Opening Gala Concert

At the start of its 106th theater season, the Slovak National Theater will pay tribute to the exceptional opera diva Gabriela Beňačková. Slovak and international opera stars Eva Hornyáková, Mária Porubčinová, Nina Stemme, Corinne Winters, and Pavol Bršlík have accepted the invitation to perform, with Tomáš Brauner conducting.

Gabriela Beňačková is a renowned Slovak lyric soprano with a rich international career. She began her career in Prague and has become an internationally acclaimed soprano. She is the recipient of many prestigious awards.

Breakthrough successes

In 1969, she won the Janáček Singing Competition and was the overall winner of the Dvořák Singing Competition in Karlovy Vary.

In 1970, Přemysl Kočí, director of the National Theatre in Prague, engaged her as a soloist, where she performed until 1981.

After her engagement in Prague, she became a regular guest at opera houses in Amsterdam, Munich, and Vienna.

She sang at prestigious venues such as La Scala (Milan), Teatro Colón (Buenos Aires), Metropolitan Opera (New York), Covent Garden (London), Palais Garnier (Paris) and many others.

She was the first Rusalka at the Metropolitan Opera (1994–1995) and performed there in more than 50 performances.

At Carnegie Hall in New York, she performed operas such as Jenůfa, Káťa Kabanová, Libuše, and Rusalka.

She is best known for her performances of works by Czech composers: Jenůfa, Káťa Kabanová (Janáček), Rusalka (Dvořák), and Prodaná nevěsta (Smetana).

She has collaborated with renowned conductors and colleagues such as Václav Neumann, Claudio Abbado, Plácido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, Leonard Bernstein, and many others.

Program

Arnold Schoenberg: GURRELIEDER
prelude

Richard Wagner: WESENDONCK-LIEDER
Schmerzen, Träume
Nina Stemme

Arrigo Boito: MEPHISTOPHELES
L’altra notte in fondo al mare
Corinne Winters (Margherita)

Umberto Giordano: ANDREA CHÉNIER
La mamma morta
Mária Porubčinová (Maddalena di Coigny)

Charles Gounod: FAUST
Oh God! Que de bijoux
Eva Hornyáková (Marguerite)

a break

Eugen Suchoň: KRUTNAVA
Boom, boom, my child
Mária Porubčinová (Katrena)

Antonín Dvořák: RUSALKA
Weird sight, too sweet
Pavol Bršlík (Prince)

Bedřich Smetana: THE SOLD BRIDE
Oh, what sorrow… That dream of love
Eva Hornyáková (Mařenka)

Leoš Janáček: HER GODDESS
What a moment…, the finale of the 2nd act
Corinne Winters (Jenůfa), Nina Stemme (Kostelnička), Pavol Bršlík (Laca)

The concert is suitable for audiences aged 10 and over.

The concert is presented in a fragment of the stage decoration from the production of Turandot, by Vladimír Čáp.

Venue: Slovak National Theatre, Pribinova, Bratislava
Date: Saturday, 06.09.2025
Start: 19:00 – 20:30
Price: 19-55 €

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