(1878-1930)
Ema Destinnová, world-famous opera singer and soprano who performed on stages in Berlin, London, Vienna and Paris. At the age of 20, she was rejected at the National Theatre in Prague, but she successfully started her career at the Court Opera in Berlin. After ten years, she was offered a contract at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where she formed an unforgettable pair with the famous tenor Enrico Caruso. She performed all over the world in many famous operas. Among her most important roles were Mařenka in The Bartered Bride, Milada in the opera Dalibor, Aida, Carmen, Salome and others. Her involvement in the Czech resistance during World War I forced her to end her career abroad and spend her time mainly at her castle in the Czech countryside. In protest, she sang at large national concerts with police surveillance behind her back. After the war, she was no longer able to follow up on her former glory, and her other plans did not work out either. She spent most of her time in private and outdoors, writing and teaching singing. She died suddenly at the age of 52.