Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1991 - 35

rabies, rhere is anorher side of rhe coin.
Sculprors and painrers have learned ro
complere work so rhar ir may be offered
for sale and collecred. The painrerly and
drafrsmanship rradirions of srage design
are increasingly carried no furrher rhan
rhe level required for rhe scene, cosrume
or painr shops. Then roo, many direcrors
find rhe use of a scale model of more help
rhan an evocarive skerch or finished rendering. Thus, as a maner of pracricaliry,
many designers (shorrsighredly I rhink)
have saved rhe addirional effon of acrually
preparing a finished rendering. In rhe
Un ired Srares exhibirion ar PQ'87, we
were dealing wirh rhe "process" of design,
and rhis lack of finished renderings was of
less consequence. In 1991 ir rook a lor of
persisrence and handholding ro ger finished documenrarion from rhe designers
and in some insrances we know rhar renderings were complered and models
reconsrrucred especially for rhe exhibir.
An inreresring anicle on collening in rhe
field of srage design in Connoisseur for
March 1991 is subrirled "bargains aplenry" and properly poinrs our, "In many
cases, rhe srage design is rhe only visual
record we have len ro us of a momenr of
rhearrical magic."
Finally, ler me commenr on rhe resignarion of Dr. Soukupova, borh as

Commissioner General of rhe PQ and
subsequendy as Secrerary-General of OISTAT. Of course, rhe merhod of pressure
and irs exrenr has changed in rhe currenr
environmenr as opposed ro rhe "bad
rimes" and I clearly don'r wanr in any way
ro equare rhem. In former rimes one wenr
ro prison and if released, employmenr in
any meaningful occuparion was difficulr.
Since rhe Quadrennial is a funcrion of rhe
Czech Minisrry of Culrure, Eva had no
choice bur ro submir her resignarion when
ir was requesred. Bur wirh regard ro rhe
OISTAT ir was nor possible ro allow rhe
Czech aurhoriries ro influence rhe resignarion of rhe duly-e1ecred Secrerary-General
of an inrernarional organizarion. Thus rhe
OISTAT Execurive Comminee acring
rhrough Presidenr Helmur Grosser
expressed irs unanimous confidence in
Eva, insisred rhar she should conrinue and
senr a sharp nore of rebuke ro rhe Czech
aurhoriries.
Grosser wrore: " ... rhis anempr ar a
resignarion reminds one so painfully of
rhose cusromary in your pasr regimes.
... We know besr whar Dr. Soukupova
accomplished during rhe former regime
and despire ir. .. " I pur rhe Unired Srares
on record as follows: "For wharever discarded onhodoxy Dr. Soukupova had ro
represenr on behalf of her Minisrries, ir is

clear in summarion rhar her vision builr a
rhousand individual bridges ro rhe wesrern democracies and ser up rhose scores of
meerings in which involved professionals
from easr and wesr were able ro make lasring conracrs and exchanges of informarion. We recognize and can cire frequenr
personal examples when rhese bridges and
exchanges were performed in spire of your
former aurhoriries ... "
These exchanges reached a relarively
high level in "Prague Casrle" direcrly ar
rhe sear of governmenr and rhere were
reprimands. Afrer all, Presidenr Havel had
himself declared a policy of undemanding
and resrrainr from old recriminarions.
And ir was obvious rhar more morives
were presenr rhan Eva's ries ro rhe old
regime. However, Eva had herself decided
by rhis rime rhar she could nor be effecrive
as Secrerary-General and insisred rhar we
accepr her resignarion as final, offering as
a suggesrion rhar her replacemenr be her
good friend Dr. Ora Ornesr.
This suggesrion had a dramaric perfenion of irs own, a suirable end ro a srory
rhar already had a beginning and a middle. Dr. Ora Ornesr, a disringuished arrisric direcror, rranslaror and rhearre manager had, in facr, been rhe very firsr
Secrerary-General of ISTAT. He was pur
in rhis place by Eva when his liberalism

JCN
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Property & Costume

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(415) 638-6907

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1991

FALL

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1991