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Mr. Vojtěch Kotek can be proud to say that he is a perfectly normal, young Czech actor, thank you very much. But on one particular day, almost every year for the last ten of his twenty-three years, he becomes an eminently well-known boy wizard by the name of Harry Potter (read: ‘Hari Potr’). Since the age of 12, Vojta has lent his voice to the ever-maturing wunderkind in the dubbed version of each of the eight Harry Potter films. And now – his voice an octave under Daniel Radcliffe’s – as the most famous fantasy series comes to an end, so ends Vojta

For the 46th time, the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival kicked off on July 1st. As every year, celebrities and hordes of young film enthusiasts alike flocked to the west Bohemian spa town. Among the famous visitors this year are the legendary British actress Judi Dench and American actor John Turturro. Sarah Borufka was at the festival and has this report.

In today’s Arts we discuss a new exhibition at Prague’s Rudolfinum Gallery of almost forgotten paintings by iconic 20th century Czech-American graphic designer Ladislav Sutnar. Entitled U.S. Venus, the show features playful, highly-stylised nudes that fit within the designer’s concept of Joy-Art, a humanistic manifesto which looked ahead to the 21st century. On the day of the opening, Jan Velinger spoke to the show’s curator Iva Knobloch of the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague. She talks about Sutnar as a painter but also discusses his immeasurable

Last week we told you about the opening of the Prague Quadrennial, an unparalleled showcase of world scenography – design for artistic performance – that began in 1967 and only comes around every four years. The exhibits cover everything from costumes, sound design, and theatre architecture to multi-media theatrical and performance art… in short, if you imagine a wildish menagerie of all things theatre, then you’re half way there. For today’s Arts I spent an afternoon walking around one of the most special attractions at the Quadrennial, which is

This Thursday saw the opening of a new show in Prague highlighting 25 years of concert photography by independent Czech photographer Ivan Prokop. The respected artist has shot performances both in the Czech Republic and abroad, capturing both Czech musicians and world-famous artists on stage. Performers highlighted at Prague’s Leica Gallery include Tom Waits, Laurie Anderson, Iggy Pop and others.

In today’s Arts my guest is Brian Callaghan, a Prague-based author of a new action/adventure thriller called The Seeds of Cain. Inspired by biblical themes and medieval legend, the novel throws together an unlikely group of adventurers – including the hero John McFadden – to fight an ancient evil. The story takes them from a quiet corner of Prague to an archaeological dig in the Middle East and beyond, and it doesn’t let-up for 400 pages. Brian Callaghan came into the studio earlier this week and the first thing I asked him about was the threat

This Thursday saw the premiere of the long-awaited film Lidice, the first Czech production to tell the story one of the darkest periods in Czech history, the destruction of the village of Lidice by the Nazis in 1942.

Not far from the National Theatre, tucked away on Bartolomějská street, the small flagship store of the label Leeda boasts some of the most original, colorful and hip clothing in the Czech capital. Run by two young designers, Lucie Kutálková and Lucie Trnková, Leeda has been putting out its limited edition collections for nearly seven years. The two designers both studied at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague. Lucie Kutálková explains how the two were given a unique opportunity to establish their own label and retail space.

The Rožmberks, a lavish new exhibition, opened on Thursday at the Waldstein (Wallenstein) Riding School, looking back at one of the most prominent and influential Bohemian noble families. The Rožmberk dynasty dates back to the 13th to 16th centuries, with its members holding key positions in the royal and later imperial courts. The castle at Český Krumlov, admired by countless visitors in South Bohemia today, was the family seat for three hundred years.

The 54th Venice Biennale is less than a month away and the installation representing the Czech and Slovak arts scenes at the national pavilion is now en route. Created by Czech artist Dominik Lang and entitled The Sleeping City, the instalation aims to challenge international viewers to experience, assess, or revisit on an intuitive and emotional level recent Czechoslovak and European history, from the Cold War to today.