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Jiří Suchý (born 1 October 1931 in Plzeň) is a Czech theatre-maker, actor, lyricist, singer, writer and visual artist. In 1959 he co-founded the Semafor theatre in Prague, where he was still performing in 2026.[1][2] His native city of Plzeň made him an honorary citizen in 2001.[1]*
Beginnings
He spent his childhood in Klatovy and lived in Prague from 1936.[2] From the late 1940s he worked as a graphic artist in advertising studios. During his military service in 1952–1954 he was a clerk and map draughtsman.[2] With Viktor Sodoma he performed as double-bass player and lyricist of the group Akord club, from 1957 at the Reduta club in Prague.[2] On 10 December 1957 Rudolf Cortés recorded his first released lyric, Růžový pahorek.[2] Suchý was among the founders of the Theatre on the Balustrade (Divadlo Na zábradlí), which staged his play Kdyby tisíc klarinetů.[2]
Semafor
He founded the Semafor theatre in 1959 with Jiří Šlitr and the jazz musician Ferdinand Havlík.[2] The name is an acronym of the Czech words for "seven small forms".[3] The first premiere, the play Člověk z půdy, took place on 30 October 1959 in the hall of the Women's Homes in Ve Smečkách Street.[3][4] After losing that hall, the theatre played at thirteen different venues for more than a year and later gained a permanent stage in the Alfa arcade.[4] The duo Suchý and Šlitr had their greatest success with the cabaret show Jonáš a tingl tangl of 1962.[3][4] In 1964 Suchý released his first solo LP with Supraphon and the book of lyrics Klokočí.[2] The film Kdyby tisíc klarinetů premiered in 1965.[3]
Jiří Šlitr died on 26 December 1969.[3] During normalisation Suchý was not allowed to run Semafor, and the theatre's activity was briefly halted.[4] He did not withdraw his signature from the Two Thousand Words manifesto, and according to Semafor he was therefore barred from television and radio from 1971.[3] In 1970 Jitka Molavcová joined the company and later became his regular stage partner.[3][4] In 1972 Kytice premiered; it became Semafor's most frequently performed production.[4]
After 1989
In the 1990s Semafor lost its premises in the Alfa arcade and played at various Prague venues.[4] The theatre was then based in the basement of the Karlín Music Theatre, which was flooded in 2002.[4] It played temporarily in the Nostitz Palace and has had its stage in Dejvice since 1 October 2005.[2][4] Suchý founded his own publishing house, Klokočí, and his collected works were published in 20 volumes.[2] In 2007 the National Theatre staged Suchý and Šlitr's Dobře placená procházka, directed by Miloš Forman.[2]
2026 anniversary
For his 95th birthday the album Haleluja! Hana Hegerová zpívá texty Jiřího Suchého was released, along with the books Suchý a Šlitr/Semafor 1959—1969 and Kabaret v duši, which combines his texts with his graphic work.[1] According to Plzeňský deník, he is due to appear at Semafor on 6 October 2026 in the programme Extravagantní díkuvzdání Jiřímu Šlitrovi.[1]
Sources
- Plzeňský deník — 1 October 2026
- Divadlo Semafor
- Divadlo Semafor
- ČT24 — 30 October 2019