The woman who tried to beat time

She has been a star for a long time. Three hundred times in a row, she played the lead role in the musical comedy Divotvorný hrnec (Wondermaking Pot), the last play of the legendary duo Voskovec and Werich, in 1947. As an opera singer, she has cooperated with world-famous conductors such as Herbert von Karajan,Rafael Kubelík and Sir Charles Mackerras. She stood before applauding audiences in La Scala, Vienna, Paris, London or San Francisco. She performed in operas by Leoš Janáček or Gustav Mahler and accepted roles even in musicals by modern authors like Tom Waits or Lou Reed. Yes, Soňa Červená (82) as a singer marked one music epoch. Opera lovers now have an opportunity to see her in Prague, where she excels in an opera about the show trial with Milada Horáková. „She is one of the most important and bravest women of the 20th century,“ Soňa Červená describes her character Horáková, who was executed by the Communists. „When I declaim her last words from the letter to her family, it sends chills down my spine.“

Carmen, my dream role

The family of Soňa Červená comes from Hradec Králové. She has been surrounded by music since she was born: Her great-grandfather, a producer and designer of brass music instruments, co-financed the construction of a new municipal theatre. Her father, lawyer …