CONTINUO THEATRE

is an international independent theatre group led by Pavel Štourač, its director and artistic coordinator. Since 1995 the company has been settled in a little village in South Bohemia called Malovice in a former farmstead called The Plum Yard. Continuo’s productions cannot be easily categorized into genres. Movement, live music, puppets, physical acting, acrobatics, dance, along with striking visual stylization – all of these create the unique poetics of each individual production.

Continuo Theatre is a group that professes theatre as a process, a need, a way of being. Although it is often described as physical or visual theatre, it is virtually impossible to classify its work by genre. Continuo Theatre work combines physical acting with puppet theatre practices, live music, and distinctive visual stylization.

Members of Continuo research an authentic, personal connection between visual artistic knowledge and physical acting, rhythm, voice, and musicality. Everyday work consists of actors’ trainings, workshops in which they get familiar with acting, dancing and voice techniques, in both, collective and individual way of learning and researching.

DRAMATURGY

During the last ten years dramaturgic orientation of Continuo Theatre have crystallized in three main thematic spheres.

One of them is devoted to mythological and archetypal rudiments of our civilization. Continuo Theatre often uses topics from antique mythology, texts of world religions, fairy tales, folk literature, music, and poetry.

Another line of Continuo’s artistic orientation is creating performances and projects which deal with current events, topics, and phenomena. Such performances proceed from newspaper articles, personal experience of Continuo members, philosophic works, or current affairs.

Finally, Continuo Theatre is interested in the events of the 20th century which still influence home affairs in Central European countries. Continuo members are persuaded that these events and the absence of their society-wide analysis affect social atmosphere in the countries of the former Soviet Bloc. Such performances and creative projects deal with particular historical events and look for their traces, overlap and context in the present reality of our society.

PRIZES AND AWARDS

2023 – The Award for „Expressing the Theatre with a Puppet” to the performance „Hic Sunt Dracones” at the Lalka też Człowiek festival.

2023 – The Audiance Award to the performance „Hic Sunt Dracones” at the Lalka też Człowiek festival.

2023 – Award of the Deputy Governor of the Moravian-Silesian Region for impressive images in the space to Helena and Pavel Štourač in the production HIC SUNT DRACONES at the Spectaculo Interesse Festival

2022 – Price of Skupova Plzeň festival to Helena and Pavel Štourač for directing and artistic conception of the inscenation HIC SUNT DRACONES

2021 – Special Award of the International Jury to Jakub Štourač for for the excellent interplay of musician with the creators and performers, for his contribution to the works and his presence on stage, Czech Dance Platform

2014 –  Professional jury award to Pavel Štourač for directing the performance The Eighth Day, Skupova Plzeň festival.

2010 – The drama text of VICTIM performance by Ivan Jurečka was nominated and take part in final competition of Evald Schorm prize, dedicated to the students of art schools for drama play.

2008 – Silver Medal of the president of Italian Republic (Giorgio Napolitano´s Silver Medal) to Pavel Štourač for the direction of SPETTATORI performance.

2008 – SPETTATORI performance directed by artistic leader of Continuo Theatre Pavel Štourač and stage-designed by Helena Štouračová was awarded by five of eight prizes on Romateatro festival in Rome and by two prizes on Istropolitana festival in Bratislava, Slovakia.

2006 – Award of the Next Wave festival in the category ‘production project’ for the Kratochvílení 2006 project

2006 – Professional jury award for The Flow of Time performance, festival Sasiedzi, Lublin, Poland

2004 – Award of the Divadelní noviny (Theatre Journal) to Pavel Štourač for „Creative Enterprise of 2004” for the idea and direction of the Kratochvílení 2004 project

1998 – Professional jury award to Pavel Štourač for directing the production of Circus Vitae, Skupova Plzeň festival

1998 – Professional jury award to Pavel Štourač for direction and acting in the production of The Legend of Prince Phillip, Skupova Plzeň festival

1998 – Professional jury award to Jan Brůček for dramaturgy in The Legend of Prince Phillip, Skupova Plzeň festival

1996 – Professional jury award to Pavel Štourač for the direction of the Mrakavy performance, Skupova Plzeň festival

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

THANKS TO ALL PERSONS, INSTITUTIONS, AND COMPANIES FOR THEIR UNWAVERING FINANCIAL, MATERIAL AND MORAL SUPPORT OF OUR ACTIVITIES.

ACTIVITIES OF CONTINUO THEATRE ARE POSSIBLE THANKS TO: