Michal Ditte: Ota

What remains of a person the authorities tried to erase from history? The Jozef Gregor Tajovský Theatre in Zvolen presents "Ota", continuing its commitment to socially engaged theatre. Director Júlia Rázusová returns to the story of Ota Plávková, a journalist and radio editor who refused to submit to propaganda after the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia in August 1968. Her story is not a historical reconstruction, but a reflection on freedom of speech, civic courage, and the values we pass on to future generations.

Michal Ditte's original text, inspired by Michal Várošík's book "I Revoke Nothing", draws from documentary materials, personal accounts, and historical facts. Ota Plávková's fate is paralleled by the story of Laura, a contemporary investigative journalist facing pressure from political power and oligarchic structures. Past and present converge in the production as it asks whether media freedom and the courage to speak truth are truly self-evident.

Rázusová transforms documentary material into the physical language of the stage, where word, music, and movement combine into a rhythmic form with multi-role acting. The Jozef Gregor Tajovský Theatre in Zvolen thus continues the tradition of previous productions "The Bonnet", "We Are a Country", and "Tel3gram", which regularly resonate on festival stages.

Followed by a discussion with the creators.

In Slovak with English subtitles. No intermission.