Amphitryon

Comedy / Czech premiere

Extraordinarily talented Czech stage manageress Hana Burešová and her life partner and co-worker Štěpán Otčenášek chose for the third time for our theatre a unique work, extremely mentally exciting tragicomedy Amphitryon, poeticized by Heinrich von Kleist according to an antique story and subsequent Molière’s satiric comedy of the same title. So many extraordinary authors and such a great interest in one theme! The ancient story about Amphitryon, the king of Mycenae, whose wife Alcmena was seduced by Zeus who had taken the shape of her husband (Heracles was born from this affair) is known from Plautus’s late presentation. Molière’s Amphitryon, coming out of Plautus, is an allegorical satire on loose morals of the royal court in general and on philandering of Luis XIV in particular. However, comic situations are depicted much more realistically and mentation of seductive and confused Alcmena is presented in greater psychological details and sauciness. And so the comedy on the ancient theme creates the space to thinking and amusing oneself. The work was recently translated by Josef Balvín and this congenial translation has not been put on Czech stages so far.