An American opera star's greatest challenge? Singing the Czech letter 'Ř'

Evan LeRoy Johnson returns to Prague in Mozart’s Idomeneo after conquering Dvořák’s consonant nightmares

American tenor Evan LeRoy Johnson has sung on leading European stages from Frankfurt to Zurich, mastered complex Mozart arias, and earned debuts at New York’s Metropolitan Opera. But one challenge nearly broke him: pronouncing the Czech letter ř.

“For an American singer, the hardest part is not the long cantilenas or the high notes, but the word řř,” Johnson told the Czech portal KlasikaPlus.cz, recalling his first encounter with Dvořák’s Rusalka. “Putting together v, s, ta, and then the ‘crazy’ ř without a single vowel—that’s almost impossible at first!”

This December, Johnson returns to Prague’s State Opera in a very different role: Mozart’s Idomeneo, directed by Calixto Bieito and conducted by Konrad Junghänel. The production marks only the second time the opera has been performed at the State Opera; the first was in 1900.

Unlike his previous Prague appearances as love-struck princes, Johnson now explores a story of transformation: from youth to old age, from power to responsibility.

“Idomeneo is perhaps Mozart’s most dramatic tenor role,” Johnson said. The part includes Fuor del mar, considered Mozart’s most technically demanding tenor aria. “I used to study the organ, and my teacher often told me: slow practice brings fast results. And that’s what I follow to this day.”

Johnson first sang the Prince in Rusalka in 2018 at Des Moines Opera, returned to the role at England’s Glyndebourne Festival, and eventually brought it to Prague in 2023.

“I was fortunate that during my studies in Philadelphia, my voice teacher helped me approach Czech in a completely natural way,” he says. “I fell in love with this opera and am now preparing for it again.”

The key, he discovered, was immersion. “Listen to it and immerse yourself in it: the more you hear it, the more natural the singing becomes,” he explains.

“Dvořák was very considerate of the singers, while with others it is sometimes more difficult. Although I haven't sung Janáček yet, I think the principles are similar: beautiful bel canto lines that are a great inspiration and make working with voice teachers a real pleasure,” Johnson says.

He’s also mentioned an interest in other Czech repertoire, including roles such as Laca and Števa in Janáček’s Jenůfa and Boris in Káťa Kabanová.

Conductor Konrad Junghänel, making his National Theatre debut, emphasizes Idomeneo’s unique place in Mozart’s work. “It is precisely midway between his early and late operas,” he says. Director Calixto Bieito adds, “The first theme, the relationship between father and child, is highly spiritual. The tragedy of a father who must choose between a God and his own son.”

For Johnson, despite the tricky Czech consonant clusters, the greatest reward of performing in Prague is the audience.

“Prague was an important city for both Dvořák and Mozart, so the audience here has a fairly clear idea of the style and the voices that should be heard in their operas,” he notes. “It is wonderful to see children among the audience in Rusalka, and it shows how widespread the interest in opera is in the Czech Republic.”

See Evan LeRoy Johnson in Mozart’s Idomeneo at Prague’s State Opera. Reprises are Oct. 10, 12, and 18, 2025. He will also appear in Rusalka beginning Oct. 29.