Marek Svobodník

Biography

Marek Svobodník received his training at the Dance Conservatory in Brno. He began his professional career with the National Moravian‑Silesian Theatre Ballet (2003–2006), then joined Laterna magika (2006–2008) and moved on to become a soloist of the National Theatre Brno Ballet (2008–2012). In the 2012/2013 season he returned to Prague, where he is now a demi‑soloist of the Czech National Ballet and a regular guest of Laterna magika.

Svobodník’s charisma comes to the fore in contemporary repertoire. He delivered a gripping portrait of the Father in Glen Tetley’s The Rite of Spring (Timeless) and has excelled in Jiří Kylián’s Petite Mort and Symphony of Psalms (Kylián – Bridges of Time). In the triple bill bpm he impressed in Eyal Dadon’s Artza and Sharon Eyal’s raw solo Bill. The evening Phoenix showcased him in Alejandro Cerrudo’s duet Dos Soles Solos and Cayetano Soto’s Prelude und Liebestod.

Thanks to his strong dramatic instincts he is often cast in character roles: Rothbart in John Cranko’s Swan Lake, King Peter of Popo in Christian Spuck’s Leonce & Lena, Old Usurer Scrooge in Youri Vámos’s The Nutcracker – A Christmas Carol and Monsieur G. M. in Kenneth MacMillan’s L’Histoire de Manon.

Beyond the main stage he has collaborated with ProART Company, Pas de Théâtre, the Department of Alternative and Puppet Theatre (Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts) and the informal collective Rada starších baletu. Since 2012 he has been a core member of DEKKADANCERS, creating and performing in projects such as Kill de Bill.

Selected productions (National Theatre Prague and beyond)

• Barování – solo number (Petr Zuska)

• Bon Appétit! – Garbage man (Jan Kodet, SKUTR)

• bpm – Artza (Eyal Dadon), Bill (Sharon Eyal)

• Brel – Vysotsky – Kryl / Solo for Three – duet (Rainer Behr)

• The Sorcerer’s Apprentice / Krabat – Master, Toník (Zbyněk Matějů)

• Kill de Bill (DEKKADANCERS) – choreography and performance (DEKKADANCERS)

• Kylián – Bridges of Time – Petite Mort, Psalm Symphony (Jiří Kylián)

• Leonce & Lena – King Peter of the Popo Kingdom (Christian Spuck)

• Moving Still – ensemble (Jiří Kylián)

• Phoenix – Dos Soles Solos (Alejandro Cerrudo), Prelude und Liebestod (Cayetano Soto)

• The Sun, the Moon and the Wind – Triglav, the King (Viktor Konvalinka)

• Timeless – The Father in The Rite of Spring (Glen Tetley)

• A Streetcar Named Desire – Kiefaber (John Neumeier)

• Vertigo – Cacti (Alexander Ekman)

Selected classical roles

• Dr. Coppélius (Coppélia)

• Espada (Don Quixote)

• Gremin (Onegin)

• Hilarion (Giselle)

• Mikuláš / Nicholas (The Nutcracker and the Plush Mouse)

• Monsieur G. M. (L’Histoire de Manon)

• Prince of the West (The Sleeping Beauty)

• Rajah (La Bayadère)

• Rothbart (Swan Lake, chor. John Cranko)

• Scrooge (The Nutcracker – A Christmas Story)

• Tybalt, Count Capulet, Count Montague (Romeo and Juliet)