Vladimír Gamza: the comedian’s system

Abstract

ABSTRACT It is well known that after 1918 the newly founded Czechoslovakia became an asylum for thousands of Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian emigrants. Among the exiles we find former members of the MAT and its First Studio. Kachalov’s Group in Prague is a well-known example. This was also a period of significant repatriation of a number of Czechoslovaks settled in Russia. Among them was Vladimír Gamza (1902–29), an admirer of the First Studio, who attempted to implement its programme in Czechoslovakia by setting up the Czech Studio (1924–5 season) and the Art Studio (1926–7). Gamza quickly developed a passion for Russian modernist theatre, which he was exposed to until he was 17. His direct experience of Russian theatre is linked to the pre-revolutionary period. In this essay I will discuss how we can trace a partial knowledge of the Stanislavsky System in his work and its reflection.