Glej,
When Spring is Over

About

The historical events surrounding the Prague Spring in 1968 are the starting point for this performance. From the beginning, we refined and narrowed down this theme dramaturgically, and the sociological research and preparation of the mentors had a more specific starting point: the act of resistance of Jan Palach, a university student who committed suicide by self-immolation in January 1969, in protest against the occupation by Warsaw Pact troops. The result is a twenty-minute performance that uses and quotes authentic opinions from sociological research and also reflects the attitudes of the participants – the actors. It metaphorically captures the feelings of liberation and freedom associated with the movement around the Prague Spring. It takes on the personality of Jan Palach and the significance of his act then, during the Velvet Revolution before the collapse of the Soviet Union (1989), and now. It looks at his deed from different angles and asks a question that is an excellent starting point for an intergenerational discussion: Was Jan Palach really a hero? What is his legacy? What would we be willing to sacrifice for freedom and democracy?

Credits

Authors and performers Klára Pavlištíková, Klára Müllerová, David Zbořil, Kateřina Szopová, Sára Voleníková, Sára Stoklasová, Daniel Dudek, Johana Ferfecká, Tereza Schwanová, Zlata Palkovská, Karolína Balážová, Vendula Holčáková.

Mentors Radana Otipková, Vít Roleček

Artistic supervision Daniela Jirmanová

Production National Moravian-Silesian Theatre

Support

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission, programme CERV - Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values.

This communication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.