Warsaw Theater, stage comedies if he pays 50 zloty a month to the Krakow authorities. Three days later, the first play – a comedy by Alexandre Ferrier – was staged, probably in one of the buildings next to the Krakow Main Square.

The Old Theater – then called simply the Krakow Theatre – moved to its current place of residence on Jagiellonska street in 1799. Throughout the 19th century, though Poland was divided between Russia, Prussia and Austria, Krakow had a relative autonomy (being a free city for a large part of the century), and was a good place for keeping the national culture alive. The Krakow Theater played an important role in that task, staging Polish plays both in Krakow and on other stages on the former Polish lands.

The Krakow Theatre's popularity lead to trouble, though. The old building at Jagiellonska street wasn't enough for the more and more demanding Krakow audience. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the Krakow Theatre moved to a new building, the eclectic jewel that is now the Juliusz Slowacki Theatre. The interiors of the Old Theatre building were converted to house ballrooms and concert halls. The restoration of the Polish National Old Theater was facilitated by the Nazis, who, during World War II, returned the Jagiellonska street building to its former role of a theatre to stage their own plays. Thanks to them, it was much easier to reestablish the National Old Theater after 1945.

Currently the National Old Theatre presents classic as well as modern plays, linked by the Theatre's high artistic standard. Tickets can be bought at the ticket office at 1 Jagiellonska Street, where three of the four playhouses are. The only other – the Scena Kameralna (Small Stage) is on 21 Starowislna Street. It is advisable to try and book the tickets in advance, as the good places usually don't last long.