Bolek Polívka
Encyclopedia
Boleslav Polívka is a Czech
film and theatre actor
, mime
, playwright
and screenwriter
. Polívka played in more than 40 films.
in the play Podivné odpoledne dr. Zvonka Burkeho (Strange Afternoon of Dr. Zvonek Burke) by Ladislav Smoček. In 1969 he co-founded Divadlo Husa na provázku (Goose on a String Theatre) and became one of its leading personalities. In 1993 he founded his own theater, Divadlo Bolka Polívky (Bolek Polívka Theatre) in Brno
. He is one of the most important exponents of Czech mime and frequently appears with foreign theatre ensembles.
Polívka's work as writer, director and mime performer is inspired by clowning, Commedia dell'arte
, and early comedy film
s, but he occasionally introduces voice and words into his performances, which thus cross traditional theatrical boundaries into a form of "total acting". His unique theatrical style has been widely acclaimed in the Czech Republic and beyond.
He first appeared in films in the 1960s and has worked with the Czech director Vladimír Sís. Since the 1980s he has regularly worked with Věra Chytilová
, who often casts him in the lead roles of her "moralistic comedies".
In 1997 he was awarded the Czech Lion
, and voted Best Actor at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
, for his performance as the priest Holý in Zapomenuté světlo
. Polívka received his second Czech Lion for his role in the 2000 film Musíme si pomáhat
by Jan Hřebejk
. The film was also was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
.
Bolek Polívka presents his own television shows - Manéž Bolka Polívky (Bolek Polívka's Arena) and Bolkoviny, both shown on Czech Television
. He often organizes public events and entertainments at his farm in Olšany near Brno.
He has been married twice and has three children, one of whom, Anna Polívková is an actress.
News, Polívka was involved in one of the oddest legal disputes of the Czech Republic's history. In a 1993 TV performance he had himself crowned as "king" of an entirely fictional Kingdom of Wallachia - named after the genuine region Moravian Wallachia
. However, in 1997 he began a collaboration with Tomáš Harabiš, who had independently created and officially registered another, equally fictional "Wallachian Kingdom"
, complete with "passports". Polívka, as a well known comic and popular actor, became the public face of the "Wallachian Kingdom" as the "Wallachian King, Boleslav I the Gracious, Forever". Harabiš and Polívka's partnership made the "Wallachian Kingdom" into one of the most successful tourist attractions in the Czech Republic. Their working relationship continued amicably up to 2000, but an acrimonious dispute erupted over legal ownership of the "kingdom". The kingdom's name had been trademarked by Harabiš. In 2001 Harabiš deposed "King Boleslav" Polívka. In 2002 Polívka retaliated with a lawsuit. It accused Harabiš of making unlawful profits from Polívka as "King Boleslav". In 2008 Polívka lost the case.
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
film and theatre actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, mime
Mime
The word mime is used to refer to a mime artist who uses a theatrical medium or performance art involving the acting out of a story through body motions without use of speech.Mime may also refer to:* Mime, an alternative word for lip sync...
, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
. Polívka played in more than 40 films.
Career
In 1971 Polívka graduated at the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing ArtsJanácek Academy of Music and Performing Arts
Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts is a university-level school in Brno in the Czech Republic.The Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts is one of two academies of music and the dramatic arts in the Czech Republic...
in the play Podivné odpoledne dr. Zvonka Burkeho (Strange Afternoon of Dr. Zvonek Burke) by Ladislav Smoček. In 1969 he co-founded Divadlo Husa na provázku (Goose on a String Theatre) and became one of its leading personalities. In 1993 he founded his own theater, Divadlo Bolka Polívky (Bolek Polívka Theatre) in Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
. He is one of the most important exponents of Czech mime and frequently appears with foreign theatre ensembles.
Polívka's work as writer, director and mime performer is inspired by clowning, Commedia dell'arte
Commedia dell'arte
Commedia dell'arte is a form of theatre characterized by masked "types" which began in Italy in the 16th century, and was responsible for the advent of the actress and improvised performances based on sketches or scenarios. The closest translation of the name is "comedy of craft"; it is shortened...
, and early comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
s, but he occasionally introduces voice and words into his performances, which thus cross traditional theatrical boundaries into a form of "total acting". His unique theatrical style has been widely acclaimed in the Czech Republic and beyond.
He first appeared in films in the 1960s and has worked with the Czech director Vladimír Sís. Since the 1980s he has regularly worked with Věra Chytilová
Vera Chytilová
Věra Chytilová is an avant-garde Czech film director and pioneer of Czech cinema. Banned by the Czechoslovakian government in the 1960s, she is best known for her Czech New Wave film, Sedmikrásky...
, who often casts him in the lead roles of her "moralistic comedies".
In 1997 he was awarded the Czech Lion
Czech Lion
The Czech Lion awards are annual awards that recognize accomplishments in filmmaking and television. It is the highest award of achievement in film awarded in the Czech Republic...
, and voted Best Actor at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary , Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival gained worldwide recognition over the past years and has become one of Europe's major film events....
, for his performance as the priest Holý in Zapomenuté světlo
Forgotten Light
Forgotten Light is a 1996 Czech film directed by Vladimír Michálek and written by Milena Jelinek. It was the Czech Republic's submission to the 70th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted as a nominee....
. Polívka received his second Czech Lion for his role in the 2000 film Musíme si pomáhat
Divided We Fall (film)
Divided We Fall is a 2000 Czech film directed by Jan Hřebejk. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.-Plot:...
by Jan Hřebejk
Jan Hrebejk
Jan Hřebejk is a Czech film director.-Early life and education:Born in Prague, Hřebejk studied together with his classmate Petr Jarchovský at high school. Now Jarchovsky is a frequent collaborator as a screenwriter...
. The film was also was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
.
Bolek Polívka presents his own television shows - Manéž Bolka Polívky (Bolek Polívka's Arena) and Bolkoviny, both shown on Czech Television
Czech television
Czech television may refer to:*Television in the Czech Republic*Česká televize...
. He often organizes public events and entertainments at his farm in Olšany near Brno.
He has been married twice and has three children, one of whom, Anna Polívková is an actress.
Controversy
According to BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
News, Polívka was involved in one of the oddest legal disputes of the Czech Republic's history. In a 1993 TV performance he had himself crowned as "king" of an entirely fictional Kingdom of Wallachia - named after the genuine region Moravian Wallachia
Moravian Wallachia
Moravian Wallachia is a mountainous region located in the easternmost part of Moravia, Czech Republic, near the Slovakian border. The name Wallachia was formerly applied to all the highlands of Moravia and neighboring Silesia, although in the nineteenth century a smaller area came to be defined...
. However, in 1997 he began a collaboration with Tomáš Harabiš, who had independently created and officially registered another, equally fictional "Wallachian Kingdom"
Kingdom of Wallachia
"Kingdom of Wallachia" , named after the region of Moravian Wallachia, is a tongue-in-cheek micronation that was founded in 1997 by the photographer Tomáš Harabiš as an "elaborate practical joke". The location is in the northeast corner of the Czech Republic, 230 miles from Prague. It has since...
, complete with "passports". Polívka, as a well known comic and popular actor, became the public face of the "Wallachian Kingdom" as the "Wallachian King, Boleslav I the Gracious, Forever". Harabiš and Polívka's partnership made the "Wallachian Kingdom" into one of the most successful tourist attractions in the Czech Republic. Their working relationship continued amicably up to 2000, but an acrimonious dispute erupted over legal ownership of the "kingdom". The kingdom's name had been trademarked by Harabiš. In 2001 Harabiš deposed "King Boleslav" Polívka. In 2002 Polívka retaliated with a lawsuit. It accused Harabiš of making unlawful profits from Polívka as "King Boleslav". In 2008 Polívka lost the case.
Selected plays
- Am a Ea (Am and Ea)
- Pezza versus Čorba
- Pépe
- Trosečník (Castaway)
- Poslední leč
- Šašek a královna (The Jester and the Queen)
Selected filmography
- Balada pro Banditu (1978)
- Kalamita (Calamity) (1981)
- Poslední leč (1981)
- Šašek a královnaŠašek a královnaŠašek a královna is a 1987 Czechoslovak comedy film directed by Věra Chytilová....
(1987) - Něžný Barbar (1989)
- Sedím na konári a je mi dobre (1989)
- Dědictví aneb Kurvahošigutntag (Fuck-off Guys, Goodbye) (1992)
- Zapomenuté světloForgotten LightForgotten Light is a 1996 Czech film directed by Vladimír Michálek and written by Milena Jelinek. It was the Czech Republic's submission to the 70th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted as a nominee....
(Forgotten Light) (1996) - Pelíšky (Cozy Dens) (1999)
- Musíme si pomáhatDivided We Fall (film)Divided We Fall is a 2000 Czech film directed by Jan Hřebejk. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.-Plot:...
(Divided We Fall) (2000) - Out of the CityOut of the CityOut of the City is a Czech comedy film directed by Tomás Vorel. It was released in 2000.-Cast:* Tomás Hanák - Honza* Barbora Nimcová - Markéta* Michal Vorel - Honzík* Anezka Kusiaková - Anicka* Ljuba Skorepová - Granny* Bolek Polívka - Ludva...
(2000) - PupendoPupendoPupendo is a 2003 Czech film directed by Jan Hřebejk- Plot :Pupendo shows the difficulty of life in Czechoslovakia during the 1980s. Artist Bedřich Mára is unable to find much secure work due to his public antagonism toward the ruling Communist Party. He has a wife and two children...
- ŠtěstíSomething Like HappinessSomething Like Happiness is a 2005 Czech movie directed by Bohdan Sláma. It is about finding hope in the midst of disappointment by three young people who grew up in the same run-down block of flats and are now coming of age. The film won the Golden Seashell at the San Sebastian Film...
(Something Like Happiness) (2005) - RomingROMingROMing is a Czech comedy film, released in 2007. It's a road movie centered around the Roma, but with an extra story within the story.-Cast:* Jean Constantin - Somáli* Marián Labuda - Roman* Bolek Polívka - Stano Zaječí...
(2007) - Bathory (2008)
Further reading
- Petr Hájek: Předběžný portrét, Československý spisovatel, Praha, 1989 - interviews and fragments of the theatre texts by Bolek Polívka