Slovak actor working in the Czech Republic Adrian Jastaban He emphasizes that artists should also comment on social events. “The fact that artists and actors should not take care of politics is absolute bullshit,” he says.
He is convinced that actors have a specific role in society and therefore cannot remain aside.
“People who are publicly known and work in society should at least focus on it. It is important to comment on the things that happen around us,” he says. He adds that politics is a natural part of the reality that artists reflect.
I studied at the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts in Brno. We had a Marta theater studio at the school, at that time I experienced the first Commedia dell’arte, we did it in the original way it was done before Goldony, when the actors created everything ourselves. Everyone wrote the text of their character, we put it together, and it was a production.
And the first great experience on the stage was in the fourth year, when Ivan Balaďa occupied me in the comedy Pasiyova Game Aneb “about it the Slavic Creating and the Decree of our Lord Jesus Christ”. At that time, with Gustav Řezník, I alternated in the role of Jesus because I had long hair and beard, I threw myself. These were my beginnings in the Czech Theater.
What was your first movie?
He came in 1999 thanks to director Drahomíra Vihanová, who directed the film The Report on the Wandering of Students Petr and James. I played one of the two main male characters and the other played just Gustav Řezniček, with whom I alternated the character of Jesus in the theater. This film went straight to the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. I started in bulk, but I didn’t get there for the next 25 years. Only now, I was there with the film Petr Bebjak – Duchoň.
Where do you feel more at home – in the Czech Republic or Slovakia? How do you have it?
I will always be a Slovak actor working in the Czech Republic. The second thing is that I was born in Czechoslovakia. I was not in Slovakia for a minute, because in 1992 I went to study to the Czech Republic, so after the split I stayed on the Czech side. I only went home once every three weeks.
Even so long, Czechoslovakia has lived in me. In the Czech Republic I was accepted after the division, thanks to the Czechoslovak sentiment, very well. I never realized I was a stranger.
Really?
I am a citizen of the Czech Republic with all the right to vote. But I try to perceive political reality in both countries. I do more to Czech events, because I can influence it more actively. I have very strong ties to Slovakia, because I was born here and survived something here. I also lead my friends, family and children here. I want them to know the energy of the region.
Often I see the comments and opinions of ordinary society that actors should not comment on politics. What is your opinion? For example, you played the normalization characters of Alexander Dubček and Gustáv Husák.
The films were given a scenario to play and talk. Of course I smuggle a few of my things, but I can’t express personal things in them.
The fact that artists and actors should not take care of politics is absolute bullshit. I heard it several times. It would be comfortable for politicians. It gives society some reflection, it must also provoke if the time is asking. An artist is a person who moves things forward. We, as actors, try to reflect the present.
Who else is supposed to do this? Does it have a shop assistant in the store? Christ, no. She can’t sell my rolls to see if I didn’t think of who to vote.
People who are publicly known and work in society should at least do a little. It is important to comment on the things that happen around us. We actors work with the reality that people live, and we try to reflect it in some way. And honestly, without being reflected in the reflection, I can’t imagine it.
How do you perceive the atmosphere in society? Is it upset?
The situation is serious all over the world. The situation has long been disrupted throughout the liberal western world. Again, it needs to be filled with an idea. But it has to be constructive, and give something to people they miss the most. Because what they lack now give them people who are antisystemic. It is mostly businessmen with politics. The phenomenon that I have not fully aware of now is that the biggest tragedies today are caused by people in high political positions who know that once they lose their power, they can end up in prison.
This is a very dangerous fact, because they have the motivation to do anything to stay with the power. They will collect voices at the bottom, at the bottom. This means that they wipe the sludge and it takes a few seconds while you overwhelm the sludge. But until the sludge has stabilized on the bottom again, it takes infinitely long.
It is not on the street to see, but I feel a palpable loop moving before the election. It will be impossible to reverse it, as it seems impossible to return Slovakia to decency and self -esteem not only to political but also to social life. But I admire the Slovaks that they do not give up and if possible, you will see me among the demonstrators.
In your opinion, was the source of polarization and the recent pensioner’s attack on former Prime Minister and the leader of YES movement Andrej Babiš? In our country, the frustration and hatred culminated in the assassination of Robert Fico.
Yes, but that’s a completely different category. When someone gets a crutch on their heads from a pensioner, it’s probably like someone caught eggs. Well, something else is when he shoots at someone.
Now it happened in America, although I think that man had very fascist speeches, and it freezes me when this is considered a journey. But we can’t shoot. On the contrary, this does much more damage, because it will only appear to the enemy, and again the antisystem will be in the position of the victim. Then it will create a much stronger core, and will win sympathizers because they say they are shooting at them.
You portrayed Alexander Dubček twice, once Gustav Husak and now viewers can see you in the movie Duchoň as a high -ranking official of the CPSU. However, the period of socialism still raises different views in our society. Do you understand that not everyone perceives it exclusively negatively and that some people do not condemn him as a period of “bad times”?
I was born in 1969, already until the darkness of normalization. I grew up in it. Only when I was 21 was the revolution. Fortunately, it was the ideal time because I was still young. That saved my life.
Why do you think it is not quite obvious that people condemn communism? This is also related to the fact that a person’s political memory goes back about 20 years ago. Many associate this period especially with their own childhood, which they have nice memories – parents often protected them from direct political pressure, and thus experienced another world: games, friendships or first love. These are all strong emotions that are not related to politics. When the time of socialism is mentioned, people will be recalled by these memories and positive feelings, although the regime itself was repressive. Parents often do not want to talk about the difficult sites of that period, so there is a sentiment to childhood that distorts the view of the whole time.
When we’re at Dubcek. How is it perceived in the Czech Republic?
I remember that during Covida they called me from Slovak Radio to say what message this character left in me. I had fever, I had to concentrate very much to articulate clearly. And yet I knew exactly what they wanted to hear from me – and at the same time that I couldn’t tell them, because it wouldn’t be true.
So I formulated it carefully. I replied that I had to forgive him first. He was not one of the progressive wing, which created the year 1968, on the contrary, was part of the conservative line, which was carried by a wave of events. In the 1950s, at a time of political processes and executions, he worked at the Ministry of Agriculture in a high office – so he knew very well what was happening. It wasn’t an ordinary party from the factory, but a man who saw behind the scenes. To be able to play him and understand, I had to forgive him first. It wasn’t easy.
Later I could approximately imagine his value frame – he was definitely a decent person. But we know that even decent people in history have made very problematic decisions. I was a little sorry that there was no time for his later steps when he signed the so -called. Bully law. Then he could leave. I understand that the creators did not want to bring it to the first Slovak film about the Prague Spring representative so that they would not get the character immediately, but it belongs to his story.
But for me, Gustáv Husák was much more interesting than Alexander Dubček.
Why?
Husák’s story came to me by ancient. Such a tragedy of an incredibly talented and even militant righteous man, in the beginning of his journey that passes to the dark side, because of the ego. I don’t want to elaborate it for too long, but it was much more interesting for me to portray him. In the character were much larger internal energies, conflicts and experience that had to be transferred in the acting statement. Just imagine that he has been closed and priced with chains in the cellar – this is incredible what you have gone through. And yet, when he came out, he could re -join and wait for his opportunity in the same system.
I am not a historian or a political scientist, these are just my personal observations, I approached the character.
Even such a hypothetical question. Would Dubček support Russia or Ukraine today?
I don’t know, I don’t want to hurt him. The gentleman is in the second world. That’s not me.
What projects can we see you soon? It will be something historical again, because you are already associated with the socialist period, how? What are you working on?
I don’t play lovers anymore. This period is already gone, praise God. But I like those party characters. But in the series Unit hawk I play a character who has a suspicious weakness for the main character.
Peter Bebjak recently occupied you in the aforementioned film Duchoň.
Yes, I am glad, because when the character is well written, there is something to play. In Duchoň There was no huge space, but I portrayed a person with my fears, the ability to be a friend, but also with mistakes. Basically, I represented the whole sector, not just one character – we didn’t want to squeeze the movie on the “Communists” because the story was about something else. The film depicts Duchoň’s life that is reflected in his eyes before his death.
I saw the movie three times that I rarely happen to me, with the movies I played in. I wanted to see how it works on different people. I was at the project in Bratislava, Karlovy Vary, but also at the premiere in Prague.
So where will the nearest viewers see you?
Now he is spinning in Slovakia and cuting a film about Ondrej Nepela. It is interesting because there are actually two films – one Czech and one Slovak. I will not discuss how it happened. Nepela is a very remarkable personality and I think that Slovakia can be proud of him again. Director Gregor Valentovič chose a very good point of view for me. He says things hard, does not embarrass them, but it carries some poetry – and that is very important.
When cruel or hard things are presented, there must be a certain aesthetics, certain poetry. In this Slovakia I will portray the chairman of the sports association. So again the villain. Hold, I have to leave lovers to the younger ones.
