From February 19 to 28, the program will offer 26 productions at 16 venues in Prague, selected by the dramaturgical council from nearly 130 submissions. Not only puppet, object, dance, documentary, interdisciplinary, and participatory productions, but this year also, for example, alternative chamber opera, stand-up, puppet rap, performances on roller skates, a 6-hour theatre performance, a rave party, a scenic concert, and a performative audio walk in nature. The productions often reflect current political or social issues—the crisis of democracy, the position of women in society, ecology, Russia, LGBT+, the involvement of young people in cultural events, and, in this Olympic year, sport. The rich theatre program will be traditionally complemented by discussions, networking, walks, playrooms for children, and workshops for theatre professionals, who can choose performances at Malá inventura and then present them in the regions or even abroad. ARCHA+ venue in the centre of Prague will once again be the festival centre. More information at www.malainventura.cz.
The Malá inventura festival will offer the most compelling works of Czech new theatre
Denudation – this is the leitmotif of this year's 24th Malá inventura festival, which traditionally takes place in February and presents a selection of the most compelling performances created in the Czech Republic over the past season in the field of new, contemporary and independent theatre across genres.
"The festival program in recent years shows that contemporary theatre – across generations – relates significantly to current social issues. It is not indifferent to what is happening in society or politics, and reflects both the external reality and the inner worlds of those who create. At the same time, it is clear that experimentation in theater cannot be understood merely as a transitional phase associated with youth or the beginning of a career. It appears in the festival program as a long-term and conscious creative approach, which even established artists embrace—not as a phase of searching, but as a distinct discipline in which they move with confidence, experience, and surprising ease," says Petr Pola, the festival's artistic director, in his introduction. He emphasizes that the main criteria for selecting productions for the program remain their quality, uniqueness, and the appeal of their staging.
And how should we understand this year's leitmotif, Denudation? "It's about denudation both in the physical sense and metaphorically. As a gesture of uncovering, liberation from unnecessary layers, and the possibility of direct encounter. In this year's productions, exposure appears in many forms—as the revelation of what may be disturbing, as a direct confrontation with what needs to be seen clearly and without veils, as a gesture that shakes off the layers of everything that prevented us from seeing in sharp contours. The theatrical mechanism is exposed, showing how the work is made, commenting on the theatrical system, exposing it to examination, reflection, and revision. Selected scenic forms unmask what is beneath the facade, reveal structures of thought, and expose the norms that determine our reality," explains dramaturge Karolina Plicková.
The following ensembles and productions were selected for this year's Malá inventura festival program: 23Poems: RAPTURE, 8lidí: 8 miliard lidí hoří, A.J. Nosorožec: Blackout, Alica Minar & col., Dorota Michalak: LUSH BLAST: Tasting the Untamed, Anička a letadýlko: Dojdi s košem, ARCHA+: ALEX, Beautiful Confusion: Iconic Program, Boca Loca Lab: Matko Boží, vyžeň Putina, Cirk La Putyka: St.art, DAMU: Hodinka ošklivosti, Divadlo Setkání: Lovci majú oči pre plač, FRAS: Kawloon: Největší dům na světě, Ghost Compost: Jsme, Chobotnice, Jitka Sara Páníková: SLIP GRIP, KHWOSHCH: Brrr & Skrrr, Masakr Elsinor: Your Silence Will Not Protect You, Peter Gonda a kol.: Lil Drama, PINKBUS Platform: LEMONADE (No Other Troy), R405: Plechovka, maják a ryba, RUN OPERUN: Proč je taková?, Simulakrum: SYNESTHETIC FLESH, Spitfire Company: DVACETjedna, Terén: V záři blesku, Unkulunkulu: Inventúra, Wariot Ideal: Vrčení – theatrum suis generis a ZDRUHESTRANY, Viktor Černický: PNEU.
The accompanying program is an important part of the festival. "The festival is a platform for sharing experiences, establishing new collaborations, and reflecting on current practices. Presentations and thematic meetings provide space for a deeper understanding of contemporary theatre, dance, puppet and object theatre, and other performative genres. Organized presentations, informal debates, and networking create an environment where new ideas and partnerships are born," emphasizes Plicková.
Festival visitors will be able to join DISCOllective and other performers on two performative walks called Applaus, where they will encounter various objects, situations, and beings on their way between the ARCHA+ space and the Galaxie cultural station. The topic of abortion in the Czech context will be addressed in a performative lecture entitled To All Mothers and Non-Mothers, followed by a moderated debate with the audience. Galaxie will also host the premiere of One Gesture, a performance by young dancers from the theatre and dance group Temporary Collective, created as a live dance stream from the digital world, social networks, and personal dreams. The same venue will also host a work-in-progress of the project Nenásilná těla (Non-Violent Bodies) by Slovak author and performer Karol Filo. The festival will also offer a networking meeting for artists and cultural promoters from the Czech Republic and abroad called Sbal ho*ji*to! (Pack it up!). This year's ART-IN-RES symposium will be dedicated to the new European project Bridging the AIR (BtAIR), a round table on sustainable financing of the independent scene, a meeting of dramaturgs, guided tours of three theatre stages, and a festival party. There will also be playrooms for children in the Korzo space of the National Gallery Prague – Trade Fair Palace.
Source: ArtsMarketing.CZ