Kakadu / Karel František Tománek, Jiří Havelka
A play from life
Kakadu follows on Dejvické divadlo’s Wanted Welzl in a way, a production that has rather unjustly been somewhat overlooked. The story of an autistic girl and an Alaskan western might at first sight be a long way from one another, just as the vividly colourful Wilsonesque set design of Welzl is a long way from the grubby interiors of Kakadu – but what is more fundamental is how strong and omnipresent is the fragmentary nature of the style and the Tománek-like way in which things are left unsaid. The irregular combination of cynical jokes with otherwise serious action is another feature they have in common. Irony and an unwillingness to enter into the theme in full seriousness is, for both Havel and Dejvické divadlo (and for the Czech Republic in general) more of a matter of course than much of a surprise, but it works out unexpectedly well… A plus factor is the utter openness of the story – unlike the resigned departure of the Eskymo Welzl this not terribly happy autistic journey through an uncomfortable world comes to no finale, the theatre simply stops following it. How audience members then imagines the further life trajectory of the play’s heroine is down to their individual level of optimism or scepticism…
Vladimír Mikulka, Lidové noviny