Founded in 1945, the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (AMU) is the largest performing arts school in the Czech Republic. Consisting of three faculties — Music and Dance (HAMU), Theatre (DAMU) and Film and Television (FAMU) — as well as university-wide support departments, it is a leading institution in the field. The most significant of these in terms of research include the Centre for Doctoral Studies (CDS), AMU Press (NAMU), and ArteActa, an academic journal focused on artistic research which is published online in an open-access format.

Located in the heart of Prague, AMU provides state-of-the-art facilities for artistic and research activities. These include film post-production facilities, specialised music rehearsal rooms and recording studios, flexible multifunctional spaces for theatre production with cutting-edge equipment, and rooms for dance workshops and performances.

AMU has a strong international focus. As well as short-term exchange programmes, it hosts several English-language study programmes in areas such as directing, cinematography, montage, photography, new media (FAMU), authorial acting, devised and object theatre, and scenography (DAMU), as well as dance pedagogy, composition, and choreology (HAMU). Further information on the English-language programmes is available here. AMU also organises international conferences, festivals, workshops and symposiums, and is a member of many prestigious European and worldwide professional organisations focusing on educational, artistic and cultural activities, such as CILECT, ELIA, EUA, IDEA, ITI, SAR.

Artistic research is increasingly vital for AMU's educational and research activities. As an institutional member of the Society for Artistic Research (SAR), AMU offers its students and researchers access to the Research Catalogue platform, providing guidance and tutelage in specialised workshops and courses on its use. Doctoral programmes at all three faculties are practice-based and AMU supports artistic research projects through its grant schemes.