The Political Impact of Playwright Vaclav Havel
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THE ART OF REVOLUTION: THE POLITICAL IMPACT OF PLAYWRIGHT VACLAV HAVEL by Rachel Melissa Hodges submitted to the Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of American University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Arts Management Chair: /p tslo eMartin Lin . a Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Date 1999 American University Washington, D.C. 20016 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 1395940 UMI Microform 1395940 Copyright 1999, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann A rbor, M I 48103 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. THE ART OF REVOLUTION: THE POLITICAL IMPACT OF PLAYWRIGHT VACLAV HAVEL BY RACHEL MELISSA HODGES ABSTRACT This thesis addresses the question: does theatre have political significance? This thesis examines the development of theatre as a political force in Czechoslovakia from the Soviet invasion in 1968 to the “Velvet Revolution” in 1989. The “Velvet Revolution” peacefully overthrew the Soviet Communist government. Using playwright Vaclav Havel’s involvement in the development of the “Velvet Revolution” as a case study, this thesis asserts that theatre is a political force. An examination of Havel’s role in the events leading the “Velvet Revolution” show that his work as an artist placed him at the center of the struggle for democracy in Communist Czechoslovakia. Particular attention is paid to Havel’s “Vanek Plays” which provide a back drop for much of his political and artistic activities. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT...........................................................................................................ii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION............................................................................. 1 A President, A Man, A Hero 2. THE ARTIST AS A YOUNG MAN................................................... 4 The Prague Spring The Political Artist 3. THE VANEK PLAYS........................................................................ 21 4. CHARTER 7 7.....................................................................................33 Prison and Fame Glasnost 5. THE VELVET REVOLUTION ......................................................... 41 After the Revolution BIBLIOGRAPHY................................................................................................47 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION To truly understand the political significance of theatre in the Czech Republic- past, present, and future—would take volumes. The political significance of theatre, however, was best exemplified by those crowning moments in Prague in 1989, when Vaclav Havel’s Civic Forum peacefully brought down the Communist government, and later when Havel was elected President. Those moments were the result of many years of hard work by the artistic community in the former Czechoslovakia. The political significance of theatre in the Czech Republic can be illustrated by examining and understanding how Vaclav Havel’s career grew and culminated with him leading the “Velvet Revolution,” the peaceful overthrow of 30 years of Communist rule. I tell this story not just from author’s vanity, but also because it illustrates several qualities of the most delightful of all the year’s (1989) Central European revolutions: the speed the improvisation, the merriness, and the absolutely central role of Vaclav Havel, who was at once director, playwright, stage manager, and leading actor in this his greatest play.1 An examination of Havel’s role in the events leading to the “Velvet Revolution” will show that his theatre placed him at the center of the struggle for democracy in Communist Czechoslovakia. 1 Timothy Garton Ash. The Magic Lantern: The Revohition of "89 Witnessed in Warsaw. Budapest. Berlin and Prague (New York: Vintage Bodes, 1990), 79. 1 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 A President. A Man. A Hero Vaclav Havel was reelected President of the Czech Republic in January 1998 by only a narrow margin. His past term as President had not been marked by the victories and praise he had experienced during the “Velvet Revolution” or the early days of his presidency. And what has come of these hopes and intentions? They had their moment of supreme triumph in the revolution of 1989. Everybody agrees on that. But in the years since there have been-there had to be, it is a law of human behavior—set backs and even blunders, a whole series of them committed by Havel himself which have sent Czech society marching in every direction but his own.2 The years 1996 and 1997 were particularly difficult for Havel: he became estranged from his brother, Ivan, in a very public family feud; his government was shaken by the scandal and subsequent resignation of his prime minister, Vaclav Klaus; there was international criticism of his handling of a bid for NATO membership; his wife died, and he quickly remarried a younger actress. Havel has kept his luster better than most. But he has his vices, and he has grown to enjoy power and proven himself willing to make unHavel-like compromises with his country’s right wing in order to keep his position as president. Havel thrived in a black-and-white world. He struggles with the compromises and gray zones of modem politics.3 Despite recent criticism, Havel has remained a Czech hero. Not even his critics can deny the central role he played in the history of the Czech Republic or in the fell of Communism in East Central Europe. Havel was also central to Czech theatre. Milan 2 Paul Berman, “The Poet of Democracy and His Burden,” New York Times. 11 May 1997, sec. 6,47. 3 Tina Rosenberg, “Playwright on the Stage o f History,” Washington Post. 19 September 1993, sec. Book World, X I. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 Kundera says of Havel, “He is without a doubt still the preeminent Eastern European playwright of his generation and one of the most powerful and effective satirical voices since Anton Chekov and Mikhail Bulgakov.” Regardless of his successes and failures in political office, Havel was by all accounts the “central” player in the creation of the “Velvet Revolution” and the ultimate overthrow of the Communist government. When one thinks of the patriots who led the human tide which drove communism out of Eastern Europe five years ago, no name on the marquee blazes more brightly than that of Vaclav Havel of Czechoslovakia. Havel was not the radical activist or revolutionary. He was a dissident playwright and poet who inspired the imagination of millions as he endured the hardships of a Communist prison, eventually to lead the Czech “Velvet Revolution” and gain freedom from Communist oppression.4 Havel rose to political prominence because of his work in the theater in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. A look at the Czech history of the past thirty years shows that the pivotal events (“Prague Spring” of 1968, “Charter 77”, VONS) leading to the “Velvet Revolution” all began in the theatre and literary circles, with Havel participating and often acting as the catalyst. This would suggest that the theatre scene which centered itself around Havel was the fuel of the revolution. 4 Herbert G. Klein, “Czech Republic shines brightly as a free nation success story,” San Diego Union- Tribune. 18 December 1994, sec. Opinion,