the dance company 420PEOPLE
The contemporary dance company 420PEOPLE was founded by Václav Kuneš and Nataša Novotná at the end of 2007 after their return from a stint with one of the world’s most renowned dance theatre companies - Jiří Kylián’s Nederlands Dans Theater. They shared a vision of creating their own contemporary dance company in Prague; 420PEOPLE was born, which is currently celebrating its 17the years anniversary in the Czech and international dance and theatre scene.
420PEOPLE is not only a contemporary dance company but also a “brand” that offers the public a unique perspective on the contemporary dance scene through performances and original choreographies at a high artistic and professional level. Its continuous creative work brings exceptional originality and an unforgettable artistic experience to the stage and the online space. The ensemble also engages in a non-traditional dialogue with audiences through workshops, online projects, discussions, dance films, documentaries, screenings and other activities. Under the leadership of its artistic director Václav Kuneš, the company presents a unique contemporary dance vocabulary in performances and original choreographies by contemporary artists (Václav Kuneš, Sylva Šafková) with a modern interpretive and professional level.
420PEOPLE that is, above all, Václav Kuneš together with his team and colleagues from diverse art‘s fields they carry out their artistic vision and effort to produce works of the label Made By Czech that are nevertheless proud and integral parts of the international dance scene.
17TH YEARS IN THE CZECH AND INTERNATIONAL DANCE SCENE
The company, one of our best contemporary dance ensembles, has definitely transcended the imaginary boundaries of the Czech telephone area code embedded in its name by its founders, Nataša Novotná and Václav Kuneš. The internationally acclaimed dance company stages more than 110 performances annually in the Czech Republic and abroad. Its repertoire includes more than dozens of choreographies. The latest performance are the choreography Smoke and Mirrors (choreography Václav Kuneš) at Studio Maiselovka and the choreography Moment in Time (choreography Sylva Šafková) at La Fabrika Theatre.
The ensemble's repertoire also includes the following choreographies: Y/Why (choreography Václav Kuneš), The Watcher (choreography Václav Kuneš), EVER (choreography Václav Kuneš), Why things go wrong (choreography Sylva Šafková), HeArt of Noise (choreography Sylva Šafková), MÁJ (choreography Václav Kuneš), PULPS (choreography Simona Machovičová) and the 42+PEOPLE project with performances WHERE (choreography Václav Kuneš), SOFTER SKILLS (choreography Edan Gorlicki).
“The fact that our independent company has existed for 17 years is a great team achievement. At the same time, we perceive it as a commitment that gives us great pleasure. In recent years, we have established our own space, Studio Maiselovka, and a welcoming backstage at the La Fabrika theatre. We have also introduced a new dimension of dance with the 42+PEOPLE project, which involves mature dancers. As a result, our audiences will have many opportunities to see our top dancers in original and new performances in our country and across Europe.” (Václav Kuneš)
Visit our STUDIO MAISELOVKA
Maiselova 4, Prague 1
Dancing Histor(y)ies
From 2023 to 2025, we are part of a European project "Dancing Histor(y)ies, Binding Communities and Heritage Through Dance." The project, funded under the Creative Europe program (project identification number: 101099222) focuses on popularizing archaeological sites through the performing arts and aims to identify an inventive, effective, and repeatable model for raising the profile of cultural monuments that would actively involve local communities in artistic creation and the conscious use of cultural heritage, while also promoting international communication between European artists. The aim is to connect the tangible cultural heritage of the participating sites, which contain elements of the intangible cultural heritage of local communities and their stories, which are interconnected through dance creativity.
The Dancing Histor(y)ies project is the result of collaboration between five cultural institutions from four European countries (Greece, Italy, Serbia, and Spain) and is based on mutual dialogue between institutions managing individual monuments and local communities. Thirteen institutions from eleven different European countries are participating in the project, all of which have extensive experience in cultural heritage management, performing arts, dance, research and education, as well as in the preparation, management and evaluation of EU-funded projects. The project's goal of promoting European dialogue, which stems from encounters in the southern Mediterranean region, home to a wealth of cultural monuments, will connect Spain, Italy, Greece, and Serbia with northern, central, and eastern Europe (Sweden, the Czech Republic, Poland, Bulgaria), where the artistic partners come from.
The project includes various activities, such as workshops and residencies, which took place in 2023/2024 in preparation for the first edition of the Dancing Histor(y)ies 2024 festival and the second edition of the Dancing Histor(y)ies 2025 festival.
The Dancing Hi(y)stories Festival brings contemporary dance from the best dance companies to historically significant locations in Serbia, Greece, Italy, Spain, and the Czech Republic. In 2024 and 2025, audiences were treated to unique choreography by the 420PEOPLE ensemble led by Václav Kuneš, Sylva Šafková, and Simona Machovičová. As part of the project's activities, several meetings of the project's artistic partners have already taken place, as well as workshops for dance audiences and the general public led by dancers from 420PEOPLE and other partner companies. We present to you the choreographies of 420PEOPLE, which were created as part of the project, together with a selection of the best in the form of video diaries.
In previous years, we were also part of a European project "CLASH! When classic and contemporary dance collide and new forms emerge" / Creative Europe (Programme of the European Union, Grant Agreement n° 2018 – 2032 /001 – 001)
CLASH!
The core aim of CLASH! is the promotion of the transnational mobility of artists and professionals that can enable them to cooperate internationally, strengthening audience development and encoding a model for renovating specific professional roles and skills. In detail, the project wants to support EU South/Eastern dance companies, traditionally bound to classical production and training, toward the new contemporary dance production, that requires new training tools, internal management and audience development strategies.In order to achieve this aim, the CLASH! project pursues the following objectives • OB1: Exchange experiences and best practices and identify new strategies and tools for dance companies and schools willing to develop contemporary and experimental dance training programs and productions • OB2: Develop and implement an Audience Development strategy that enables partner companies to involve less engaged audiences, develop a relationship and communicate with them, reinforce the quality of their experiences, specifically for what concerns those who attend to contemporary and experimental dance productions.CLASH! partners will work together in Laboratories, Workshop and Seminars to produce the project’s results, which will be • 4 international peer-to-peer laboratories • CLASH! Guidelines • CLASH! Training Strategy • Realization of 5 National seminars • Production of 5 original dance pièces that will bring on stage during the 1st edition of the CLASH! Festival and the CLASH! Tournée • Elaboration of an Audience Development strategy • 15 national Audience Development workshops • 5 national networking, local dissemination events and 2 international conferences
