History
Pavel Šmok’s Artistic Background
As a choreographer, Pavel Šmok shaped the aesthetics of Czech (and formerly Czechoslovak) dance, enriching it with his peculiar inventiveness, musicality and humour. Moreover, he was a skilled performer and cinematographer. He is the founder of Ballet Prague and Prague Chamber Ballet. The latter carries on his legacy, striving to further develop and inspire the Czech dance scene and thus stand true to the reputation of Pavel Šmok’s successors.
Pavel Šmok was born in Levoča, Slovakia. At the age of 13, he and his parents moved to Prague. After completing a technical college, he continued his studies at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the Czech Technical University, where he stayed for two years. He later applied the technological knowledge thus earned in his artistic work. Already as a student, he was engaged in amateur theatre and was a member of the Josef Vycpálek Song and Dance Ensemble. In 1948 Šmok entered the
acting department of the conservatory, having thus the chance to receive education from master actors such as Radovan Lukavský, Karel Höger, Jiří Plachý Sr., Bohumil Bezouška, etc. Though he moved to the dance department after one year, he maintained his contacts with the world of drama. E. F. Burian offered him a guest appearance at the D 47 theatre, and he also got a minor part in a film, yet he decided to fully concentrate on dancing.
Šmok started attending the dance department of the conservatory at the age of 22. Despite his uncommonly advanced age, he had all the necessary prerequisites for the studies thanks to his sport background; he learned the basics of classical dance through figure skating, where his coaches were Helena Štěpánková and Marta Aubrechtová (he skated competitively and later performed in Ice Shows, for which he also prepared choreographies). His teachers at the conservatory were Marie Anna Tymichová for classical dance, Z. Šemberová for folk dance, and Laurette Hrdinová for contemporary dance. Pavel Šmok graduated in 1953.
During their final year, the students accepted an engagement at the Army Opera, part of the Vít Nejedlý Army Art Ensemble, where Luboš Ogoun headed the dance section. The Army Opera was a touring theatre performing throughout Czechoslovakia, but it was disbanded in 1955. Pavel Šmok was offered a place at the National Theatre in Prague, but he almost immediately left it for the J. K. Tyl theatre in Pilsen. There he was given the opportunity to perform several solo parts (e.g. Father in Jánošík; Prince Goldilocks in the ballet From Fairy Tale to Fairy Tale; the Jester in Swan Lake; Vaslav in The Fountain of Bakhchisaray; Peter in the successful production Youth, and also a dancing part in Red Poppy choreographed by Luboš Ogoun). Šmok portrayed roles in classical, character, as well as contemporary pieces.
For the Pilsen theatre, Šmok also created his first choreographies (dances for the operettas Vintage, Paganini, and Beautiful Helen, and the opera A Masqued Ball). In 1958 he succeeded in the selection procedure for the director of the ballet section and choreographer at the theatre in Ústí nad Labem. He debuted with the productions Waltzes to music by A. Dvořák, Wedding Shirts by J. Novák and Carnival by R. Schumann. The ballet Seven beauties to the music of K. Karaev was followed by a successful Czech ballet The Servant of Two Masters, prepared by Jarmil Burghauser to a libretto written by Jan Reimoser (under the pseudonym Jan Rey). With the latter piece, Šmok attended the 1960 Festival of Contemporary Ballet in Brno, where he was inspired by the discussions about the developments and directions in the field of dance. He applied this experience in a full-length ballet The New Odyssey, where he abandoned the classical ballet morphology and retelling of a story through dance and opted for metaphorical expression instead. The show premiered to acclaim at the
Ústí theatre. Afterwards, Šmok accepted a position as choreographer at the Ostrava Ballet.
Pavel Šmok with the Vycpálek ensemble in a masquerade costume
Pavel Šmok elaborated on his artistic style employed in the New Odyssey. He came to the theatre as a refreshing element and enriched the repertoire with pieces for young audience. The productions he staged included Viktorka by Z. Vostřák; L. Janáček’s Lachian Dances; M. de Falla’s El Amor Brujo (Love By Witchcraft); J. Ducháň’s Pygmalion; Rossiniana. Love Song by P. Eben; Vertigo by Č Gregor, or V. Bukovský Conscience (which became famous later in Ogun’s version titled Hiroshima). He also created choreographies for operas and dramas, made guest appearances in in other theatres and also worked for on television. As a guest choreographer, he co-operated with the Brno ballet ensemble, back-then led by Luboš Ogoun, a pioneer of modern approach to ballet staging. Šmok created a choreography for The Seven Deadly Sins to Bertold Brecht’s libretto and Kurt Weill’s music and achieved a real success with Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue.
During that period, Pavel Šmok fell for the magic of television. He started co-operating with the Ostrava TV studio in 1962 (with Karel Kupka’s symphonic suite Picassiade). He was a true a pioneer of the new artistic genre: instead of merely recording his choreographic works, he looked at it through a filmmaker’s lenses in terms of the cinematography and dynamic editing. Šmok worked regularly for the Czechoslovak TV as well as for foreign broadcasters and also prepared a number of entertainment programmes and revues in collaboration with the Czechoslovak TV Ballet, as well as TV films.