Hana Strejčková
Biography
Hana Strejčková is a theatre director and dramaturge, choreographer, performer, author/writer and lecturer active in the Czech Republic and abroad. She completed her studies of dramaturgy and direction at the Department of Dramatic Theatre of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. She further studied physical theatre at École internationale de théâtre Jacques Lecoq in Paris and experimental scenography at the Laboratoire d´Etudes du Mouvement under Pascale Lecoq at the same school. She spent a year in Great Britain studying creative development and physical movement techniques focused on working with specific groups; she also lived in Russia for several years, gaining valuable professional experience there. She continued her education by studying Meyerhold’s Theatre Biomechanics in Centro Internazionale Studi di Biomeccanica Teatrale in Italy. Hana Strejčková obtained her qualification as a teacher by completing the Creative Pedagogy study programme at the Department of Authorial Creativity and Pedagogy of the Theatre Faculty (DAMU) in Prague. She is currently a teacher and postgraduate student at the Nonverbal Theatre Department of the Music and Dance Faculty (HAMU) in Prague. She was awarded the prestigious Excellence Scholarship for research of movement theatre in the 20th and 21st centuries. As an academician, she gives lectures at Czech and foreign universities and attends international expert conferences and symposia. Hana leads theatre masterclasses and workshops. She participates in the research project Theatre and Freedom organised by the Arts and Theatre Institute in Prague.
Hana Strejčková is a founding member of the FysioART artistic and pedagogical platform, which prepares professional production activities, as well as activities with social overlap. She explores the possible forms of participation and interaction in dance and motion theatre for toddlers, children and youth. Another long-term areas of her work include original mask- and object-theatre productions, puppet theatre, site-specific performances and Reminiscence theatre. Hana has engaged in creative work with specific groups, especially disadvantaged children and seniors. Hana Strejčková’s recent original works, acclaimed in the Czech Republic as well as abroad, include a Czech-German co-production Poutníci po hvězdách [The Star Rovers], original drama Půlnoc v pohraničí [Midnight in the Boarderlands], and productions for children Hmyzí hotel Bzzzz [Insekt Hotel buzz buzz], a Czech-Japanese project Mezi námi [Among Us], a new-circus show Hnízdo na nitkách [The Nest on the Threads], a surrealist dance performance Za zrcadlem [Through the Looking-Glass], etc. So far, she has directed some forty productions, which were performed in Germany, Israel, Poland, Hungary, Russia, Spain, Slovakia, Great Britain, France and other countries.
As a choreographer and director, she has co-operated with Rena Milgrom in the framework of the global biennial happening Global Water Dances. Hana is a member of the creative team for the Čáry, Máry, Fuk – Světlo, Pohyb, Zvuk Festival [Abracadabra – Light, Movement, Sound Festival] organised by Věra Ondrašíková. Hana is a creative partner of the German organisation Taupunkt e. V., which focuses on social theatre and support for new professionals. As a dramaturge, she was involved in Barbora Látalová’s production Karneval zvířet [The Carnival of the Animals], etc. She was granted several creative residences both abroad – at the Avignon Theatre Festival, Edinburgh Festival – and in the Czech Republic, e.g. in the Varnsdorf Municipal Theatre, UFFO Trutnov, and others. Hana Strejčková is a member of the Association of Theatre Educators and the Czech ASSITEJ Committee.
She is the author of professional literature (e.g. the essay Body and Freedom in the collective monograph Theatre and Freedom), and a writer. Her children’s book Už běžím domů [I am on my way home] was created as part of the international art and social project Among Us, exploring the theme of home. On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Czechoslovakia, she wrote the book 222 a 2 příběhy 20. století [222 and 2 Stories of the 20th Century] in the framework of a collective reminiscence project. She also designed the haptic accordion book Tik Tap for the BabyLaterna production, which she directed and choreographed. BatoLaterna is the first ever production of the National Theatre – Laterna magika intended for children from 6 months to 3 years of age.