Castle inside. Musical actors from JAMU were inspired by the work of a Spanish nun
“We were looking for a topic for graduates of musical acting that would somehow reflect their current moods, fears, insecurities. After various ups and downs, we finally began to approach what I would subtly call spiritual. It seemed to us that it made sense to turn around in time, we live, we can’t see inside, “Gombár remarked. The Spanish mystic, the reformer of the Carmelite Order and the extraordinary woman, in her book The Castle Inside, thinks of the human soul as a fortress with seven chambers, which one must go through if one wants to meet God and oneself. According to the directors, it is remarkable that even five hundred years did not detract from this spiritual work. And all participants agree that the famous work of Theresa of Ávila represents, above all, the opportunity to look with the inner sight, to observe oneself and the world introspectively.
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Gombár stated that in his screenplay he drew from many sources and his production is in a way a jigsaw puzzle. Terezín’s life and work flow freely in her. He was greatly inspired by the lyrics of Emanuel Míšek and the music of Josef Fojta, who had encountered themes in the field of music before. “Terezie offers introspection. And also certain signposts on this inner path and your experience. Today, he does the same thing better, countless mental coaches, psychotherapists, fortune tellers, healers do much worse. Unlike them, we do Terezie for free, “says the author of the theme, Emanuel Míšek. According to him, the saint’s approach is perhaps even more modern and realistic about something. “While the man of today has a need to control, manipulate and benefit, Terezie is ultimately addressed. It is passive in the best sense of the word. He expects. It is open, “comments Míšek.
the resulting life and spiritual pilgrimage of St. Theresa of Avila will be a musical theater in this ninety-minute stage composition for the 21st century. In terms of musical form, it is a suite that has seven (programmatic) parts. The author of the music, Josef Fojta, notes that the result is actually a musical meditation inspired by a phenomenal work that invites one to one’s own interior and is a guide on the path of meditation, prayer. Paradoxically, the main motive for the authors of the music was the silence in which we find and hear the music of our apartment – life: “I entrusted the instrumentation primarily to string instruments and guitars. In the production, they combine the chamber orchestra itself with a live string quartet in contrast to the musical loops of beats, supporting the feeling of presence; that everything is happening now, in each of us. “
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Scenographically, according to the author of the set, Eliška Drastíková, the production is conceived as a spiritual space and at the same time a very special “gymnasium”. The castle rooms are represented only symbolically. “We are in the soul space where God resides. There are symbolically and eclectically selected objects on the stage, which will sometimes be situationally lit as an event acquiring its symbolic significance, ”Drastíková remarked. The basic props and scenery will be sports and work equipment, which represents the opportunity to heal the mind, body and spirit. However, as Drastíková demands, it is not just a matter of stubborn adherence to symbolism, but rather of passing on the atmosphere and the feeling of a spiritual pilgrimage. Even because this path was taken by the directors in the optics of the present, the costume designer adheres to the respectful hint of today. He does not use the robes of nuns or literal clothing quotations of the Carmelite order on the stage. Drastíková sees in the final title as the main themes of adolescence, a slight hint of the issue of sexuality, spiritual and life pilgrimage, self-sacrifice and the search for faith.
A visitor to the Eagle Theater will see Terezia in five forms, as there are just as many actresses in the graduating musical year. “We will also meet various characters from the life of the saint, who play the girls themselves, they alternate organically in several different characters, but most importantly they are still Terezia. In a voice. There is also only one man and a classmate of the remembered in the production, maybe a mover, maybe a source, maybe they just don’t know at the same time or the epicenter, “explained Gombár. The ensemble’s live staff is complemented by four string musicians. “Casting exclusively musicians was a completely conscious intention, so the production is, among other things, a tribute to the feminine, Marian element and cult,” added Gombár.
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And what else does the screenwriter and educator see in the connection between the spiritual legacy of the extraordinary nun and the holy woman with the present? According to Gombár, today’s terribly noisy time pampers cynicism, irony, bitterness, and according to him, everything is very much on the course. But Theresa keeps talking about the human soul. He examines her from all sides, forces her to be silent, goes through a number of vicissitudes that lead her to absolute devotion to God. “And every day I wonder if we are still curious about God, because I am convinced that he is more and more curious about us,” Gombár concluded.
Luboš Mareček