Karel Audy
Biography
Karel Audy was born in Brno, where he enrolled at the Dance Conservatory at the age of 11. While still a student, he appeared in productions of the National Theatre in Brno, whose ballet company he joined following his graduation in 2004. During his first season there, he was afforded the opportunity to perform in solo roles, including the Golden Idol in La Bayadère, Ali and Lankedem in Le Corsaire. In 2006, he was named a demi-soloist and in the next year a soloist. While a member of the National Theatre in Brno, he danced in a number of classical ballet productions, mainly portraying lead roles in The Nutcracker (Prince), Le Corsaire (Conrad), Romeo and Juliet (Mercutio), Spartacus (Spartacus), Swan Lake (the Prince’s Friend, Pas de trois), Raymonda (Abderachman), and modern titles, such as Sylvia (Eros), Tango, L'Histoire du soldat(Alter Ego), Le Sacre du printemps (Man), Frida (Death), Maria’s Dream and Sonata. He rounded off his engagement with the National Theatre in Brno within a tour of Sardinia, performing the role of Solor in La Bayadèreat the Teatro Lirico di Cagliari. In the 2008/09 season, Karel Audy joined the Czech National Ballet in Prague as a demi-soloist. At the same time, he continued to appear as a guest soloist in a number of the company’s performances. The solo roles he was entrusted with during his first season in Prague included Gennaro in Napoli, the Prince in The Nutcracker, the Slave in Le Corsaire (within the Ballet Mania show) and Benno in Swan Lake. In 2011, he was appointed a soloist and in 2015 promoted to the post of principal dancer. Subsequently, he portrayed other solo roles in the productions of Swan Lake (Von Rothbart ), Don Quixote (Basil), performed as Friar Lawrence in Romeo and Juliet (choreographed by Petr Zuska), Solor in La Bayadère (choreographed by Javier Torres), danced in the solo passages of Symphony No. 7 in A major (choreographed by Uwe Scholz), and appeared as the Dad in The Nutcracker and the Cuddly Mouse (choreographed by Petr Zuska) and Kay in The Snow Queen (choreographed by Michael Corder). As for the modern repertoire, he has danced in Decadance (choreographed by Ohad Naharin), Rain (choreographed by Radu Poklitaru) and Cacti (choreographed by Alexander Ekman).
Moreover, Karel Audy has been invited to perform in ballet galas in Germany, the Baltic countries, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and elsewhere.
In November 2016, he appeared as a guest in the lead role in Brno in the National Theatre’s premiere of Petr Zuska’s choreography Tremble. Of late, he has also performed in the Hommes Fatals project.
Karel Audy has garnered success in a number of international competitions (St. Poelten, 2002, commendation and premium – Brno, 2003, finalist – Vienna, 2004, first prize – Brno, 2006). In 2007, he participated in the international competition in Vienna, and advanced to the final of the Premio Roma, where the jury was chaired by Maya Plisetskaya.
Furthermore, he has created his own choreographies: The Rhythm (International Dance Competition in Brno in 2006) and The Vision of Soul (he also co-wrote the music; the Choreography Studio in Brno, 2008). His portrayal of Abderachman in the production of Raymonda staged at the National Theatre in Brno earned him a nomination for the prestigious Thalia Prize for 2008. He received the Best Partner Award at the International Dance Competition in Brno in 2009, and was a semi-finalist in the International Ballet Competition in Istanbul in 2010. Audy came second in the Olomouc Ballet Grand Prix Award 2010 competition for his performance in the duet Déjà vu (choreography: Petr Zuska). His portrayal of Iago in Othello (choreography: Yuri Vàmos ) earned him a nomination for the Thalia Prize 2010. In 2014, he received his master’s degree in dance pedagogy from the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Brno.