Brno Theatre World Festival is an international theatre show that makes “All of Brno a stage” for one week a year. One of the largest theatre festivals in the Czech Republic, the event regularly offers the best contemporary drama, modern children’s theatre, world dance performances, as well as workshops, lectures, debates and much more. This year, 50 theatre ensembles from all over the world will come to Brno, and the festival has also prepared a program for audiences who do not speak Czech – selected performances will be provided with English subtitles. Title photo: “The Increased Difficulty of Concentration”, Patrik Borecky.
Foreign tourists and Brno expats can look forward to Václav Havel’s comedy “The Increased Difficulty of Concentration” performed by the Brno National Theatre (Reduta Theatre), the chamber musical “Next To Normal” at the Brno City Theatre, or Seneca’s classic “The Mad Hercules”, prepared by students of the JAMU Theatre Faculty (Studio Marta). The Goose on a String Theatre (Divadlo Husa na provázku) will again open “The Dictionary of the Khazars”, and there is also something for children: for those who can read the subtitles, the Radost Theatre has prepared a very original adaptation of the story of Prince Hamlet, a funereal musical inspired by the poetics of nomadic market puppeteers, “Hamlet on the Road”.
In addition to English-friendly performances, the festival also includes several productions that will take place without words, or with such a small amount of text that everyone will be able to understand them. One such performance is the dance production “Asylum”, by the world-famous Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company, one of the highlights of this year’s festival. From France, the puppet theatre Les Antliaclastes will bring two magical performances – “Ambergris” and “The Waltz of Hommlettes”. In the performance “Miracle(s) of creation”, Prague’s Magic Lantern National Theater will show children’s audiences what can be created with a roll of paper. And Franz Kafka as a danse grotesque will also be on the program of this year’s festival, as the dance group Dekkadancers perform their “Transformation”, a very entertaining performance on an otherwise very serious topic.
The new circus ensemble Cirk La Putyka is no newcomer to the Theatre World Festival. This year, they will bring to Brno the premiere of “Runners”, a performance combining acrobatics, singing, live music and running. In contrast, the contemporary physical theatre ensemble Burki&com is coming to the festival for the first time, with a multimedia dance performance “The Island!”, an environmental piece.
For children from 4 to 12 years of age, there is “Boxing Up”, a movement production connecting dance, elements of improvisation and technology, by Prague’s Theater PONEC.
The Brno Theatre World Festival 2022 will take place from 24-29 May. Tickets, as well as information in English, can be found at the festival website.
