Hana Kvapilová (29 November 1860 – 8 April 1907) was a Czech actress.

Early life

Johanna Kubesch (Hana Kubešová) was born in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, the daughter of Gustav Kubeš. Her father ran an established gilding workshop. Later he wanted to get rich in land speculation but failed and lost almost all the family money. Her mother, strongly religious, was raised in a parsonage. She was probably the priest's daughter. She studied at a girls' high school in

but she found little interest in studying and her school performance was average. She was interested in theatre from a young age. Her piano teacher was

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8September 18411May 1904) was a Czech composer. He frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia, following the Romantic-era nationalist example of his predec ...

. After her father's bankruptcy, she lived in considerable material poverty. Her father was an amateur actor and painted sets for amateur theater groups. He performed occasionally as a comedian.

Career

Kubešová joined the National Theatre in 1889 as an actress of the second rank. In her previous engagement, she played Nora Helmer (she was the first Czech actress to perform this role),

Ophelia Ophelia () is a character in William Shakespeare's drama ''Hamlet'' (1599–1601). She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes and potential wife of Prince Hamlet. Due to Hamlet's actions, Ophelia ultima ...

and Gretchen. Her previous theater experience was not taken into account. The theatre management preferred director Šubert's mistresses, Hana Benoniová and Maria Laudová. Later she got into the character type of naive lovers and sentimental roles. Her greatest successes were the role of Mína Mařáková in the drama Guilt (Vina in Czech) by Jaroslav Hilbert in 1896. Hilbert wrote the role directly for Kvapilová, and this character of a touching, abandoned, poor, girl despised by her mother won her the sympathy of the audience. Kvapilová’s Mína, seduced and afraid of revealing her guilt, showed most of her motivations by indirect actions revealing subtext rather than open emotions. Here, Kvapilová was able to show for the first time her concept of acting focused on the detail of a banal action. In 1897, she created her most famous role, the titular Princess Dandelion (Princezna Pampeliška in Czech) in a fairy tale by her husband

Jaroslav Kvapil Jaroslav Kvapil (25 September 1868 – 10 January 1950) was a Czech poet, theatre director, translator, playwright and librettist. Early life, education and family Jaroslav Josef Kvapil was born on 25 September 1868 in Chudenice, into the fami ...

. Again, this is a fragile girl who is struggling to survive in a harsh world. Kvapilová created a strong, exciting and attractive archetype of a simple woman widely embraced by Czech society, introverted and submissive, but defiant and internally unbroken, who became a popular concept of a woman at the end of the 19th century. Other actresses of the troupe who also portrayed characters of this type ( Marie Bittnerová in

Jenůfa ''Její pastorkyňa'' (''Her Stepdaughter''; commonly known as ''Jenůfa'' ) is an opera in three acts by Leoš Janáček to a Czech libretto by the composer, based on the Play (theatre), play ''Její pastorkyňa'' by Gabriela Preissová. It was ...

and Hana Benoniová Maryša) didn't embrace those roles as a core part in their repertoire (Bittnerová preferred the classical

Shakespearean William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

repertoire and Benoniová contemporary Well-made play French salon roles – both of which did not attract the interest of a wider audience). Kvapilová did not get the opportunities she expected and sought under Šubert's era. She begged the management for a role by Ibsen in vain. Šubert, after previous unfavorable experiences, was afraid that an Ibsen production would be a commercial failure. In his publications, he highly praised Kvapilová (especially to emphasize that the theater did not need

Maria Pospischil Maria Pospischil (born Marie Terezie Vondřichová; 23 January 1862 – 28 May 1943), was one of the great stage actresses of the 19th century, active on German and Czech stage. She was also a writer and theatre director with several appeara ...

, whom he had driven out of the troupe), but in practice he did not give Kvapilová any significant acting opportunities. When the National Theatre management chose Ibsen's

John Gabriel Borkman ''John Gabriel Borkman'' is a 1896 play by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It was his penultimate work. Plot The Borkman family fortunes have been brought low by the imprisonment of John Gabriel who used his position as a bank manager to ...

in 1897, Laudová was cast in the role of Fanny Wilton, and only when she gave up the role, Kvapilová got to play the part. (The play was performed only twice, so Kvapilová played it only once and it was her first of two Ibsen roles before her husband took up the position of dramaturg). The second Ibsen opportunity was Rebecca West in

Rosmersholm ''Rosmersholm'' () is an 1886 Play (theatre), play written by Norwegian people, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It tells the story of Johannes Rosmer, an aristocratic former clergyman and owner of the Rosmersholm manor who is haunted by his wif ...

(she was featured four times).

After 1900

After 1900, when her husband was appointed dramaturg of the National Theatre, Kvapilová became the target of spiteful campaigns in the media, (before 1900 she was often referred to as the top of the National Theater actresses). Journalists accused her of using her husband's influence on her choice of roles and repertoire (she was referred to as the "director of the National Theatre"). Kvapilová played fewer roles, but in a more judicious selection. Her acting potential could thus find better opportunities than in Šubert's era, when she received significant opportunities only thanks to the intercession of Czech playwrights. In the fall of 1901, she was condemned as being preferred and previous management favourite Hana Benoniová and Maria Laudová were intentionally damaged. Václav Štech, a strong critic of the National Theatre belonged to these critics (he was one of the strongest critics of Šubert's management as well). In 1903, dramatist Jaroslav Hilbert attacked Kvapilová in the magazine Moderní Revue.Jaroslav Hilbert: ''Žena na Národním divadle'', In. Modern Revue: 10.1902 – 9.1903, Number XIV, P. 371 His first big success was the play Guilt performed at the National Theatre in 1896 with Hana Kvapilová in the lead role. Hilbert’s spite was based on personal motives. Kvapilová turned down the role of Queen Kunhuta in his upcoming play Falkenstein due to her poor health, although she simultaneously she appeared in guest starred in regional theatres, and Hilbert felt affected by this. Hilbert also criticized the management of the theatre, which, according to him, doomed the play to failure with the audience already by staging it in the summer season and only four rehearsals were held before the premiere. In Modern Revue, Hilbert coined a controversial thesis that a middle-class actress "collaborator" mastering a modern acting style could not impress on stage in the same way as the great heroines of the previous generation could, leading the lifestyle of courtesans. He blamed her of artistic lie as according to him, she didn’t represent realistic expression of life, but another artistic stylization that was duller than the previous one, and more false because it claimed to be the truth. ''"She made us sympathize with every character she played. It couldn't have happened that we wouldn't have found a terribly good woman, who she represented on stage... She created such a number of poetic beings – genderless – longing for the distance that Mr.

Mucha Mucha (; ; Czech and Slovak feminine: Muchová) is a Slavic surname, derived from ''mucha'', meaning " fly".''Dictionary of American Family Names''"Mucha Family History" Oxford University Press, 2013. Retrieved on 4 January 2016. Mucha is the stan ...

could envy her that sweet stuff."'' Kvapilová was not able to face these attacks and became introvert. In this period, she played " Nora Helmer" in Ibsen's

A Doll's House ''A Doll's House'' (Danish language, Danish and ; also translated as ''A Doll House'') is a three-act Play (theatre), play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premiered at the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 De ...

; and the lead in

Hedda Gabler ''Hedda Gabler'' () is a play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The world premiere was staged on 31 January 1891 at the Residenztheater in Munich. Ibsen himself was in attendance, although he remained back-stage.Meyer, Michael Lever ...

, "Masha" in Chekhov's Three Sisters, and "Helen" in her husband's The Will o' the Wisp.: Jaroslav B. Kvapil She was a friend and colleague to Czech composer

Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, Music theory, music theorist, Folkloristics, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian folk music, Moravian and other Slavs, Slavic music, includin ...

, and Czech writer

Alois Jirásek Alois Jirásek () (23 August 1851 – 12 March 1930) was a Czech writer, author of historical novels and plays. Jirásek was a high school history teacher in Litomyšl and later in Prague until his retirement in 1909. He wrote a series of histor ...

, among many others. She was awarded the Order of St. Sava for her stage work in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

in 1902, and was compared to Italian actress

Eleonora Duse Eleonora Giulia Amalia Duse ( , ; 3 October 185821 April 1924), often known simply as Duse, was an Italian actress, rated by many as the greatest of her time. She performed in many countries, notably in the plays of Gabriele D'Annunzio and Henr ...

: "Her grasp of character and range of expression were such as to have earned her the title of the Czech Duse."

Personal life

Kubešová was dating her fellow actor

Eduard Vojan Eduard Vojan (May 5, 1853 – May 31, 1920) was a Czech actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of th ...

. Later she married writer and director

in 1894. She died in 1907, from complications related to

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

; she had performed five days earlier, in Shakespeare's

Much Ado About Nothing ''Much Ado About Nothing'' is a Shakespearean comedy, comedy by William Shakespeare thought to have been written in 1598 and 1599.See textual notes to ''Much Ado About Nothing'' in ''The Norton Shakespeare'' (W. W. Norton & Company, 1997 ) p. ...

. She was 46 years old. After her death, Jaroslav Kvapil published her memoirs. Her ashes were buried in a park in Prague, and the site was marked with a statue of Kvapilová by Jan Štursa. She was featured on a Czech postage stamp in 1960.Hana Kvapilová (1866–1907), actress
stamp catalog, Colnect.com.

Acting style

File:Hana_Kvapilová-young.jpg, Hana Kvapilová File: Hana_Kvapilová_-_Ophelia.jpg, Hana Kvapilová as

Hana_Kvapilová_in_a_Renaissance_costume.jpg, Hana Kvapilová in a Renaissance costume File: Hana_Kvapilová_in_an_evening_dress.jpg, Hana Kvapilová File: Hana_Kvapilová_in_Marco_Praga’s_La_moglie_ideale.jpg, Hana Kvapilová in Marco Praga's An Ideal Woman Hana Kvapilová is considered to be the greatest Czech acting star of her generation, a pioneer of modern psychological acting and a promoter of great modern playwrights as

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

in Czech culture. Her acting was described as simple, warm and humanizing. She preferred introverted and intellectual characters. She had great success as Her ability to think comprehensively about the character won her the favor of many Czech playwrights – e.g.

Jaroslav Vrchlický Jaroslav Vrchlický (; 17 February 1853 – 9 September 1912) was a Czech people, Czech lyrical poet. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel prize in literature eight times. Life He was born Emilius Jakob Frida in Louny ...

or Julius Zeyer. She was a great interpreter of Ibsen's strong female characters – Nora Helmer,

Rebecca West Dame Cecily Isabel Fairfield (21 December 1892 – 15 March 1983), known as Rebecca West, or Dame Rebecca West, was a British author, journalist, literary critic and travel writer. An author who wrote in many genres, West reviewed books ...

and Petra Stockmann – as well as Shakespeare's heroines –

, Rosalind and Portia, Ophelia being one of their greatest successes and iconic performances. She didn't like external manifestations of acting or outbursts of emotions popular at that time, she valued intimate realistic expression. She didn't like roles requiring wild passion or romantic sentimentality, nor salon roles (in the main role of Claire in Ohnet's The Ironmaster, she was bothered by the fact that, among other things, she needed a lot of toilets. She emphasized the dramatic existence of the characters, and even in comic roles she sought tragic foundations. Her acting strength was non-verbal elements facial expressions and delivered emotions without words, her "hand talk" was famous, and she used pauses in her speeches to emphasize meanings. Partly because she didn't have a strong voice. Sometimes she was even inaudible. Kvapilová was not considered beautiful and did not feel beautiful herself. Her face was irregular. She tended to be overweight (this later made it very difficult for her to create subtle tragic characters like Ophelia because the audience expected them to be thin). Therefore, she did not focus on the body and physical appearance of the character.

References

External links

* Jaroslava Gregorová
"Hana Kubesova-Kvapilova"
''Radio Praha'' (5 April 2001). (in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kvapilová, Hana 1860 births 1907 deaths Czech stage actresses Recipients of the Order of St. Sava Actresses from Prague Actresses from Austria-Hungary