Playful Operetta, Stellar Musicals
We will bring the most famous 19th-century operettas by Oskar Nedbal, Franz Lehár and Johann Strauss alongside Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 20th-century musicals. Performed by singers Michaela Gemrotová-Štiková, Morgan James, Daniel Matoušek and Hugh Panaro, and the North Bohemian Philharmonic Orchestra led by Jan Kučera, we will hear the greatest operetta and Broadway hits, whose instrumentation, however, is unmatched by the complexity of the classical works.
Artists
Michaela Gemrotová-Štiková – soprano
Morgan James – soprano
Daniel Matoušek – tenor
Hugh Panaro – tenor
North Czech Philharmonic Teplice
Jan Kučera – conductor
Program
Oskar Nedbal: Polish Blood – Overture
Oskar Nedbal: Polish Blood – For I Know Him (Denn ich kenne ihn)
Oskar Nedbal: Polish Blood – Helena, Helena, I’m Burning Now (Sweet Blondes)
Johann Strauss II: The Bat – Overture
Johann Strauss II: The Bat – My Lord Marquis (Mein Herr Marquis)
Franz Lehár: Land of Smiles – Yours Is My Heart Alone (Dein ist mein ganzes Herz
Johann Strauss II: The Bat – Sounds of Home (Klänge der Heimat)
Franz Lehár: Paganini – Girls were made to love and kiss
Franz Lehár: Giuditta – My lips kiss so hot (Meine Lippen sie küssen so heiss)
Rudolf Friml: Rose Marie – Indian Love Song
Andrew Lloyd Webber:
The Phantom of the Opera – selection
Evita – Don't Cry For Me Argentina
Phantom of the Opera – All I Ask You
Jesus Christ Superstar – Gethsemane
Requiem – Pie Jesu
Cats – Memory
Cats – Jellicle Ball
Phantom of the Opera – Phantom of the Opera
Phantom of the Opera – The Music of the Night
Michaela Gemrotová-Štiková
Czech soprano and the winner of numerous awards and nominations for the Thalia Awards in 2018 and 2019, studied at the HAMU under Helena Kaupová.
She has performed on many European stages, especially in opera productions – she portrayed Barberina and Susanna in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, Papagena in Die Zauberflöte, and Esmeralda and Lidka in Smetana’s The Bartered Bride and The Two Widows. She had worked with leading Czech symphony orchestras and conductors such as O. Kukal, O. Lenárd, J. Procházka, J. Hrůša, R. Jindra, M. Ivanovič, but she is also a musical theatre performer and has made numerous recordings for Czech Radio and foreign recording studios as well.
Photo: Mia Mirrelli
Morgan James
The singer-songwriter graduated from Julliard with a degree in classical music, but she also has a vast background in soul music and also R&B.
She performs as a pop soloist and recently premiered her own show, Symphonic Soul: The Magic of the Memphis Sound. In addition, she has performed in Broadway productions such as The Addams Family and Godspell, as well as Motown: The Musical, and featured in the acclaimed Bernstein’s MASS four times and collaborated with countless leading symphony orchestras (Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Louisville Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Virginia Symphony, the Rhode Island Philharmonic, the Malaysian Philharmonic…) and with conductors such as Teddy Abrams, Marin Alsop, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin.
Morgan James is also focusing on the creation of her own music – she is about to release her fifth original soul album and tours the world accompanied by her own band or by symphony orchestras.
Daniel Matoušek
The tenor of the National Theatre Opera and the nominee for the Thalia Award for 2019 performs on every Czech opera stage especially at the National Theatre in roles such as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, Alfredo Germont in La traviata, Rinuccio in Don Buoso and Gianni Schicchi, Beppe in Les Comediennes, and Mustafa Bey in the opera Ball at the Savoy under the baton of Jan Kučera.
Among many others he also performs at the National Theatre Brno, the National Moravian-Silesian Theatre Ostrava, and the South Bohemian Theatre České Budějovice, but he has also performed abroad in Magdeburg, China, and on many international festivals.
He has also collaborated with ensembles such as the Prague Chamber Philharmonic, the Czech Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Brno Philharmonic, the North Bohemian Philharmonic Teplice, and conductors such as Robert Jindra, Christopher Ward, Kamal Khan, and Andrij Jurkevyč.
Photo: Hana Gorlich
Hugh Panaro
American singer and actor, best known for his leading and titular roles in the famed Broadway musical productions such as the Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera (including the acclaimed 25th Anniversary production), Marius in Les Misérables or Sweeney Todd, and for his performances at theatres such as the London’s West End and Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre.
He has received numerous awards including the Outter Critics Award nomination, the Barrymore Award for his performance as Jean Valjean in Walnut Street Theater’s production of Les Misérables, or the Edwin Forrest Award for his long-term contribution to the theatre.
Panaro is also a concert artist and has worked with leading symphony orchestras such as the San Francisco Symphony, Seattle Symphony, London Sinfonietta, and many others. He has also performed on stages such as the Carnegie Hall, and has toured extensively in Europe alongside Barbra Streisand, among others.
North Czech Philharmonic Teplice
A prominent Czech symphony orchestra was founded in 1838 and for the duration of almost two centuries it has collaborated with world music greats such as Richard Strauss, Felix von Weingartner, Alexander Zemlinský, Eugen d’Albert, Joseph Joachim and Pablo Casals.
In recent years, under the direction of conductors Charles Olivier-Munroe and Alphonse Scarano, the Philharmonic has performed at major international music venues, visiting not only most European capitals, but also Asia, South America and many international music festivals such as the Prague Spring, Janáček May Festival, Český Krumlov Festival, Janáček Hukvaldy Festival and Mitte Europa Festival.
Under the direction of the current conductor Petr Vronský, the Philharmonic continues to collaborate with world names such as David Lomelí and José Carreras, and emphasises a dramaturgy consisting of distinctive Czech works.
Jan Kučera
Conductor, composer and pianist Jan Kučera is one of the most versatile Czech artists. At the Prague Conservatory he studied composition with Bohuslav Řehor and conducting with Miriam Němcová and Miroslav Košler, in which he was subsequently mentored by Vladimír Válek at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague.
As a composer he creates symphonic, chamber and song compositions, and has also written over thirty incidental music works for theatre productions. He has also performed with the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK. He is the author of the ballets The Three Musketeers, The Taming of the Shrew and the operas Red Maria and Don Buoso at the National Theatre. There he also conducts a successful production of the opera A Night at the Savoy Hotel. He has also conducted the Wanted project with Dagmar Pecková and a new production of Leonard Bernstein’s Mass.
Photo: Jan Kolman
