In new play, journalist Richard Samko excels onstage as Romani partisan Josef Serinek, tells ROMEA TV that Roma have their heroes, too

In an interview with ROMEA TV, Samko revealed how personal it was for him to portray the Romani partisan Josef Serinek, a man who escaped from a concentration camp in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, became the commander of a resistance group in the region of Vysočina, and lost his family to the Holocaust. For Samko, who is known to those who watch public broadcaster Czech Television’s news programs, this was his first acting appearance, and according to the audience’s reactions, his performance was excellent.

“The story of Josef Serinek is about heroism. It’s about a person who did not try to hide in the background, who wanted to aid others,” Samko told ROMEA TV after the premiere.

“He was in the concentration camp in Lety u Písku, he was imprisoned there in 1942. His children and his wife later died in Auschwitz. He himself escaped Lety and joined the partisan resistance in the region of Vysočina. He was part of a unit led by the Council of Three, headed by General Luža,” Samko said.

According to Samko, the production, which uses both a documentary approach and a personal narrative, sends a strong message. “It’s about friendship, about endurance, about standing up to evil. It’s also about the fact that the gadje [non-Roma] in the region of Vysočina trusted him, offered him aid and shelter. It’s important to remember that,” he said.

Samko also highlighted the importance of the production for the Romani audience, especially for children. “I think that this production should be seen mainly by Roma children, but not only by them. Other children should see it, too. So should their parents, because this is family theatre. It is about the Holocaust, friendship, bravery, heroism. People must realize that the heroes were Romani, too, in those days. That Roma also deserve credit for this state, that they fought for it,” he said.

The lead actor also recalled that Serinek was posthumously given state honors by the Czech President. “Josef Serinek became known to the public a few years ago, and two years ago he [posthumously] received a state decoration from the President. Thanks to that, his story was resurrected, and we should continue to remember him and speak about him. There were more Romani partisans, not just in [the Protectorate], but especially in Slovakia,” Samko said in the interview with ROMEA TV.

The director of the production, Jan Jirků, describes The Black Partisan as a “Western from the region of Vysočina” – an authentic, straightforward story about courage, the fight against injustice, and friendship. The play was loosely based on Česká cikánská rapsodie [Bohemian Gypsy Rhapsody] by historian Jan Tesař and combines the dramatic story with an artistic, musical concept.