Pig, the play

Pig or Vaclav Havel’s Hunt for a Pig by Vaclav Havel, play with music from The Bartered Bride, an opera by Smetana.

Vaclav Havel is a playwright, the first president of the Czech Republic and a leader of the Velvet Revolution which, worked to establish democracy in what was then Czechoslovakia. 

The “play” if play it is a light-hearted romp and wild goose chase with an American reporter, Havel, assorted Czechs and a romantic couple through the Czech countryside in search of a pig suitable for the annual zabjacka festival.  Part shaggy-dog story, part musical piece, it came complete with a pig sandwich—or without; you could have it either way.  With the pig sandwich (a bottle of water and packaged Czech cookies), you also got a front row seat with your name in masking tape on it.  There were also chairs with numbers on which turned out to be for the cast members and presented a real challenge to those looking for a seat.  There was, of course, a place for everybody, and it may have encouraged the lively conversational vibe before the show.  Still, if it were still on, I would recommend you take the play without the sandwich which may have authentic but was also very greasy and salty.  Despite the fact that we were way downtown, there are several pleasant restaurants in the neighborhood.

The cast is terrific and the singing (and you can’t go wrong with Smetana) lovely although on a little of The Bartered Bride made into the evening.  But there are clever shenanigans, lively ‘bits’ and lots of fun.