Programme inspired by the life story of priest Josef Toufar, who was tortured to death by Communist State Security officers in January 1950. With the Czech Philharmonic musicians, members of the Disman Radio Children’s Ensemble, music by Slavomír Hořínka, according to the screenplay by Jana Franková.
Education programs | Duration of the programme 2 hours | For preschools and schools
Slavomír Hořínka music
Jakub Grec graphic design of the educational materials
members of the Czech Philharmonic and the Orchestral Academy
members of the Disman Radio Children’s Ensemble
Jan Hnilička or Slavomír Hořínka
Anna Doležalová or Hana Franková
Group bookings for schools and preschools at edu@ceskafilharmonie.cz from 1st June.
The program is based on a musical part but also on a spoken word that will be given in Czech language only. The program will not be supplied with English subtitles.
With musicians and young actors, through dramatic reading and music we are immersed in the story of priest Josef Toufar, who was tortured to death by Communist State Security officers in January 1950. The script is based on Miloš Doležal’s books As If We Should Die Today and A Step into the Dark Night. The programme includes period photographs. Following the dramatic reading there will be a forum and discussion with invited guests.
“For our pupils, this was one of the first steps in the topic of Czech post-war history. The step was not easy, just like the period when Josef Toufar lived. They appreciated the depth of the story, but they had a hard time dealing with the cruelty of Father Toufar’s fate. One girl asked a very telling question: ‘What was it that he had actually done wrong?’ (…) Maybe the way today’s young people take freedom and rule of law as a matter of course will be a guarantee that they won’t let it be taken from them.”
