On 23th May there was another cultural event prepared for us. We went to the Divadlo Alfa for a puppet play called “Panská farma” based on the novella Animal Farm by George Orwell.
Firstly, I would like to introduce you the play. It was circa 1 h 10 min long show performed by 4 actors and several animal puppets. Those were controlled by Josef Jelínek, Petr Vydarený, Aleš Kolovrat and Andrea Ballayová (she has also performed in the National Theatre in Prague). The story was transformed to the Czech version, it was ended by TV shots from the Czech Television’s reportage programme referring to a story of a man who was affected by lawsuits of the socialistic era in Czechoslovakia.
The opinions of the play of my friends are different. Some say it was a touching and a pleasant surprise, others say that it was a horrible experience. They also say that the director probably hadn’t read the original before he wrote that. Well, I personally expected less. I didn’t expect any acting of the puppeteers, in the final, I was fascinated especially by the only woman, Andrea Ballayová. During the performance she was singing which made the atmosphere really magical. It was also my first puppet play after years so I was glad for a little change. The only thing which complicated my delight was the hunger I was feeling during the play. And there was no break…
I can recommend this play only for the fans of puppet plays, I will still prefer the regular theatre…
Dan Giebel, sexta A
