PONEC – permanent stage for contemporary dance – has undergone a significant transformation during its 23rd season. This is primarily a shift in the artistic management strategy, now centred on collaboration between the revitalized theatre team and the newly established Artistic Council, consisting of three external experts: Dagmar Bednáriková, Sylva Šafková, and Honza Malík. Their inclusion brings a diversity of perspectives and decades of experience across various generations and backgrounds.
The new Artistic Council became operational in April 2024 and will shape the artistic plan for 2025. Meanwhile, until the end of 2024, the program will continue in line with the previous artistic leadership.
PONEC – dance venue is represented by Hana Pelánková as the executive manager, Barbora Loumová Miko as the program coordinator, and Ema Šlechtová for the communication team. Three members from the theatre team will engage in dialogue with three external experts, attentively considering proposals and arguments, and striving for consensus in line with the mission and vision of the first permanent stage for contemporary dance. This collaboration aims to foster a more profound professional discourse on the role of dance theatre in the evolving context, the accessibility of its programming, and increased inclusivity. Moreover, it seeks to enhance collaboration methods, emphasizing the partnership between the theatre team and creative collectives. All activities will adhere to clearly defined framework conditions that align with the capabilities of both parties.
MgA. Dagmar Bednáriková, Ph.D.
Dagmar graduated from the production department of DAMU in Prague and subsequently completed the doctoral studies at the theatre faculty of JAMU in Brno. In her professional career, she initially focused on producing theatre projects in alternative drama, later transitioning to movement theatre and contemporary circus. For the past 15 years, she has served as the manager of the KD Mlejn cultural centre, where she integrates various art forms such as movement theatre, contemporary circus, dance, theatre, music and community engagement. She is a member of the Presidium of ITI, an umbrella platform for the performing arts, addressing strategic topics like Artist Status and VKI (Public Cultural Institution). Dagmar is dedicated to bridging Prague with other regions through the Association of Cultural Centres of the Czech Republic and the global organization ASSITEJ, which promotes theatre for children and youth. She views non-traditional theatre, dance and circus as pivotal vehicles for fostering collaboration and creative advancement in both domestic and international contexts.
Photo: Vojtěch Brtnický
Photo: Annemone Taake
MgA. Sylva Šafková
Sylva commenced her dance studies in 1994 at the conservatory in Brno, continuing at the Prague Dance Conservatory. From 2000 to 2002, she pursued further education at the École-atelier Rudra Béjart Lausanne, where she joined the Béjart Ballet Lausanne as a performer in 2001. Subsequently, she became part of the Compagnie M - Maurice Béjart troupe in Lausanne from 2002 to 2003. With Maurice Béjart's choreography Mère Teresa et les enfants du monde, she participated in a series of performances across Europe, Lebanon, Egypt, Argentina and Brazil. In Prague, she worked as a soloist with the Prague Chamber Ballet of the State Opera from 2004 to 2005, and later as a demi-soloist with the National Theatre Ballet from 2005 to 2013. In addition to performing, she also began to devote herself to choreography (Cumbia, Simple symphony for three, Fuga, Zinin, Ciacona, Záměna, Triang, We are all same yet different), completing her studies in this field at Prague's HAMU in 2009. In Prague, she collaborated with several dance companies (Prague Chamber Ballet, Dekkadancers and Bohemia Ballet). She created the full-length ballet Alice in Wonderland (2016) for the F.X. Šaldy Theatre in Liberec. Since 2015, she has been associated with the Dance Company Nanine Linning/Theater Heidelberg, serving as a rehearsal director and choreography assistant from 2016 to 2017. In 2018, she showcased her choreography Off – Balance in the semifinals of the international choreography competition in Hannover, a piece she created in 2017 in Mannheim. From 2019 onward, she has worked as an artistic assistant to the choreographer and artistic director of the 420PEOPLE ensemble, Václav Kuneš. Within the 420PEOPLE ensemble, she has choreographed pieces such as INspiraCe, Why things go wrong (the duet was selected as one of the 20 most interesting works of the European platform Aerowaves: Twenty 2024), HeArt of Noise and the dance film Through Glass, which received the Pick of the fest Award at the dance film festival in Los Angeles.
Honza Malík
Hozna has been working in the Czech Republic as a freelance artist (dancer, teacher, occasional choreographer, producer and manager) for over 20 years. In 1999, he graduated from the Duncan Centre Conservatory, where he is currently a teacher and artistic coordinator (since 2007). He is the dramaturg of the Nu Dance Festival in Bratislava (since 2017) and a member of the expert commission at the Slovak Art Support Fund. He leads the artistic group PULSAR since 2016, where he has facilitated the work of choreographer Michal Záhora. Collaborating with dramaturg Terezá Krčálova, they have prepared works that offer innovative perspectives on the dance scene and contribute to the progressive evolution of the field (e.g. the meeting of artists Grasp Reality! 1-6, the interdisciplinary conference The Role of the Artist Today, the roadshow series Choreographer in the Ring 1st–9th round and the Slovak adaptation Choreographer in the Ring via Bratislava 1st – 7th round). He was at the inception of the NANOHACH ensemble, where he served as the artistic director from 2004 to 2016. As the instigator of numerous contemporary dance projects, he brought to fruition dozens of performances by his peers, organized three series of debates titled Let's Talk About Dance, and curated the dance program at the Prague Pride Festival from 2011 to 2022. Additionally, he serves as a lecturer at various educational seminars catering to dancers, teachers and participants in dance events for children and youth across the Czech regions. For his contributions, he was honoured with the Personality of the Year award at the...prístí vlna/next wave... festival in 2014 and named Dance Manager of the Year at the Czech Dance Platform in 2017.
Photo: Anna Benháková