The oldest and biggest puppet theater in Brno is coming all the way from the Czech Republic to Cedar Rapids! The famous Radost Theatre will join us for two days to put on spectacular performances aimed for all audiences—both children and adults! There will be two performances on Friday and Saturday: an evening show and a morning show followed by a workshop that draws on the story of the previous performance. Friday’s performance is The Goat, an old Czech folktale reimagined with fun puppets and whimsical props that is best suited for a younger audience. Saturday’s performance is Buffalo Bill, a Czech perspective on the American dream and the Czech immigrants who longed for freedom, with sets and costumes inspired by old American Westerns.
Friday’s performance is: THE GOAT
I’m sure you know the fairy tale about disobedient kids, where the mother warns against the evil wolf and orders them never to open the door to a stranger’s house – especially when the kids are home alone. The authors of this variant of the story preserve the plot of the fairy tale, in addition to adding humor and wit. All sorts of tricks that the cunning wolf invents to get into the house will certainly entertain not only children, but also their adult accompaniment.
Saturday’s performance is: BUFFALO BILL
Cowboys and cowgirls, sharpshooters, Indians or Cossacks… On that August day in 1906, the Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show received a grand applause, as well as at other stops throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It is no wonder that one of the enthusiastic spectators succumbs to the lure of faraway places and adventures. Twelve-year-old Bořek runs away from home and secretly joins the remarkable company led by the Fanfaron principal. But the romantic dream is framed by a different historical context. The year is 1950 and Bořek, now an adult, runs away again. And this time not on a whim, but out of sheer necessity. In addition to the perhaps naïve love for western stories, from which the phenomenon of Czech tramping was born, another theme of the production is the nostalgic relationship of Czech society to the New World and the illusion of freedom, which America symbolized for many. After all, the issue of emigration – whether voluntary or forced by circumstances – connects the stories on stage with our reality today.
