George Michael willreturn to the stage tonight when his eagerly awaited Symphonica:The Orchestral Tour opens at the State Opera House in Prague, capital of theCzech Republic. The Symphonica tour will fulfil Michael's long-cherishedartistic ambition of performing alongside an orchestra, which, in Prague, willinclude the highly-acclaimed Czech National Symphony Orchestra, conducted bySteve Sidwell. Michael will perform not only a carefully chosen selection ofhis own material, spanning his remarkable, near 30-year career, but he willcover some of his favourite songs from other artists.
The spectacularopening night venue was chosen by George Michael as the perfect setting tolaunch his Symphonica tour and showcase his new musical direction. Opened in1888, the State Opera House sits elegantly in the heart of Prague and boastsover 120 years at the heart of European culture, hosting some of the world’smost famous operas and ballets and performances by both legendary composerssuch as Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler and towering figures of operaincluding Nellie Melba and Enrico Caruso.
Other, similarlyiconic venues for the ensuing 62 dates will include Le Silo in Marseille, theArena Di Verona and a black tie event at London's Royal Opera House on November6 with net proceeds from the charity evening benefiting the Elton John AIDSFoundation’s newly created Elizabeth Taylor Memorial Fund.
As Symphonica passesthrough some of Europe’s cultural capitals, including Paris, Berlin, Budapest,Dublin, Copenhagen, Madrid and Florence, it will also incorporate arenas inorder to accommodate the huge demand from fans. Symphonica will arrive inGeorge’s hometown of London in October where he will perform four sold-outRoyal Albert Hall shows before concluding in December with three highlyanticipated dates at London’s Earls Court - where he made his British live solodebut in 1988 - by which time Symphonica will have entertained almost half amillion fans across Europe.
Michael’s 25Live tour,which visited Europe and North America before concluding in Copenhagen back in2008, was a monumental success, which further secured his status as a giant ofpopular music. It was described as “a masterclass in pop genius” (The Observer)and “Flawless” (The San Francisco Examiner) and introduced Michael to a wholenew generation of fans.
Withan unparalleled voice, a 41-piece orchestra and a tantalising promise toinclude songs never previously performed live, Symphonica is a magicalexperience awaiting singer and audience alike.
