For two years, the creative team explored a range of topics that became especially relevant during the course of the COVID pandemic—such as restructuring the world with consideration for the “vulnerable and weak,” contemporary communication, ideas of the ideal man, a world designed only for some of us, emotional maturity, and more. The project, focusing on fragility—a quality that men also have the right to claim—began with reading Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez, followed soon after by The Will to Change: Men, Masculinity, and Love by Bell Hooks. Throughout the process, the future production constantly evolved as new stimuli arose, such as power scandals in universities and publicly reported cases of abuse. The original title remained, as did the desire to find a form that would best speak to what is often left unspoken—because it is considered embarrassing.
“We experiment with the boundaries of what and how we can express in theater, and also with what theater itself can be. We do not impose genre, formal, or stylistic limits; we understand the theatrical form as a free territory where anything is possible—even crying without consequence. We examine the stereotypes, norms, and expectations we have learned, that have been imposed on us, that we have created, and that have become automatic—and we try to peel them away. We explore how to stage this process of ‘peeling away.’ We ask how to communicate without imposing anything on anyone, while still expressing what we feel. The world around us is what we make of it, and we are responsible for it. On stage, we seek a world in which everyone can be seen as they truly are, with all their emotions.” — Jiří Šimek, Peter Šavel, and Marta Ljubková
The Ufftenživot Ensemble consists of Sára Arnstein, Jiří Šimek, stage manager Štěpán Hejzlar, and, since 2020, producer Tereza Tomášová. Ufftenživot’s work combines disciplines, explores new avenues of stage expression, and pushes the boundaries of theatre itself. Through research, improvisation, and experimentation, the final performance gradually takes shape. A defining feature of the ensemble’s work is its focus on the presence of both audience and performer, their relationship in the here and now, as well as the exposure and simplicity of the message.
Since its founding in 2013, the ensemble has created seven original productions: Králíček (2013, DAMU), GoG (2014, Studio ALTA), Loneliness & Stuff (2016, Studio ALTA), KEEP CALM (2017, Alfred ve dvoře), Neboj aneb show tanečníka Jiříka (2018, Cross Attic), Words of Apology (2019, NOD), and What’s Happening (2019, Palác Akropolis). In addition to leading workshops, ensemble members occasionally moderate cultural events, such as Día de los muertos (2016, Alfred ve dvoře), Den tance (2017, Studio ALTA), and the Czech theatre DNA Awards during the Malá inventura festival. Their production KEEP CALM (2017) was nominated for Best Alternative Performance of the Year in the i-divadlo poll, while Sára Arnsteinová won the Best Female Performance in Alternative Theatre for 2017. In 2020, the ensemble was nominated for the Czech Theatre DNA Award, particularly for its unique approach to engaging audiences.
Peter Šavel is a Slovak dancer, choreographer, and teacher based in Brussels. He studied dance pedagogy at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava and continued his studies at the renowned Brussels school P.A.R.T.S., graduating in 2010. From 2014 to 2017, he was a resident artist at Charleroi Danses in Brussels and also collaborates with the organization Kunst/Werk as a dancer and “artistic satellite.” In the Czech Republic, he works with Studio ALTA. His works have been selected multiple times for the Aerowaves Top 20 platform, including Boys Who Like to Play with Dolls (with Tereza Ondrová), Much More Than Nothing (with ME–SA), and BAKKHEIA (with Bod.Y). His most recent works include collaborations with the group mimoOs on the production TETSU – The Energy That Shapes Us and with Jiří Šimek & Ufftenživot on Whoman.
Jiří Šimek is the creator and co-founder of the ensemble Ufftenživot. He studied at the Department of Alternative and Puppet Theater in Petra Tejnorová’s acting studio at DAMU. As an actor and performer, he appears in independent theater projects as well as in film and television. In his own work, he focuses on the effective integration of physical theater, dance, improvisation, slam poetry, and new media. His most recent original work is the solo production Words of Apology (2019). Since 2020, he has also been the producer and host of the podcast “Život on Air,” which serves as Ufftenživot’s platform for material unfit for the stage.
Duration: 90 min
Performers: Jiří Šimek, Peter Šavel
Dramaturgical and creative collaboration: Marta Ljubková
Technical support and lighting design: Štěpán Hejzlar, Zuzana Režná
Movement consultation: Martina Hajdyla Lacová
Production: Tereza Tomášová, Ludmila Vacková & Jiří Šimek
Producers: Studio ALTA (ALT@RT z. ú.), Ufftenživot
Co-production: Moving Station (Johan, z. ú.)
Artist residencies: (in chronological order) Velvarská kostka, Rezi.dance v lese, Sprang Scene (Norway), Baerum Kulturhus (Sandvika – Norway), Studio ALTA , Moving Station
Supported by: Prague City Council and Czech Ministry of Culture
The play is part of the project „Cooperation of Cultural Houses: Studio ALTA, Baerum Kulturhus, Black Box Teater“ that is supported from the EHP and Norway Grants 2014–2021. ALT@RT is the grant’s recipient.
The project at Kulturní stanice Galaxie is being created in collaboration with: Studio ALTA, 4 + 4 Days in Motion and Danceconnected
