...because of Alma

Jaroslava Šiktancová

Director

Jaroslava Šiktancová studied directing at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, but was expelled shortly before graduation for signing Charter 77. Until 1989, she worked as a care assistant, cleaner, guide, assistant gardener and administrator at the National Museum’s research room and the National Theatre Archive. Despite this, she never gave up her theatre work. Secretly and unofficially, she collaborated with amateur ensembles, but also director Miroslav Macháček of the National Theatre in Prague, on productions such as Our Uppish and Defiant Fellows (Naši furianti), The White Plague (Bílá nemoc), The Duchess of Wallenstein’s Troop (Vévodkyně valdštejnských vojsk) and Hamlet. In 1990, she was awarded a diploma and master’s degree and went on to direct in Prague and in regional theatres (Cheb, Liberec, Opava). As an in-house director for the Kašpar Theatre Association, she staged plays by classic authors (T. Williams, C. Goldoni) and dramatisations of prose (D. H. Lawrence, V. Brjusov). 

She has collaborated with the folk ensemble Gaudeamus and with Czech Radio. Alongside her directorial practice, she lectured in the Department of Dramatic Theatre at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU) from 1993 to 2019. She was head tutor for a number of acting year groups and, as part of her doctoral work, staged a production of E. F. Burian’s music-drama The War (Vojna, premiere 2013), which became the foundation of the BodyVoiceBand ensemble. Since 2019, she has lectured in the Department of Nonverbal Theatre at the Music and Dance Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (HAMU). 

Martina Kinská

Author

Martina studied dramaturgy and theatre theory and criticism at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU). Since the 2005/2006 season, she has been resident dramaturg at Švanda Theatre in Smíchov. As a guest dramaturg, she has worked on productions at the Drama Studio in Ústí nad Labem and Brno City Theatre and collaborated with Kabaret Caligula and Spitfire Company. She is the author or co-author of theatrical adaptations, including The Idiots (Idioti), The Rat Catcher (Krysař), The Art of Negative Thinking (Kurz negativního myšlení) and The Picture of Dorian Gray (Obraz Doriana Graye), which she also directed (2018). She made her directorial debut in 2015 with her play Pankrác ‘45, which was nominated for best Czech play in the Theatre Critics Awards. Her plays have been presented abroad in Washington, DC, with staged readings in New York and Berlin. She won the Mark Ravenhill Award (2018), awarded for the best direction of a contemporary play, for the production Agent, So-Call Social (Agent tzv. společenský), co-authored with Radek Schovánek. 

In addition to theatre, she also works as a scriptwriter and dramaturg for film and television. She has worked as a dramaturg on the films Kryštof (dir. Zdeněk Jiráský), About Nightline (Promlčeno, dir. Robert Sedláček), The Exhale (Němá tajemství, dir. Tomáš Mašín), Buko (dir. Alice Nellis) and The Gardener (Zahradník, dir. Jiří Havelka).

Silvie Hessová

Violin

Silvie Hessová is a chamber musician. While still a student at the Prague Conservatory, she became a member of the Czechoslovak Chamber Orchestra and leader of the Eberle Quartet, with which she won the Radio France Award at the 1989 International String Quartet Competition in Evian. Based on this success, the quartet was invited to London for a masterclass with the legendary Amadeus Quartet. In 1991, she became a member of the orchestra Virtuosi di Praga, performing throughout Europe and Japan.

As a soloist, she has performed with orchestras including the Slovak Philharmonic, the PFK - Prague Philharmonia, the South Czech Philharmonic, Orchestra Sinfonica di Bari and others. 

At the invitation of Czech-American composer Karel Husa, she performed at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, subsequently appearing in Washington, D.C. and Chicago and at the Weill Recital Hall in New York. 

Silvie is also a recipient of the Euro Pragensis Ars award for the promotion of Czech music at home and abroad. 

Alongside concert performances and recordings, she is also involved in production activities, most recently as a producer. In 2020, she initiated the creation of the Alma Ansámbl string quartet, whose members Martina Bačová, Kateřina Lískovcová and Hana Baboráková Shabuová are leading chamber players performing at home and abroad. The inspiration for the founding of Alma Ansámbl is violinist Alma Rosé, niece of the composer Gustav Mahler. The members of the ensemble do not only focus on classical concerts, but explore other artistic genres, such as theatre, dance and visual art. 

Silvie Hessová’s first project as a producer is connected to theatre and features collaborations with theatre director Jaroslava Šiktancová and scriptwriter and playwright Martina Kinská, whose plays based on historic events have won many prizes. The resulting production, …because of Alma, tells the story of Alma Rosé’s life. The production has found a home at the theatre Venuše ve Švehlovce in Prague and is also a successful touring production. Theatre critic Radmila Hrdinová named it one of the TOP 5 theatre events of 2023. 

Silvie's interest in early and mid-twentieth-century history is also reflected in her other projects. She founded a string duet with cellist Dominika Weiss Hošková, which specialises in works by composers of Jewish descent who became victims of the Holocaust alongside seminal compositions for cello and violin. 

Anna Brousková

Performer

Anna completed her studies at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU), studying under Boris Rõsner, Eva Salzmannová and Darja Ullrichová. During her studies, she performed at the Komedie Theatre, creating the role of the singer in Michal Dočekal’s production of Agatha Christie’s Ten Little Indians (Deset malých černoušků) and at Studio Damúza, where she played the role of Helena in Zdeněk Bartoš’s production of The Sacrifice of Helen (Obětovaná Helena). Since 2003, she has performed regularly at Theatre Na Fidlovačce, where she has created many roles, including Eržika in A Ballad for a Bandit (Balada pro banditu), Vera in Funny Girl, Trudi in Comic Potential, Alice in Thoroughly Modern Millie, Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof, Lucy in Cosi, Luisa in Duplicity and many others.

From 2005-2009 she performed with the Klicpera Theatre in Hradec Králové, playing Kate in Lída Engelová’s production of Passion Play and Eržika in Karel Brožek’s production of A Ballad for a Bandit. From 2007-2009, she played the role of the Chorus in Zdeněk Bartoš’s production of Romeo and Juliet at the West Bohemian Theatre in Cheb. 

Currently, she works extensively in dubbing and is one of the leading dubbers in the Czech Republic. She won the Fratišek Filipovský Award for Best Actress for dubbing the role of Charlotte Brontë in the film To Walk Invisible.

Antonie Formanová

Performer

Antonie Formanová graduated from the Department of Alternative and Puppet Theatre at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU). During her studies, she participated in many original projects as an actress, puppeteer or co-author. She has long been interested in improvisation, occasionally performing with Simona Babčáková’s improvisation group NO A! 

Since 2023/2024 she has been a member of the ensemble at Dejvice Theatre. In addition to theatre, she also works in television and film. She has appeared in the television films Dukla 61, About Wings of Steel (Balada o pilotovi), in the film Borders of Love (Hranice lásky, dir. Tomasz Wiński) and Michal Nohejl’s award-winning debut Occupation (Okupace), for which she received the Czech Lion Award for Best Supporting Actress. In recent years she has gained experience with moderating, radio and organising larger events, primarily in collaboration with her sister and family. In 2024, Forbes magazine named her to their 30 Under 30 list.

Vojtěch Bartoš

Performer

Vojtěch graduated from the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU) in 2014. He is one of the founding members of BodyVoiceBand and has taken part in almost all of its productions, including The War (Vojna), Drums in the Night (Bubny v noci), Women as Lovers (Milovnice), etc. He completed physical training workshops with the international theatre studio Farm in the Cave and continues to pursue physical theatre in projects such as Negative (Negativ), Musical of the Third Age (Muzikál třetího věku), Can You Hear Me (Slyšíš mě) and Pingls. His strong stage presence was showcased in the fairy tales The Soldier and the Dancer (Voják a tanečnice) and Aftersound (Potmězvuk). Vojtěch collaborates regularly with Project Pomezí (Pomezí, The House in Jablonec, The Invitation, We Don’t Know Each Other) and Geisslers Hofcomoedianten (The Love for Three Oranges, The Green Bird, 27). He performed in the production Quiet, It’s Recording (Ticho, nahrává se!, dir. Zuzana Burianová) with the Tygr v tísni company and has performed in the Vinohrady Theatre, Meetfactory, the New Stage of the National Theatre in Prague, the National Theatre in Brno and many other theatres.

Silvie Hessová

Violin

Silvie Hessová is a chamber musician. While still a student at the Prague Conservatory, she became a member of the Czechoslovak Chamber Orchestra and leader of the Eberle Quartet, with which she won the Radio France Award at the 1989 International String Quartet Competition in Evian. Based on this success, the quartet was invited to London for a masterclass with the legendary Amadeus Quartet. In 1991, she became a member of the orchestra Virtuosi di Praga, performing throughout Europe and Japan.

As a soloist, she has performed with orchestras including the Slovak Philharmonic, the PFK - Prague Philharmonia, the South Czech Philharmonic, Orchestra Sinfonica di Bari and others. 

At the invitation of Czech-American composer Karel Husa, she performed at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, subsequently appearing in Washington, D.C. and Chicago and at the Weill Recital Hall in New York. 

Silvie is also a recipient of the Euro Pragensis Ars award for the promotion of Czech music at home and abroad. 

Alongside concert performances and recordings, she is also involved in production activities, most recently as a producer. In 2020, she initiated the creation of the Alma Ansámbl string quartet, whose members Martina Bačová, Kateřina Lískovcová and Hana Baboráková Shabuová are leading chamber players performing at home and abroad. The inspiration for the founding of Alma Ansámbl is violinist Alma Rosé, niece of the composer Gustav Mahler. The members of the ensemble do not only focus on classical concerts, but explore other artistic genres, such as theatre, dance and visual art. 

Silvie Hessová’s first project as a producer is connected to theatre and features collaborations with theatre director Jaroslava Šiktancová and scriptwriter and playwright Martina Kinská, whose plays based on historic events have won many prizes. The resulting production, …because of Alma, tells the story of Alma Rosé’s life. The production has found a home at the theatre Venuše ve Švehlovce in Prague and is also a successful touring production. Theatre critic Radmila Hrdinová named it one of the TOP 5 theatre events of 2023. 

Silvie's interest in early and mid-twentieth-century history is also reflected in her other projects. She founded a string duet with cellist Dominika Weiss Hošková, which specialises in works by composers of Jewish descent who became victims of the Holocaust alongside seminal compositions for cello and violin. 

Martina Bačová

Violin

Martina Bačová graduated from the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ostrava, earned a master’s degree at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber in Dresden and received a scholarship to the Cleveland Encore School for Strings. One of the leading Czech violinists of her generation, she has performed as a soloist and chamber musician across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. 

In addition to the Alma Ansámbl, she is a core member of the renowned Baborák Ensemble and Orquestrina, a soloist in the multimedia show Vivaldianno and concertmaster of the Summer Academy Biel Orchestra, the Prague Chamber Soloists and the Czech Sinfonietta. She has performed with the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava and the North Czech Philharmonic Teplice, and with chamber orchestras including the Janáček Chamber Orchestra, Camerata Janáček and the Talich Chamber Orchestra. She has performed at festivals in the Czech Republic and abroad including Prague Spring, Smetana’s Litomyšl, the Mahler Jihlava Festival, Festival de Nancy, Festival Mozart Woche in Salzburg, and others. 

Gramophone Magazine describes her as “a strong, highly communicative player, at times almost unnervingly passionate, and also quite individual, who undeniably deserves the many awards and honours that have been bestowed upon her.” Her solo album Elegant Provocation, featuring the music of Bartók, Janáček, Mácha and Enesco, was named CD of the Month by International Record Review Magazine. 

In addition to her concert career, she has recorded film and television soundtracks and collaborates with the labels Universal Music and Sony/EMI, as well as Czech Television and Czech Radio. She is also engaged in educational activities.

Kateřina Lískovcová

Viola

Kateřina Lískovcová graduated from the Prague Conservatory and the Music and Dance Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (HAMU). As a member of the Conservatory’s Noneta ensemble, she represented the Czech Republic at the Paris International Animation Film Festival. Throughout her career in music, she has participated in many performance courses, studying with conductors Ondřej Kukal, Vojtěch Spurný and Jakub Hrůša. She has taken part in master classes in the Czech Republic and abroad, including under the leadership of Josef Suk and Vladimír Bukač and with Professors Wolfgang Klos and Herbert Kefer in Semmering, Austria. She has travelled throughout Europe, Japan, Mexico and other countries as a soloist or as part of an ensemble.  

In addition to the Alma Ansámbl, Kateřina is part of the Czech Sinfonietta, the Prague Chamber Soloists, the Ambroš Ladies Orchestra and Orchestra Berg. She is one half of the project Duo Divine. Her musical versatility transcends the borders of classical music and includes contemporary music, pop and alternative theatre projects. She has collaborated, for example, with Czech singers Marek Ztracený, Josef Vojtek and Václav Noid Bárta. As a musician, she also enjoys using her three musical instruments – violin, electric violin and viola. 

Hana Baboráková Shabuová

Cello

Hana Baboráková Shabuová studied at the Music and Dance Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (HAMU) and graduated with a master’s degree from the Hochschule für Musik in Munich. She is one of the most outstanding cellists of her generation. She has collaborated as a chamber musician with the Berlin, Munich and St. Petersburg Filharmonics and festivals including St. Petersburg – White Nights, Prague Spring, Smetanova’s Litomyšl, the Leoš Janáček International Music Festival, Musico Trancoso, Mitte Europa and Lipa Musica. During her career, she has performed at the most prestigious concert halls in Europe, Asia and the United States, including Carnegie Hall, Suntory Hall, Opéra national de Paris, Teatro alla Scala and the Berlin Philharmonic. 

Her expressive musical style and unmistakable tonal presence form an integral part of the sound spectrum not only in the Alma Ansámbl, but also in the Baborak Ensemble, of which she is a founding member. She also performs with the Orquestrina ensemble and is concertmaster of the Prague Chamber Soloists and the Czech Sinfonietta. She spent two years working at the Bavarian State Opera and was part of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. Pedagogical activities focusing on the education of the next generation of cellists are an important part of her work. 

Hana is the recipient of the Gideon Klein Award from the 2001 Prague Spring International Music Competition.

Judita Škodová

Cello

Judita graduated from the Music and Dance Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (HAMU). Since her youth, she has attracted attention with her success on concert stages and in competitions. She has won many awards for her interpretation of the music of B. Martinů at home and abroad, including from the International Summer Academy in Austria. 

She has taken part in many masterclasses and completed a year’s study at the Danish National Academy of Music in Odense and the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. She also studied with Emil Rovner at the Hochschule für Musik in Dresden. 

She has twice auditioned successfully for the PFK - Prague Philharmonia orchestral academy and has been a member of the ensemble since 2014. She has appeared as a soloist with various orchestras, including the PFK - Prague Philharmonia, the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava and the North Czech Philharmonic Teplice and as head of the cello section. She collaborates with the composer Eliška Cílková, with whom she recorded music for the student film Toman Brod and, in June 2014, she premiered her composition Clockwork for cello and orchestra accompanied by the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra in Olomouc. 

She is a founding member of the Quasi Trio. In 2018 she founded the duo Folie á deux, where she sings Czech and French chanson accompanied by Kateřina Ochmanová on the piano or accordion. Judita is also involved in musical education projects and takes part in activities with the Potichounku civic association and Czech Philharmonic.

Hana Jarošová Kubisová

Violin

Hana graduated from the Prague Conservatory and the Music and Dance Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (HAMU). During her studies, she took part in many international performance courses, including Fondation Yehudi Menuhin France, Die Internationale Sommerakademie Pommersfelden, Alexander Kramarov’s Performance Courses in Brno and the Sommerakademie Semmering and made many solo and chamber recordings for Czech Radio and Bayerischer Rundfunk. In 1990 and 1991, she won the 1st and 2nd prizes and the W. A. Mozart Prize for the best performance of the works of Mozart at the Dušek Youth Music Competition. In 1995, as part of Trio Concertante, she won second prize at the Beethoven's Hradec International Music Competition. 

In 1994, she became a founding member of the Prague Chamber Philharmonic, now the PKF – Prague Philharmonia, where she continues to play in the first violin section. In 2016, she performed with organist Aleš Bárta a mezzo-soprano Lucie Hilscherová at a commemorationand concert at the international music festival Prague Spring – Suk’s Křečovice. In 2019, she performed with harpist Jana Boušková in a live television broadcast for the closing ceremony of the 56th Gold Prague International Television Festival. She remains a member of Trio Concertante and also collaborates with Radek Baborák’s Czech Sinfonietta. In addition to her performance career, she has taught for many years and was involved in the establishment of the Harmonie Foundation from 2010-2014. In 2022 she collaborated on the Czech-Italian film Terezín as an educator and specialist advisor.