Theater
Vaclav—dissident, activist, essayist, philosopher, politician, founder and president of the Czech Republic—is known throughout the world as a hero of the human rights movement and a martyr for the ‘right to write.’ . . . But few in the West know that he is also his country’s most famous playwright. . . . His plays constitute a significant body of work spanning the period from 1959 to 2007, a crucial dramatization of human existence in a crucial era.
Carol Rocamora, Acts of Courage: Vaclav Havel’s Life in the Theater
To honor Vaclav Havel’s theatrical legacy, VHLF collects information about productions of his plays in America, awards scholarships to Czech and U.S. students of drama and performance studies, and presents an annual festival of contemporary European theater, Rehearsal for Truth.
TheaterCulture Watch – HAVEL’S “LARGO DESOLATO” AT CITY GARAGE February 25, 2020 Source: Santa Monica Daily Press / www.smdp.com / By Sarah A. Spitz / You’re a popular dissident, your political writings spur action against a totalitarian government, your admirers depend on you, begging you not to weaken, as you sit in your house paralyzed by fear of the knock at the …
TheaterReview: City Garage opens a window to life behind the Iron Curtain in ‘Largo Desolato’ February 4, 2020 Source: Los Angeles Times / www.latimes.com / By Philip Brandes / Amid the factual free-fall of an Orwellian police state, taking a stand for truth may not be the heroic act it’s cracked up to be. Just ask professor Leopold Nettles, the all-too-flawed dissident writer in Václav Havel’s “Largo Desolato.” …
TheaterVáclav Havel tribute celebrating The Velvet Revolution gets ready to open at Dupont Underground. Up close with The Havel Project October 27, 2019 Source: DS Theatre Scene / www.dctheatrescene.com / By Keith Loria / Václav Havel was a renowned politician who went from political prisoner to serving as the last president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until the country’s dissolution three years later, who then became the first president of the Czech Republic, serving …
TheaterREHEARSAL FOR TRUTH: Partners of a Prague Theater Continue Revolution-Era Dreams September 5, 2019 Kaspar Theatre in Celetna will be presenting their production of Audience at the Rehearsal for Truth theater festival in honor of Vaclav Havel. The festival takes place from September 24 – October 7 at the Bohemian National Hall and is presented by the Vaclav Havel Library Foundation and the Bohemina …
TheaterREHEARSAL FOR TRUTH 2019: TRUTH (POLAND) August 9, 2019 Saturday, September 28, 7:30 pm Conceived and directed by: Piotr Borowski Cast: Gianna Benvenuto, Magda Czarny, Michal Lorent Presented by: Studium Teatralne, Polish Cultural Institute New York Truth exposes a lack thereof: an existence fraught with the absence of the sacred, devoid of any mystery, purpose or metaphysical worth. While …
TheaterREHEARSAL FOR TRUTH 2019: GYPSY DEVILS (SLOVAKIA) August 9, 2019 Friday, September 27, 7:30 pm Duration: 90 min Live virtuoso performance by legendary orchestra Gypsy Devils. This talented ensemble of Romani musicians from Slovakia plays original arrangements by combining classical pieces with musical genres such as jazz, ethno, flamenco and Gypsy. Together with interweaving styles, they add rhythmical and harmonic …
TheaterREHEARSAL FOR TRUTH 2019: WOMAN ALONE (ROMANIA) August 8, 2019 Tuesday, September 24, 7:30 pm Playwrights: Dario Fo, Franca Rame Directed by: Daniel Grigore-Simion Cast: Andreea Bibiri Presented by: Romanian Cultural Institute, The Art Theater in Bucharest Duration: 60 min Woman Alone unveils the story of Maria and the elements of her domestic life that entrap her. She grapples to cope … TheaterREHEARSAL FOR TRUTH 2019: AUDIENCE (CZECH REPUBLIC) August 7, 2019 Friday, October 4, 7:30 pm Playwright: Vaclav Havel Directed by: Jakub Spalek Cast: Jan Potmesil, Tomas Karger Presented by: Kaspar Theatre in Celetna, Czech Center New York Duration: 45 minutes Audience centers on a meeting between brewery manager Sladek and employee Vanek. While the manager is clearly opening too many beers and …
TheaterREHEARSAL FOR TRUTH 2019: HUNGARIAN ACACIA (HUNGARY) August 7, 2019 Saturday, September 28, 6:00 pm presentation of performance projects, discussion Conceived and directed by: Kristof Kelemen, Bence Gyorgy Palinkas Duration: 45 min Engaging, behind-the-scenes glimpse at Hungarian Acacia and other performance projects conceived to address the public discourse in Hungary in a satirical way. Artists-directors Kelemen and Palinkas will discuss …
TheaterREHEARSAL FOR TRUTH 2019: WATCH NOW (SLOVAKIA) August 6, 2019 Wednesday, September 25, 2019, 7:30 PM Conceived and directed by: Lucia Holinova Choreographers: Daniel Racek, Lucia Holinova Performers: Barbora Janakova, Daniel Racek Music: Vlado Holina, Vocals: Sandra Tordova Presented by: RESERVA, Bratislava Duration: 50 minutes Captivating dance performance that delves into the present-day issues of identity and loss of privacy. Accompanied …
TheaterThe Travesty of Truth, In the 2019 Rehearsal for Truth Theater Festival August 4, 2019 Experience engaging contemporary performances from Central Europe at Manhattan’s Bohemian National Hall. Free tickets are available online. The 2019 Rehearsal for Truth Theater Festival explores the disappearance of borders between truth and lies. The festival consists of five international performances—three full plays, one dance performance and a behind-the-scene presentation—along with …
TheaterReview: A Vaclav Havel Trilogy Drives Evening of Political Theater July 22, 2019 Source: The New York Time / www.nytimes.com / By Elisabeth Vincentelli / The suspense is a nail-biter: Will she sign the petition or not? This is not like clicking a button to offhandedly add your name to a Change.org list: We are in 1970s communist Czechoslovakia and publicly supporting a … TheaterReview: A Václav havel trilogy drives evening of political theater July 22, 2019 Source: Pulse / www.pulse.ng / By Elisabeth Vincentelli Source: New York Times / NEW YORK — The suspense is a nail-biter: Will she sign the petition or not? This is not like clicking a button to offhandedly add your name to a Change.org list: We are in 1970s communist Czechoslovakia …
TheaterBWW Review: Truth As the Immoral Fibre of Being in HAVEL: THE PASSION OF THOUGHT at Atlantic Stage 2 July 22, 2019 Source: Broadway World / www.broadwayworld.com / By Kristen Morale / It’s really fascinating to witness a person’s experience of strife on stage: to take a something that is so inexplicable and unreasonable, it borders on the absurd. When the absurd then comes to be expected, leave it to a playwright’s …
TheaterWhat Do You Get When You Cross Mark Morris With Samuel Beckett? July 6, 2019 Source: The New York Times / www.nytimes.com / By Roslyn Sulcas / The choreographer, whose playfulness is serious, will stage three pieces by Beckett, who wears his seriousness lightly, at a festival in Northern Ireland. DUBLIN — A large portrait of Samuel Beckett — peaked hair, deeply furrowed brow, piercing …