Dear Minister of Culture Natália Milanová, 

Opera Europa is the professional association of 222 opera companies and festivals in Europe. The Slovak National Theater has been a member of our association since June 2022. In this short time, the general manager Matej Drlička and his team have shown a high level of expertise and agility among our members.

We are well aware of the inappropriate remark addressed towards Slovak politicians that occurred during the discussion in Budapest. The Opera Europa association, therefore, joins Mr Drlička's apology.

Free speech and expression are central to the mission of Opera Europa, as they are within democratic Europe. Our association is a safe platform where theatres may debate ideas, exchange experiences and share expertise. We, therefore, hope that SND and its current management will continue to be allowed to participate freely in our future activities and engage openly in our exchanges.

As members of the Opera Europa association, we join the call of our colleagues from Slovakia, in order to preserve the healthy operations of the institution and stabilize the positive changes brought by its management. We kindly ask for reconsideration of your decision to remove Matej Drlička from the position of the General Manager of the SND.

Yours sincerely,

Opera Europa