Isabel Keleti is a pianist. Bree Nichols is a soprano. Their paths first crossed in September 2021, when they met at the Fulbright orientation for U.S. grantees in Prague; they were just beginning their academic year in the Czech Republic. Isabel came to study Leoš Janáček and other Czech gems of the piano repertoire, and it is no surprise that her host institution was the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Brno. Bree's research project "Czech Art Song: An Anthology and Recital Series 'From the Page to the Stage'" was hosted at the Faculty of Education of Palacký University in Olomouc. Although they had not originally expected to collaborate, Isabel and Bree would eventually perform together in seven concerts in six cities across the Czech Republic throughout their grant period. One highlight was their early June performance on the rooftop of Prague’s Lucerna together with future Czech Fulbrighter Tomáš Jamník. In this blog post, Isabel and Bree share
Sean McAneny is an English Teaching Assistant at the only Military High School in the Czech Republic, located in Moravská Třebová. As a former captain of the SUNY Geneseo track & field team, a tutor at his university writing center and with two life-long passions for literature and sports, Sean was placed at this unique high school that prepares young students for future studies at military colleges and careers in the Czech Army. The school has about 350 students, about 75 per cent are males. It is a boarding school with a strict schedule and a strong emphasis on athletics. During a Fulbright visit in November 2021, one of Sean's colleagues noted: "We are teaching future officers and commanders, and this year-long experience with Sean helps us to not only motivate our students to improve their communication skills in English, but it to strengthen their critical thinking." There is a certain kind of person who goes away to Europe in order to “find himself.” He asks s