Vlastimil Harapes

Vlastimil Harapes (24 July 1946 – 15 May 2024) was a Czech dancer, choreographer and actor. He served as the artistic director of the Prague Conservatory.

Life and career
Harapes was born in a hospital in Chomutov on 24 July 1946, and but was native of Droužkovice, where he lived until the age of 14. His parents led an amateur theatre company, which allowed him to start acting at the age of five. After graduating from the Prague Dance Conservatory in 1965, he got a job at the National Theatre, where he was a soloist until his death. He also studied dance in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

His first wife was Elena Strupková. In 1986 he married singer Hana Zagorová in order to adopt a child, the marriage lasted until 1992. However, Harapes lived with a male poet, Josef Topol, for over 44 years. Their relationship was kept a secret until it was revealed to the public in 2013.

Harapes acted in several films throughout his career, notably in Jak vytrhnout velrybě stoličku (directed by Marie Poledňákové) and Marketa Lazarová (directed by František Vláčil). However, most over his performances were overdubbed over by other actors. With his then wife Zagorová, he performed occasionally as a singer. In 2006, he was a judge in the first season of the show StarDance.

He succumbed to lung cancer on 15 May 2024, at the age of 77.

Awards

 * 1976: Merited Artist of Czechoslovakia
 * 1980: Merited Artist of the National Theatre in Prague
 * 1989: People's Artist of Czechoslovakia
 * 2011: Thalia Award for Lifetime Achievement in Ballet

Selected filmography

 * 1964: Starci na chmelu
 * 1967: Marketa Lazarová ... Kristián
 * 1968: Královský omyl
 * 1971: F. L. Věk
 * 1976: Day for My Love (voice dubbing František Němec)
 * 1977: Jak vytrhnout velrybě stoličku (voice dubbing Jiří Klem)
 * 1978: Jak dostat tatínka do polepšovny (voice dubbing Jiří Klem)
 * 1978: Beauty and the Beast ... the Beast (voice dubbing Jiří Zahajský)
 * 1986: Operace mé dcery
 * 2004: Bolero
 * 2004: Rodinná pouta
 * 2006: Jak se krotí krokodýli
 * 2008: Comeback ... cameo appearance

Political activism
In 1977 he signed the Anticharter In the 2016 Czech Senate elections, he ran as an Independent candidate, backed by the ANO 2011 Party, in District No. 25. He captured 13.30% of the vote, finishing in 4th place and did not advance to the second round.