romantic musical based on Johanna Spyri's bestseller, Czech premiere
The Swiss author Johanna Spyri (1827–1901) spent her childhood near the city of Chur in Graubünden, in a magical setting near Lake Constance, where the Rhine River flows freely and the Alps offer endless possibilities of breathtaking views. It is no wonder that this landscape was the inspiration for her to write her most famous work, which brought her worldwide success. The novel Heidis Lehr- und Wanderjahre was published in 1880, and in its Czech translation, generations of children know it as Heidi, girl from the mountains.
The story of the orphaned girl has been filmed several times, most recently in 2015, those who remember it can also remember the animated Japanese series from 1974, but Heidi first appeared on screen in 1937 in the lead role with Shirley Temple. The little girl Heidi spends happy and contented childhood days together with her friend Petr looking after a herd of goats, joyfully playing and enjoying the freedom of the Swiss Alps, where she lives in a simple log cabin with her grandfather. One day, however, Heidi is pulled out of her carefree, happy moments by her aunt and sent to keep the sick girl Klara from a wealthy family company. The girls become friends right away, but Heidi's longing for her grandfather, Peter and the mountains is too great. In the musical, which magically tells a kind story, there is a happy ending for all involved. Our theater prepared the production for staging in Austria, Switzerland and Germany (the premiere took place on December 6, 2019 in Vienna), and the musical by screenwriter Hans Dieter Schreeb and composer Michael Schanze has so far been a huge success everywhere. According to one of the enthusiastic reviews, "Heidi writes herself into the hearts of the audience with her singing" and we can only wish her to do the same on the Music Stage of the City Theater directed by Stanislav Moša.
