Synopsis

Prague by John Krizanc combines elements of mime, theatre of the absurb, farce, satire, and dark comedy to produce a bitter but effective attack on the repressive nature of the present communist regime in Czechoslovakia. The setting is the stage of the Bread and Dreams Theatre in Prague. The director's father has just died following a prolonged period of interrogation by the secret police. Members of the company are preparing a new play for presentation in a few days. A new ending has been written but must be approved by the ministry of culture. The ministry is represented by Zuzanna Jancocova, an eager lady who approves the new ending after a brief liaison with the supposed author, who defects to the West by attending a writer's conference in Austria. She and Major Zrak, a police investigator, represent officialdom with its cruelty, stupidity, and readiness to dissimulate for personal safety. Eventually plans go ahead for presentation although no one believes that the director himself is the author. Members of the company with their wisecracks and mime antics provide entertainment and comic relief. References to "pissing," perhaps offensive in some communities, help to sustain the mood of tension and disgust.