Download or read book Modern Czech Theatre written by Jarka Burian and published by University of Iowa Press. This book was released on 2002-04-25 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The story of Czech theatre in the twentieth century involves generations of mesmerizing players and memorable productions. Beyond these artistic considerations, however, lies a larger story: a theatre that has resonated with the intense concerns of its audiences acquires a significance and a force beyond anything created by striking individual talents or random stage hits. Amid the variety of performances during the past hundred years, that basic and provocative reality has been repeatedly demonstrated, as Jarka Burian reveals in his extraordinary history of the dramatic world of Czech theatre. Following a brief historical background, Burian provides a chronological series of perspectives and observations on the evolving nature of Czech theatre productions during this century in relation to their similarly evolving social and political contexts. Once Czechoslovak independence was achieved in 1918, a repeated interplay of theatre with political realities became the norm, sometimes stifling the creative urge but often producing even greater artistry. When playwright Václav Havel became president in 1990, this was but the latest and most celebrated example of the vital engagement between stage and society that has been a repeated condition of Czech theatre for the past two hundred years. In Jarka Burian's skillful hands, Modern Czech Theatre becomes an extremely important touchstone for understanding the history of modern theatre within western culture.
Download or read book Leading Creators of Twentieth Century Czech Theatre written by Jarka M. Burian and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-07-04 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this invaluable and detailed presentation of the leading creative figures in a richly innovative and dynamic period of Czech theatre, Professor Jarka M. Burian provides us with insightful portraits of the directors K. H. Hilar, E. F. Burian, Alfred Radok, and Otomar Krejca: of the famous Voskovec and Werich comedic duo; of the scenographer Josef Svoboda; and of the playwright, now President of the Czech Republic, Václav Havel. There are also briefer studies of numerous other directors, designers, and actors. The author, a Czech-American theatre scholar and practitioner, has been a frequent on-site observer of Czech theatre since 1965. He is directly acquainted with many of the major artists and the most notable productions that have made Czech theatre internationally famous.
Download or read book Czech Theatre Design in the Twentieth Century written by Joseph Brandesky and published by University of Iowa Press. This book was released on 2007-05 with total page 118 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This stimulating compilation of essays and images reveals an essential and valuable component of Czech contributions to the world of modern theatre heretofore largely unseen outside the country itself. Featuring the craft of twenty-seven of the best stage and costume designers of the twentieth century, Joe Brandesky supplies ample evidence of their consistently high quality and dynamic creativity, survival skills for a people whose national identity had been dismantled during many years of occupation and repression. Essays by Vera Ptacková, Dennis Christilles, Delbert Unruh, and, Marie Zdenková their full texts restored and reedited for this volume since their initial publication in exhibit catalogs, provide historical and linguistic insights into contemporary Czech scenography as well as comparisons to the major art movements affecting the designers. Brandesky’s informative introductory essay contextualizes the shifting tenets of Czech theatre design. Also included are biographies of the designers, a bibliography, and thirty black-and-white photographs. The accompanying CD provides access to the vibrant and sophisticated images of the Czech theatrical world: 138 richly colorful paintings and drawings of costumes, models, and set designs and in situ photos of exhibited designs plus 27 color and black-and-white photos of the designers. The CD also includes the full text of the book with links to all the art and to the designers’ biographies. Book and CD together showcase the Czech Republic as a center of international stage design.
Download or read book Czech Theatre written by and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Cambridge Guide to Theatre written by Martin Banham and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1995-09-21 with total page 1268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides information on the history and present practice of theater in the world.
Download or read book Trial by Theatre written by Barbara Day and published by Charles University in Prague, Karolinum Press. This book was released on 2019-11-01 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The motto Národ sobě – “From the Nation to Itself” – inscribed over the proscenium arch of Prague’s National Theatre symbolizes the importance theatre holds for the Czechs. During the National Awakening of the 19th century, theatre took the place of politics, becoming an instrument of national identity in the hands of the revivalists. In what was then part of a German-speaking empire, the Czechs devised a complex and evocative theatre language made up of allegory, allusion, juxtaposition, games, wordplay, legend, history, illusion and music. A sophisticated avant-garde theatre flowered in Czechoslovakia between the wars, and became a symbol of independence during the Nazi occupation. It survived Socialist Realism and Stalinism to blossom again in the “Golden Sixties” when Prague became “the theatre capital of Europe” (Kenneth Tynan) and a generation of theatre and film directors (Radok, Grossman, Schorm) and playwrights (Havel, Kundera, Topol) were at the forefront of the Prague Spring. Reprisals took place after the 1968 Soviet invasion when, under “normalization,” hardline Communists tried to silence the voices of the ‘60s; thousands were forced into internal and external emigration. The theatre culture, however, flexible and experienced from previous repression, again provided a basis of opposition to totalitarianism. For two decades it operated in the provisional spaces of culture houses, studios, gymnasiums, bars, trade union halls, art galleries and living rooms. Strategies were devised and implemented to bring freedom back to the theatre and society. A strong sense of justice and ethics intensified the mutual commitment of theatres and audiences, leading the way to the Velvet Revolution of 1989 and the installation of a playwright as President.
Download or read book Czech Opera written by John Tyrrell and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1988 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Opera is the grandest and most potent cultural expression of the nationalist movement which led to the establishment of the Czechoslovak Republic in 1918. During this period Czech opera developed into a genre of major artistic importance cultivated by composers of the stature of Smetana, Dvorák and Janácek. Czech Opera examines opera in its national contexts, and is a study not only of operas written in Czech, but also of the specific circumstances which shaped them. These include the historical and political background to the period, the theatres in which Czech plays and operas were first performed, and the composers and performers who worked in them. The role of the librettists is given particular prominence and is complemented by a detailed chapter on the subject matter of the librettos shedding light on the subject matter of the historical and mythic background of the genre.
Download or read book Theatre Theory Reader Prague School Writings written by David Drozd and published by Charles University in Prague, Karolinum Press. This book was released on 2017-03-01 with total page 654 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is precisely the book I have been looking out for ever since working at my Das Drama. Theorie und Analyse (1977; The Theory and Analysis of Drama, 1988), and discovering from a few specimens the incisive usefulness and importance of Prague School theatre semiotics. There is everything one could possibly wish for in this monumental Theatre Theory Reader: Prague School Writings: all the by now canonical texts and many others presented for the first time in English, arranged in a systematic order which fully renders the sense of the scope and development of Czech theatre semiotics, and all of them in highly competent translations aware of the terminological complexities at stake and supported by helpful annotations. With such a rich harvest garnered, this anthology of Prague School Writings is bound to become nationally as well as internationally a prime work of reference and give to them a second lease of life in the 21st century. Manfred Pfister *** Modern theatre theory, no matter what its orientation, can trace its roots back to the structuralist and semiotic explorations of the Prague School in the early twentieth century. This comprehensive and informed overview is therefore most welcome in understanding the course and development of that theoretical tradition. It is not, however, of purely historical interest, important as that is. Whether they use the terminology of the Prague School or evoke the names of its contributors, analysts of theatre and performance today still find the strategies and articulations of those pioneers of ongoing relevance. This collection thus provides an important double service, providing contemporary theatre scholars with a clearer idea of where they have come from and an inspiration for where they may be going. Marvin Carlson *** I think it is a great idea not to group the articles according to the different authors but following a systematic that covers as many aspects of theatre as possible. This way, it becomes quite clear that the theories of the so-called Prague or Czech structuralists and semioticians were able to apply their theories when discussing most diverging questions related to theatre. The choice of texts is excellent. It makes more than clear that these theories are not outdated, do not only have historical value and are interesting with regard to the history of ideas only. Rather, it becomes evident that they are highly relevant in the context of discussions led today. Erika Fischer-Lichte *** The Prague School and the Czech structuralism have had a considerable impact on the development of semiotic studies and theatre studies at large in the 1960s and 70s. But this has been quickly forgotten and with the rise of poststructuralism and deconstruction in the 80s and 90s, they were not only neglected, but also unjustly disregarded or even forgotten. This is why the Theatre Theory Reader: Prague School Writings is a very welcome book which comes at the right moment, when postmodernism, poststructuralism and postdramatic theatre seem to have lost their momentum, as if the requirements of today’s quest for a new way of living and of making business had become so strong that we must go back to the basics. Structuralism and a critique of ideology are now back, at least as a sign to not give up thinking and theorizing in a world which has become self-centred and mad. The afterword by Pavel Drábek, Martin Bernátek, Andrea Jochmanová and Eva Šlaisová is a sort of book within the book, as it neatly puts in perspective all the important names and theories of the Prague School. It does this in a very user-friendly manner, where complex theories are summarized in a clear, yet precise, introduction. This makes the reading of the different chapters easier and immediately connected to our contemporary way of thinking. Patrice Pavis
Download or read book Czech Theatre written by and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Theatre and Performance in Eastern Europe written by Dennis Barnett and published by Scarecrow Press. This book was released on 2008 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a collection of articles about contemporary theatre and performance history in Eastern Europe. It considers the ways the socio-political change has affected theatre and performance in countries such as Russia, the former Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and the former Yugoslavia, particularly after the break-up of the Soviet Union.
Download or read book Czech theatre written by František Černý and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 140 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Silenced Theatre written by Marketa Goetz-Stankiewicz and published by University of Toronto Press. This book was released on 1979-12-15 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the Soviet occupation of 1968 censorship has closed the curtain on free expression in Czechoslovakia. But plays continue to be circulated in typescript within the country, are regularly smuggled out for publication abroad, and continue to be produced without restriction in the West. This book is the first full-length study of Czechoslovak drama of the sixties and seventies. The author discusses the works of major playwrights, including Václav Havel, Pavel Kohout, and Josef Topol; and the influence of the great Czech writers Kafka and Hašek as well as Western writers such as Beckett, Sartre, and Albee. Czech and Slovak playwrights have responded in a distinctive, courageous, and often very funny manner to a political situation perhaps best labelled 'absurd.' The author depicts movingly their portrait of the horror–and the unintended humour–of life in a rigidly bureaucratic society, a theme of universal interest. The Silenced Theatre is the only detailed study of this dynamic and modern national theatre. This book will help to preserve Czech drama and create an awareness of its important role in Western literaturea role it continues to play even in exile from its homeland.
Download or read book Disk I 2005 Selections from the czech journal for the study of dramatic art written by and published by Časopis Disk a edice Disk. This book was released on with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Women as Essential Citizens in the Czech National Movement written by Dáša Francíková and published by Lexington Books. This book was released on 2017-05-31 with total page 171 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study uses the Czech national movement in the Austrian Empire between the late 1820s and the late 1850s to examine the complex set of social, physical, physiological, and moral requirements through which women became crucial social and political actors responsible for the existence of modern national communities. Situated within the larger frameworks of public and private spheres, contemporary Czech discussions of the positionality of women, and an understanding of the categories of gender and “woman” as fluid concepts, this book analyzes how Czech nationalists—in relation to and in comparison with other nineteenth-century nationalist movements—proposed that women become the central agents of the process to guarantee the continuity of the nation.
Download or read book World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre written by Peter Nagy and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-10-03 with total page 1082 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre:Europe covers theatre since World War II in forty-seven European nations, including the nations which re-emerged following the break-up of the former USSR, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia. Each national article is divided into twelve sections - History, Structure of the National Theatre Community, Artistic Profile, Music Theatre, Theatre for Young Audiences, Puppet Theatre, Design, Theatre, Space and Architecture, Training, Criticism, Scholarship and Publishing and Further Reading - allowing the reader to use the book as a source for both area and subject studies.
Download or read book New Theatre Quarterly 77 Volume 20 Part 1 written by Simon Trussler and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2006-05-18 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides an international forum where theatrical scholarship and practice can meet.
Download or read book National Theatre in Northern and Eastern Europe 1746 1900 written by Laurence Senelick and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1991-01-25 with total page 516 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Chronicles the emergence of a national feeling in the theatres of Northern and Eastern Europe from the mid-eighteenth to the late nineteenth centuries.
