Czech Theatre - 1990 - 92

Czech Theatres during the Season 1990-91 and 1991-92 (Marie Boková)

General Situation

A searching probe into the contemporary Czech theatre scene taking into account the broader context of the preceding period leaves no room for doubt that the initial spell of euphoria pervading the revolutionary season 89-90 was followed by a steadily mounting tide of economic and hence social insecurity. Czech theatres experience the onset of fundamental economic and social changes. Radical transformations affect the companies' personnel structure and the flux and fluidity of the current situation are documented by the decline of old and the rise of new theatre companies, groups and agencies.
What is at issue is a transformation of the entire structure of the country's theatre network. For this reason alone, no detailed coverage can be given of the period under review. The process of change is still in progress and theatre production takes place in extremely challenging conditions.

Economy

The overwhelming majority of Czech theatres are financed and operated by local town authorities which grappling with the current straits and difficulties afflicting society as a whole have drastically slashed the subsidies so far given to the theatres from their budgets. To mitigate the impact of this belt-tightening policy, Czech theatres have now started to explore a broad range of other possible financial resources: sponsors' contributions, collateral economic activity such as the lease of halls, buildings, car-parks, costumes, services, etc. Thus in the summer of 1992 the National Theatre let out on a two-week lease the building of the Estates Theatre to the Opera Mozart Theatrical Agency for the commercial "video-clip" production of The Magic Flute; the Na Vinohradech Theatre (Divadlo na Vinohradech) let out on a lease spanning the three summer months its building for performances of the Czech version of the Les Misérables musical produced by Adam Novák.

Theatres on the Wane

In the two seasons under review, the following Czech professional companies ceased to exist - E. F. Burian Theatre (Prague), Veeerní Brno (Brno), Theatre Kolín. The same period saw the rise (but also the decline) of a number of agencies, associations and groups (e.g. Divadlo na cesti //On the Road Theatre// attached to the West Bohemian Theatre //Západoeeské divadlo//, Cheb; as to the new companies, suffice it to mention the puppet theatre group Buchty a loutky //Buns and Puppets// attached to the Works Theatre ZD Cheb, the Kašpar Association //Spolek Kašpar// attached to the Municipal Theatre Prague //MDP Praha//, the Amphitryon Studio //Studio Amfitryon// at Palmovka Theatre //Divadlo pod Palmovkou//). All of them were established by groups of recent Prague DAMU (Drama Academy of Performing Arts) graduates.

Personnel Changes Affecting Czech Theatres

Besides the total exchange of directors and artistic directores in individual companies (see below), the period under consideration witnessed a massive migration of actors and, in some cases, thorough changes affecting the cast. This applies in particular to Prague-based theatre companies. Bearing the brunt of waning theatre attendance (and dwindling finances), some of the theatres find themselves in a particularly distressing situation. Their plight is aggravated by the alarming number of unfinished reconstruction projects still in progress in their operational buildings and, especially, by the Act on the Restitution of Property confiscated after February 1948. A relevant example is Realistické divadlo /Realistic Theatre/ - today called Labyrint /Labyrinth/ - which long before November 1989 had been one of the major centres of Anti-Communist intellectual resistance. A year ago, this theatre was awarded the Literary Foundation's Prize for its innovative experimental productions - Mein Kampf, Res baltica and Travesty /Travestie/ and yet it forfeited its right to use the building in the 1992 court dispute considering the owner's restitution claim. Few theatres effected the reshuffle of leading management staff without frictions, problems and small-scale "revolutions" flaring up in the ensembles. The revolt of Hudební divadlo Karlín /Music Theatre Karlín/ against its director, the spectacular exodus of the entire ensemble of Divadlo Na zábradlí /Theatre on the Balustrade/, three new directors within the span of two seasons at Liberec Theatre - are but a few examples of the current turmoil afoot in the rapidly changing Czech theatre scene.
The same period, of course, witnessed the comeback of some of the seasoned professionals, original directors or co-founders of the legendary Prague theatres of the 1960s including artists of international stature: thus Jan Grossman returned to Divadlo Na zábradlí /Theatre on the Balustrade/, Jaroslav Vostrý to Činoherní klub /Drama Club{, Otomar Krejča to the renewed Divadlo Za branou II /Beyond the Gate Theatre II/. In those theatres too, however, the situation is far from simple: new artistic direction as well as new companies keep emerging into the limelight, there is a good deal of tension between the companies' "old" and "new" members, the staged productions reflect a pretty unbalanced standard of achievement, and - worst of all - the declining attendance figures recorded by some of the theatres.
Perhaps the best way to cope with the current crisis was that of Jan Grossman confronting the ensemble's open revolt sparked off by his nomination as director of Divadlo Na zábradlí /Theatre on the Balustrade/ in June 1991. After a protracted series of conflicts, well nigh all members of the original ensemble left the theatre and founded a completely new venture - Divadlo Bez zábradlí /Theatre without the Balustrade/. Under Grossman's directorship, the newly established ensemble staged three successful productions during the 1991-1992 season (Havel's Pokoušení /Temptation/ - at that time, the one and only "legitimate" Havel play produced by a Czech theatre - Yuryev's Pogrom v nádražním bufetu /Pogrom in the Railway Station Cafeteria/ and the third version of Moliere's Don Juan). The life-long continuity of Grossman's theatre work has thus asserted its vitality and vigour.
At Prague's Činoherní klub /Drama Club/ Jaroslav Vostrý is no longer the company's sole director. The original constellation of seasoned veterans has its persuasive exponent in Ladislav Smoček who directed Birinsky's Mumraj /Pother/ with a flourish. A new promising name is the talented director Jan Nebeský whose professional adaptation is no easy process.
Otomar Krejča reconstituted his original cast at Divadlo Za branou II /Theatre Beyond the Gate II/ and rejuvenated the ranks of his company by a sizeable contingent of up-and-coming Czech actors. Krejča seeks to revive the theatre's creative continuity and heal the rift incurred in 1972. During the 1990/91 and 1991/92 seasons he staged Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard, Beckett's Waiting for Godot and Nestroy's Rope with One End (an updated replica of the 1967 production) - yet with an admittedly more problematic outcome and perceptibly weaker audience response than twenty years ago.

New Activities

A new remarkably expansion-prone phenomenon of the Prague theatre scene is the multi-pronged activity of the Opera Mozart agency association (combining the collaborative efforts of Opera Furore, Golem Agency, National Marionette Theatre /Národní divadlo marionet/, Studio Ypsilon and individual artists). With Jan and Daniel Dvořák in charge this joint venture largely concentrates on foreign audiences and gears its programmes towards tourists during the summer season and throughout the year. The skyrocketing ticket prices account for the near-absence of Czech audiences. Breaking out of the pattern set by the spectacular profusion of Mozartian-Kafkaesque-Golemesque glamour productions are two puppet theatre shows: Don Giovanni at the National Marionette Theatre /Národní divadlo marionet/ and Play Magic Flute - an original one-man show conjured up by actor and puppeteer Vladimír Marek.
The new and - let's face it - largely restructured phenomena of current Czech theatre life include the contemporary identity of the former Brno-based alternative theatres. Divadlo Na provázku /On-the-String Theatre/ has resumed its original name Husa na provázku /Goose on a String/ which under the umbrella of the Experimental Theatre Centre /Centrum experimentálního divadla/ has now launched its new operational base in the historic building Dum pánu z Fanalu /The Lords of Fanal House/ which, however, is still under reconstruction. The 'String' Theatre runs two studios of its own: the original Children's Studio //Dětské studio// changed its name to Non-Children's Studio /Nedětské studio/ led by Vladimír Morávek. Director Eva Tálská opened the Dum /House/ Studio for young audiences. Peter Scherhaufer is preoccupied with work on his three-part Shakespearomania project to be implemented within the span of the next few years ahead. The respective parts of this mammoth undertaking are entitled Jeho Veličenstvo Blázni /His Majesty Fools/, Lidé Hamleti /Hamlet Folks/ and Člověk Bouře /Man Tempest/. Brno's Ha-Divadlo /Ha-Theatre/ and Ochotnický kroužek /Amateur Theatre Circle/ have now joined forces in that singularly congenial venue of Brno's cultural and social life called Kabinet múz /The Muses'Cabinet/. This is where theatre people, artists, musicians, philosophers and journalists meet for regular get-togethers with their audiences.
Prague's new DIK college theatre stages regular new productions at Žižkov Theatre /Žižkovské divadlo/. The DAMU-based students' theatre DISK has been given notice to quit its temporary home and is currently looking for other possibilities offered by the school's building. Its Brno JAMU counterpart - the Marta Theatre - has now been reconstructed and serves the students' needs.

New Periodicals

Since 1990 a whole spate of new theatre periodicals has gradually commenced publication: Svět a divadlo /World and Theatre/ published by Divadelní obec /Theatre Community/ - 10 times a year, English summary; Divadelní revue /Theatre Review/ published by CSAV /Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences/ - a quarterly, English summary; THEATRE Czech and Slovak /published by Divadelní ústav /Theatre Institute/ - twice a year, English and French edition; Divadelní noviny /Theatre News/ published by Divadelní ústav - a fortnightly; and the bulletin for the internal use of the Czech theatre community Zprávy Divadelního ústavu /News Bulletin of the Theatre Institute/, published by DU ten times a year, in Czech.

The Dramaturgy-Production Situation

Without claiming to provide complete coverage of the current situation and with reference to the developments reviewed above, we thought it best to open our report-in-progress with a quotation from Zdeněk Hořínek's reflections on the dramaturgy of the past two seasons /the article was published in Divadelní noviny 1/92: "A run through of the repertoire of Czech theatres in the past season evokes the impression that nothing has really happened, that no substantive changes have occurred in Czech theatre life. Its cautious tenor and unbinding compositional pattern seem to be reminiscent of the slightly liberalized climate of the reformist or late normalization era of socialism, rather than the age of freedom and democracy. The well-tried titles of Western commercial art have proliferated... Oddly enough, nor does a brief look at the previous - immediately postrevolutionary - scene reveal any perceptible degree of change. True, in the beginning there was that short-lived upsurge of long-forbidden plays (Havel, Kohout, Landovský, Sidon, Uhde) with more or less political or otherwise taboo-ridden subject-matter, but this was soon engulfed by the massive flood of general media entertainment, a brand of entertainment claiming to possess a timeless appeal. Audiences glutted with politics - so the argument ran - need to be provided with fresh opportunities for pastime and distraction. Where else but in the theatre should such opportunities be sought? Confronted with the new situation, Czech theatre has opted for the slavish "man-serving-two-masters" role which it now proceeds to enact with an assiduous yet awkward innocence while dithering between art and the market. So far it has managed to steer clear of either of the two extremes, viz. commitment to high art versus subservience to the lowest reaches of the cash nexus."
This is no doubt a fitting description which sums up the gist of the problem with remarkable concision. Yet, as we see it, the seemingly amorphous contour-map of contemporary theatre life does have its occasional dominants - ventures, projects or productions - which we wish to single out for special mention. Dramaturgywise, the list of not always successful comebacks featured by the repertoire includes Dürrenmatt /Czechoslovak premiere of Achterloo - 1990 in MDP /Prague Municipal Theatres/, Mrožek, Rózewicz, Ionesco, Beckett, Genet, Stoppard, Albee, Miller, Weingarten, Birinski, Bulgakov. In the 1990/91 season, however, interest in Czech Dissent drama was clearly on the wane. The following production figures speak for themselves: Václav Havel's plays were performed 5 times, Pavel Kohout - 8 times, Milan Uhde - 5 times, Josef Topol - 4 times, Pavel Landovský - 5 times, Karol Sidon - 3 times, Ludvík Aškenazy - 3 times. In the 1991/92 season these Czech playwrights were represented by no more than 1 - 2 productions. A notable exception is Pavel Kohout whose Ubohý vrah /Poor Assassin/ and August, August, August seem to enjoy a wide measure of popularity and are permanently favoured by Czech theatre-goers. Czech playwrights accorded one or two productions in the season under review include Ivan Klíma, Jaroslav Vostrý, Ladislav Smoček, Milan Kundera, Karel Steigerwald, Daniela Fischerová, Bohumil Hrabal, Vladimír Páral. Theatre companies possessing their own 'stalwart' playwrights continue to bring their work on stage - just as they did in the pre-November period (Jiří Suchý - Semafor Theatre, Arnošt Goldflam - Ha-divadlo /Ha-Theatre/, J. A. Pitínský - Ochotnický kroužek /Amateur Theatre Circle/).
The new direction of the National Theatre brought a significant degree of change into dramaturgy which - though frequently criticized for its demanding quality - nevertheless produced a fine harvest (Ionesco - Les Chaises, dir. Jan Kačer, Tabori - White Man and Red Face - dir. Miroslav Krobot, Mitterer - Calling Hours, dir. Ivan Rajmont). Apart from drama, the National Theatre's Opera Company has launched a determined quest for a new quality standard: foreign opera and drama directors, conductors and singers are invited to Prague for guest performances. A special event paying tribute to the Mozart anniversary and the re-opening of the Estates Theatre (12. 10. 1991) was the new Don Giovanni production (direction: David Radok, Sweden; Sir Charles Mackerras, Great Britain; Tazeema Firth, Great Britain). In April 1992 the National Theatre's Opera Company split into two independent companies: the National Theatre and the State Opera, Prague.
Prior to the National Theatre production, George Tabori first reached the Realistic Theatre (today Labyrinth Theatre) which staged Jiří Frehár's excellent production of Mein Kampf. At Divadlo pod Palmovkou /Palmovka Theatre/ Petr Kracik directed the Czechoslovak premiere of Speer's Hunting Scenes /Lovecké scény/ - an utterly fascinating production. Studio Ypsilon enriched the range of productions commemorating the Mozart anniversary with its delightfully fresh musical causerie Mozart in Prague. Yureyev's Pogrom in the Railway Station Cafeteria (Pogrom v nádražním bufetu) inspired an "inter-urban" project - within the compass of a single day, the Czechoslovak premiere of Yureyev's play was staged both at Prague's Divadlo Na zábradlí /Theatre on the Balustrade/ dir. Arnošt Goldflam and at the Brno Husa na provázku /Goose on a String/ theatre, dir. Peter Scherhaufer. As to the non-Prague productions, special mention must be given to Sidon's Labyrinth at Cheb, Claudel's Annunciation and Dostoevski's and Camus's Demons /Běsi/ - Brno, Zemské divadlo /Regional Theatre/, Marivaux's Loves /Lásky/ - Ostrava, Kohout's Ubohý vrah /Poor Assassin/ in Prague and Plzeň...
Surprisingly enough, the tradition of theatre festivals has survived the rigours of the post-November era, although the uphill struggle for new financial resources continues unabated. The two seasons under review saw festival presentations of Czech Baroque folk plays. A new festival has sprung into existence in the frontier region at Těšín /with Czech-Polish-German participation/. The traditional puppet theatre festivals Skupa's Plzeň and Mateřinka - Liberec are still very much alive. A new festival-style event for puppet theatre companies is the Prague-based Flight over the Puppeteer's Nest /Přelet nad loutkářským hnízdem/ with fringe festivals honouring the theatres' major jubilees on a regional scale. A source of fresh incentive emerged in the festivals of the Slovak Theatre in Prague and the Czech Theatre in Bratislava and the tours of the two National Theatres organized on/Prague-Bratislava/Bratislava-Prague exchange basis.
In June 1991, the 7th Prague Quadrennial PQ 91 was organized by the Theatre Institute (Divadelní ústav). This international exhibition of stage design and theatre architecture continues to enjoy a steadily mounting tide of international interest and recognition. This time, the exhibition featured entries by stage designers and architects from 36 countries. The prestigious Golden Triga Prize was awarded to the exhibits of Great Britain. The winner of the Gold medal awarded in the W. A. Mozart thematic section was the Czech scenographer Jan Vančura.

Puppet Theatre

is still the unchallenged pride of Czech theatre. Top-ranking puppet theatre companies - primarily DRAK Hradec Králové and Naivní divadlo /Naive Theatre/ - Liberec cover a busy programme of foreign tours. DRAK's new productions have reaped major laurels at Czechoslovak and foreign festivals. The prize-winning productions are Beatles or the English Lesson /Hodina angličtiny/, Pinocchio. The Liberec puppet theatre company proudly flourishes Zuzana Schmidtová's one-woman show How Kuba Wooed Markéta /Jak chodil Kuba s Markétou/. No less rivetting is the same company's fairy-tale production for the youngest audiences - The Palm-Sized Fairytale /Pohádka do dlaně/ directed by Iva Peřinová. The young puppeteers' group Buchty a loutky /Buns and Puppets/ - Cheb won the prizes of the Skupa Plzeň Festival /Twain-Bečka: The Mysterious Foreigner /Tajemný cizinec/. Their success was to a large extent predetermined by the thorough training they had received back at College, viz. at the Department of Alternative and Puppet Theatre /Katedra alternativního a loutkového divadla/ DAMU, headed - since 1990 - by DRAK's artistic director Josef Krofta under whose sure-handed guidance actors of all-round professional orientation, stage directors, literary directors and set designers are trained.

September 1992
Translation: Štěpán Kolář