Autoteatro is a specific form of theater that engages participants in an immersive and interactive experience. In Autoteatro, individuals become both the actors and the audience, blurring the traditional boundaries between performer and spectator. Audience is entering the skin of protagonists of the play, becoming its main characters.

Autoteatro takes place directly in a café during regular opening hours. Participants receive headphones through which they receive all the instructions. The experience is also guided by specially trained actors who enhance the overall atmosphere of the play.

In the play Troublesome Classmates, you will immerse in the lives of two contemporaries of the communist revolution in Czechoslovakia – Jana Kaněrová and Zdeněk Adamec. They experienced the times of World War II, collectivization, and time of fabricated political trials. How do they remember that era? What was it like growing up in a time when one had to be a communist or face repressions that could cost one’s life?

Both Kaněrová and Adamec shared their memories with the Institute of National Memory. Students from JAMU (Janáček Academy of Performing Arts), under the guidance of Monika Okurková, transformed these memories into immersive theater for two spectators.

For each performance, we expect 2 participants, a man and a woman. They will sit at a table in a café (or a similar space), wearing headphones that will allow them to immerse in the story and take on the roles of Jana Kaněrová or Zdeněk Adamec, experiencing at least partially what they went through years ago. Trained actors will assist them throughout the process.

Anyone can participate in the play. You don’t need to have any acting experience. Although you serve as both a spectator and an acting partner to your counterpart and we will guide you to a certain reactions via headphones, the most important thing is simply to be present. It really is enough just to be; you don’t have to try to act. 

During the performance, you won’t be pushed into situations that might make you uncomfortable. We won’t force you into any interactions. You can always step out of the play.