Blahoslav Uhlár

“I bitched about the communists, but I didn´t get involved in any activities, I wasn´t one of the heroes. Only in 1988 I dared to sign Několik vět petition (A Few Sentences), what was such a [...]. In the Voice of America then they read my name among those who had signed it. We performed the TANAP with amateurs at the first year of the Weekend of Attractive Theatre in Zvolen, what took place in nearby Sliač. It was in 1989 and probably we performed on November 18. On this day Ondrej Mrázek came there, he was supposed to perform with his colleague, but in the end he performed alone. He brought us news what happened the day before in Prague. So when we arrived to Bratislava afterwards, in the House of Artists (‘Umelka’) there was a meeting planned. I was there, although I hesitated if to take my toothbrush along. Just kidding […]. Kňažko was speaking, then Budaj, I don´t even remember it all, but they said we had to make a list of something, and so on. On Wednesday or Tuesday there were so many people present, that the place happened to be too small for such a meeting. The next ones were held at the square. I was very happy it all moved that much. I wasn´t active there, even though, I was aware of the fact, that if I wanted to enter the politics, it was the right time and place to do so. Fedor Gál said to all: ‘If you want, just come and we can work together.’ But I never dared to do politics and I knew it back then. Although, I was truly present at the very first meeting, as well as at the next ones, but never stood on the tribune. I had a great hope it all would change to better. 15 – 20 years it took me to understand that not much can change for real. Marián Ludacký, our theatre psychologist, yet in 1975 told me that it couldn´t change since the people weren´t able to change their minds. I was naive to think that if the regime falls, all the evil disappears as it was only communists who did it. I was completely naive when I expected them to resign from their functions. The same people ruling back then are there till now. And exactly how my father uselessly hoped; for instance we saw it with Čatloš… the spiritual climate that is still present here cannot change. It can gradually modify, but no one can ever change another person. So I ingenuously believed it could become better after the revolution. And there are many things better for sure, I wouldn´t like the regime to be returned, but really, the radical change of spiritual climate never occurred.”

“Well, I have one completely paradoxical story to share. I don ´t know whether it was in 1986 or 1987, but I lived… I had a wife and children and next door lived a young elegant man of my age. He was tall, having wife and two children. Our kids used to play together sometimes. The man was a member of the State Security. Once he called me to their office. I was sitting there shit-scared in front of him. He apologized to me that even though he is in charge of criminal offenses, he had to sub for his colleague to have a supervision of theatres as well. He was of my age, a handsome man, but I was shit-scared – he was a member of the ŠtB, right? So, he even apologized for doing that since he was supposed to do something else. The absolute paradox was the period when it all happened, since I suffered quite a lot working with Nvota. I felt to be very uninteresting for the audience next to him, but this ŠtB member began telling me: ‘I watch your program and Mr. Nvota has such a nice program, I enjoy watching it, but that yours, it´s such a blood and sweat!’ What the fuck was that? I was bowled over! When the ŠtB member tells you such a compliment! I was simply blown, fuck up! I was supposed to beg him back then to write it into a newspaper, but… was that an interrogation? I don´t even know what was that, but I don´t remember finding this about me in the State Security materials, except that one conversation.”