“There was a local unit of the Communist Party in every street and this unit would decide about everyone’s future life. When someone was about to do something – such as study at a grammar school – they would say: ‘No. He can’t because he comes from this and that family.’ Achieving pretty much anything was conditioned by the unit’s decision. Since my dad was somewhat better off, even though we were not wealthy, having a car back then was enough to incite certain jealousy. In the end, this turned out to be quite dangerous as it affected my life, my brother’s life, my father’s life and so on.”
“Obviously, when I was about to decide, I discussed it with Václav Havel. I remember one evening when we stood at the bar in Theater Na zábradlí and I was telling him: ‘Vašek, I will probably leave the country.’ He replied: ‘It is a serious decision but I think you can make it. If they lock you up here, nobody will know. If I get locked up, at least, people will be aware of it because I am – so to say – well-worn.’ It was a situation which helped me make a decision because I was able to do more for the Czech or Czechoslovak Republic out there than someone in here who was bound and unable to work freely. I was able to advertize Czechia a bit in my work in Switzerland by directing a number of Czech theater plays.”
“This, but not only this of course, forced me to emigrate following the invasion of 1968. At that time the plays we performed in the theater were becoming more and more vocal because we were more daring as the situation loosened up. We in the theater were the first to see the famous publication The Two Thousand Words because Václav Havel brought it there. That happened in June 1968. Vašek brought it in and many of us signed it. I was also one of the first signatories. It was published in Literární noviny including our signatures. Interrogations had followed. We were somewhat afraid. I remember deciding to harden myself in order to make it through in prison later. I began showering with cold water, not eating for the whole day. It may have been a bit naïve but I honestly prepared myself for prison.”
Jaroslav Vízner was born on 30 May 1937 in Prague as the second oldest of four brothers. He grew up in Prague’s Vokovice district. His family was struck by the tragic death of his oldest brother in 1945. Until 1948, Jaroslav’s father worked as an agent for the state company Kooperativa (central association of economic cooperatives). After the dissolution of Kooperativa he lost his job, sustained nervous breakdown and Jaroslav’s mother became the breadwinner. Until its dissolution in 1948, Jaroslav attended the French grammar school in Dejvice, later transferring to an elementary school in Vokovice. Because of his family background, he was only allowed to carry on studying at a technical high school. He graduated from high school of mechanical engineering in 1956. Even though he passed the entry exam to the Theatre Faculty in Prague, he wasn’t admitted, based on a reference of the so-called street committee. After undergoing his military service, since 1958 he worked as an assistant in Documentary Film Prague. Since 1960 he performed as an actor in Prague’s Semafor theater, in Uherské Hradiště, Český Těšín and Kladno. In 1962 he got a residency in Prague’s theater Theater Na Zábradlí where he stayed for six years. Apart from theater he also acted in several late-1960s movies. Following the August 1968 invasion he decided to emigrate with his wife and daughter. They settled in Geneva where since 1969 he worked as a director of TSR TV (Télévision Suisse Romande). From 1975 to 1981 he taught at the University of Theatre Arts (ESAD) in Geneva. Besides directing he also worked as film and theater actor. In 2002 he returned to the Czech Republic. Jaroslav Vízner died on May the 29th, 2022.
