Archive: Culture | Theatre Theatre
Semafor Theatre – 53 years and inventive as ever
The Semafor theatre, one of the oldest continuous traditions of modern
Czech entertainment, is still putting out new performances after 53 years
of existence. The latest concoction of multi-genre comedy theatre is ‘Kam
se poděla Valerie?’, or ‘Where Did Valerie Go?’, which has four
pre-premieres this week and next, before the real premiere in September. More
Remembering Adolf Toman - one of the founders of Toronto’s New Czech Theatre
The Nové divadlo (New Czech Theatre) was established in the Canadian city
of Toronto in 1970. Since then it has enjoyed several high points: the
great actor Jiří Voskovec appeared in one production, Josef Škvorecký
wrote a play for the amateur group and it staged the world premiere of the
Czech language version of Václav Havel’s Temptation. In 2010, the New
Czech Theatre received an award from the Czech Foreign Ministry for its
work in promoting the good name of its founders’ native country. Sadly,
Mr Toman passed away in the Czech Republic last summer at the age of 69.
Here is another chance to hear his interview about the the Toronto theatre
with Ian Willoughby.
More
Co-producer Gail Whitmore discusses Prague production of The Vagina Monologues
This Saturday will see two bilingual performances in Prague of Eve
Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues a play that has empowered women
worldwide,
tackling not only issues of sexuality but also rape and abuse. The
‘Monologues’, unlike almost any other work, have inspired an entire
activist movement. Ahead of the Prague performance, Radio Prague talked to
co-producer Gail Whitmore. More
The Blonde Bitch Strikes Again at a Prague theatre house
The increasingly absurd world of Czech politics is proving a huge success
at a small Prague theatre house which is drawing the crowds with a
political cabaret based on real life politics. Actors reciting verbatim
excerpts from wiretappings involving prominent politicians and statements
from the scandalous trial against the de-facto leader of one of the ruling
parties keep the audience in gales of laughter; a sad testimony of the
sorry state of Czech politics. More
Václav Havel’s literary agent Jitka Sloupová on his plays, their foreign productions and his image as an author
The late Václav Havel is now being remembered as a great statesman and
human rights advocate. But he was also a prominent literary figure. In
fact, before he became an opposition leader in communist Czechoslovakia, he
was already established playwright whose plays appeared on stages
worldwide. Václav Havel’s literary agent Jitka Sloupová, from the Aura
Pont agency, talks about what inspired his dramas that quickly gained
acclaim both at home and abroad. More
Pinter’s "In Other Rooms" at Divadlo Na Zábradlí
In this week’s Arts, I talk to David Peimer, professor of theatre at
University College in the UK, also involved with the Pinter Centre for
Performance and Creative Writing in London. In our interview Mr Peimer
discusses In Other Rooms - a production in English of lesser-known short
plays by the late Nobel Prize laureate Harold Pinter. While not as
widely-known as Pinter’s most famous work, the short plays are highly
recommended – and Czech audiences will have a chance to see them this
weekend when the production, co-directed by Mr Peimer, comes to the Theatre
on the Ballustrade in Prague. More
Czech theatrical legend Jiří Suchý turns 80
The popular Czech actor, singer, songwriter, playwright, painter,
screenwriter and director Jiří Suchý turned 80 on Saturday. In top form,
the living legend of Czech theatre received standing ovations at a special
concert he held to celebrate his birthday at Prague’s Semafor theatre. More
My Neighbor, My Enemy : problems of coexistence
In this week’s Panorama :a play at Prague’s National Theatre highlights
the problems of coexistence between ethnic Czechs and the Roma minority,
Karlovy Vary protesting against too many foreign language signs, and, Czech
politicians make headlines from here to Belgrade. More
Jiří (George) Voskovec – the Czech theatrical pioneer who carved out a Cold-War career in Hollywood
This edition of Czechs in History looks at the life and career of Jiří
Voskovec, one half of the legendary Czech duo Voskovec and Werich, whose
work at the “Liberated Theatre” or Osvobozené Divadlo in the 1920s and
30s left an indelible mark on Czech culture. More
Dr. Peter Holbrook – Shakespeare scholar and author of “Shakespeare’s Individualism”
Last week, some 600 Shakespeare scholars came to Prague for the 9th World
Shakespeare Congress, an international academic events that has previously
been held in such cities as Brisbane, Berlin or Los Angeles. Among the
guests was the Australian scholar Peter Holbrook, a member of the
International Shakespeare Association’s Congress Committee and author of
a book titled “Shakespeare’s Individualism.” In this interview, he
speaks about his central thesis, Shakespeare research in different
countries and what his experience at the congress has been like. More
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