Sylva Zimula Hanáková

Sylva Zimula Hanáková is a Czech costume designer and scenographer and one of the most distinctive figures in Czech costume design. Her work connects theatre, film, and television. She was born in Kroměříž, studied Czech language and art education at Masaryk University in Brno and stage design at the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts (JAMU). Already during her studies she made a name for herself as a costume designer and has since become one of the most sought-after artists in Czech theatre, film, and television. Her costumes can be seen on many Czech stages: at Divadlo Husa na provázku, for example in Balada pro banditu, Amerika and Amadeus; at Městské divadlo Brno in Cabaret and Mary Poppins; at the National Theatre in Prague in the opera Dalibor and the drama Naši furianti; at Divadlo na Vinohradech in Lucerna and Revizor; at Dejvické divadlo in the cult production Ucpanej systém; and at Klicperovo divadlo in Hradec Králové in productions such as Faust or Peer Gynt. Her costumes are characterised by playfulness, a keen eye for detail, and an ability to underscore the atmosphere of a production. The media often refer to her as “the queen of Czech costume design.”