Josef Skupa

Josef Skupa (16 January 1892 – 8 January 1957) was a Czech puppeteer. He also worked in the field of puppet theatre as a playwright, director and stage designer. He developed the most famous Czech puppets, Spejbl and Hurvínek, and founded the first Czech professional puppet theatre, the Spejbl and Hurvínek Theatre. From 1933 to 1957, he was the president of the International Puppetry Association—UNIMA.

Early life and education Josef Alois Skupa was born on 16 January 1892 in Strakonice, into a family of a gendarme. His family also lived in Blovice and Chanovice, before moving to Plzeň, when Josef was five years old. He attended the primary school (Volksschule) in Mladějovice. In 1903–1906, he attended a high school in Plzeň. In 1911–1915, he studied at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague. After he graduated, he returned to Plzeň and worked as a high school teacher of mathematics and drawing. He also collaborated with the Plzeň City Theatre as a stage designer.

Early theatre career Skupa performed his first puppet shows in Mladějovice as a child, when he was visiting his uncle.

Spejbl and Hurvínek and later life

In 1919, he designed the puppet of Spejbl, a big-eared bald figure who was supposed to become a caricature of outsmarted townspeople. The puppet first appeared in a performance in 1920, performing with kašpárek as the victim of his pranks. From 1923 to 1926, Skupa performed with the puppet of Švejk. In 1926, he returned to Spejbl and designed the puppet of his rascal son Hurvínek.

In 1920, Josef Skupa married Jiřina Schwarzová. They did not have children. Jiřina Skupová supported her husband in his activities and became a stage designer, playwriter and puppeteer, in charge of Hurvínek.

Honours In 1948, he was awarded by the Czechoslovak State with the title of National Artist.

In 1967, Skupa was posthumously awarded Honorary Citizenship of Plzeň. A street in Plzeň is named Skupova after Josef Skupa.