On March 3rd, Laterna magika will present a premiere of a brand new show Legends of Magic Prague. This new piece, the first after years to be created by Laterna magika, now one of the National Theatre ensembles, is bound to attract spectators by its astounding concept as well as by being enrooted in the traditional artistic approach of Laterna magika. The theme of the show is based on two pieces created by Jiří Srnec for the Black Light Theatre: Legends of the Old Mother Prague and Ahasver. The core idea of both these older shows as well as the new one is to guide the audience through the world of more or less known Prague legends and to tell a story of the life cycle through these legends. However, in the new piece this thematic concept is staged in a brand new form: with new choreography, music, costumes, scenic design and video projection.
After we merged with the National Theatre, one of our essential tasks was to add a completely new piece to our repertory,” explains the director of Laterna magika, Zdeňek Prokeš. “We want to offer a piece that is attractive in its form and, at the same time, respects the traditional creative approach and technology of Laterna magika. We also want the piece to have a symbolical meaning which is why, in 2010, I asked Jiří Srnec, to co-work with us on the new piece: he created black theatre and he co-operated on a number of shows at Laterna magika in the past.” It will therefore not be the first time for Laterna magika to use the potential of Prague stories and legends and the strong magic of the genius loci: in the past, it was so for example in the pieces Prague Carnival, One Day in Prague or Pragensia.
Through the legends that will take them to Prague at the time of Rudolf II and the old Jewish town, the spectators will have the opportunity to discover the symbolical character of ancient stories. All sorts of legends will come to life on stage: the one of the house of dr. Faustus or that of the mysterious bridegroom of Chanina, a Jewish girl who set out on a journey to the kingdom of the river to find love. The audience will find themselves in Prague at the time of Rudolf II, a Prague that will charm them with mannerism and the astonishing development of science and alchemy. Rabbi Löw and his legendary Golem and the history of the Prague Astronomical Clock will not be missing. The piece is guided through by the character of the Wanderer, the symbol of an eternal reincarnation of the human soul, the desire for beauty, happiness, and knowledge. His alter ego in the character of the Jester, a seducer and enticer, will also be present on stage. The destinies of both of them, the Wanderer and the Jester, are eternal, they come to life once again in every generation of the mankind.
The main author of the piece is Jiří Srnec and Legends of Magic Prague are thus bound to show his distinct artistic handwriting. „In the past I was offering some of my pieces to Laterna magika. Ahasver was one of them: originally, I wanted Ahasver to be created at Laterna magika. in a way, then, I created it in the style of Laterna magika though I wouldn’t label it as a „magic lantern“ performance. However, I wouldn’t call it black theatre either, as it had to do very little with that genre. Now the show is getting back where it was once meant to be,“ explains Jiří Srnec. And he continues: „It is a beautiful job to create for Laterna magika. At the same time, it is a tough one: sometimes, it is hard to agree on certain things. For example, for several years, Laterna magika has been taking the direction of purely dance theatre and thus, in my opinion, it is closing the door to a wide range of possibilities. Don’t get me wrong, I myself am a great admirer of dance aesthetics and I do have dancers in my own pieces but I think Laterna magika should be using a wider repertory of artistic forms. Legends of Magic Prague are composed of purely dance scenes but also of improvisation, motion theatre or a slapstick and clown show.“
The dance element of the piece was choreographed by Petr Zuska, the director of the National Theatre Ballet ensemble. He comments his involvement in the creation of the show: „I respect Jiří Srnec both as an artist and as a person and therefore my decision to take part in the project was a fast one. It was even more so as I realised that this work could enrich me professionally, that I could learn something new as this type of theatre is completely different from what I normally do.“ The piece is a result of both co-operation and confrontation of strong artistic personalities who were trying to find a common approach. Petr Zuska as well as other co-creators were asked to join in the project by Jiří Srnec as soon as he himself accepted the offer to stage Legends of Magic Prague at Laterna magika. „Petr Zuska understands Laterna magika, from the very beginning of our co-operation he bore in mind all possibilities offered by its stage settings. However we may not always agree on concrete solutions of stage action, I consider his investment in the piece an enriching one for Laterna magika,“ explains the director Jiří Srnec.
The music for the piece was composed by a jazz pianist, music arranger and composer of contemporary music, Kryštof Marek. He managed to write music which functions as a unifying element in the piece and which adds to the overall ambience of the show. The music was recorded with the National Theatre orchestra conducted by Marek himself.
The settings were designed by Miroslav Heřmánek who has been co-operating with Laterna magika for many years. The costumes and masks were created Šárka Polak Hejnová, a visual artist renown in the Czech Republic as well as abroad for her costumes for theatre shows and her regular co-operation with film and television industry. The scenic design is based on a system of mobile lamellae that can be swapped for a conventional stage setting. Besides, the possibilities of video projection are widened by the use of transparent materials; the costumes are also used as projection space. “We only use projection at moments where it is important, where it functions as a vehicle of the story, where it strengthens the ambiance or where it establishes important associations,” explains Miloslav Heřmánek. And he continues: “We also want it to merge with performance on stage as well as with music. What we do not want is to debase it to pure “cinematic decoration”, to make it a mere buzz at the rear of the stage. That is why there are parts in the piece where there is no projection whatsoever: in these parts, the gravity point is in “classical” means of theatre expression, including an elaborate work with light design.” Laterna magika will present a synthesis of dance and drama performance, with elements of black theatre, interacting with music, projection and scenic design, all of these being equal segments of the whole piece. Source: Laterna Magika
Josef Bartos
Thank you for your thoughts. One got stuck in my mind – that passion makes us different from AI. Just yesterday I read…I am a dance critic. I am a member of an endangered species