(1925-2023)
Soňa Červená, an opera singer, mezzo-soprano and alto who left Czechoslovakia for a successful career on the leading stages of Europe and America. After studying voice in her home city of Prague, she made her professional opera début in 1954 at the opera house in Brno and a major success at the National Theatre in Prague followed three years later. She was committed to the Berlin State Opera from 1958 to 1961 and in January 1962, under dramatic circumstances, she immigrated to West Germany. She became a principal artist at the Opern- und Schauspielhaus Frankfurt, which remained her principal home until the early 1990s. She became famous worldwide for the role of Carmen in the production of the conductor Herbert Kegel. She performed in Hamburg, Vienna, San Francisco, Chicago and other cities. After 1989, she returned to perform in Czechia and appeared on scene even after reaching the age of ninety.