President Petr Pavel Heads to Osaka for the Czech National Day: the Czech Philharmonic, Contemporary Circus, Mendel’s Original Manuscript and Vintage Cars to Join the Celebrations on Mucha’s Birthday across the EXPO 2025 Grounds

“We take the Czech National Day and our entire participation very seriously. We’ve put immense effort into the preparations and are bringing the very best our country has to offer. We chose to celebrate on Alfons Mucha’s 165th birthday. His work enjoys great popularity in Japan, even among the imperial family, which still maintains friendly ties with the Mucha family. That’s why Mucha plays such an important role in our national presentation. His grandson, John Mucha, will attend the Czech National Day, as will Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado and President Petr Pavel,” says Ondřej Soška, Commissioner General for Czech participation at EXPO 2025. 

The highlight of the National Day programme will be the cultural performance “THE STRINGS”, featuring a collaboration between Cirk La Putyka and the Czech Philharmonic, joined by the Czech Radio Children’s Choir and musician Aiko. The Czech Philharmonic, internationally renowned for its rich musical tradition and artistic excellence, will bring grandeur to the stage. Cirk La Putyka, a trailblazing contemporary circus ensemble, will captivate the audience with a unique blend of theatre, acrobatics, and visual storytelling. The Czech Radio Children’s Choir, known for its pure and moving voices, will add a delicate and youthful harmony. Singer Aiko, who represented Czechia at Eurovision 2024, will enhance the show with her distinctive musical style. Audiences can look forward to a spectacular fusion of classical and modern music and circus arts. 

“I’m truly pleased that after more than eighteen months of work driven by inspiration, ambition and the desire to create something as groundbreaking as the Laterna Magika at the Brussels World EXPO, this vision is now coming to life. The aim was to create an artistically and conceptually innovative and inspiring performance that interweaves traditional and contemporary Czech culture within a broader social context, also reflecting the host country. Personally, I greatly value – and see as essential to the success of this cultural presentation – that this unique project, STRINGS, under the creative direction of Rosťa Novák, brings together internationally recognised figures of Czech culture,” explains Přemysl Pela, Programme Director of the Czech participation at EXPO 2025. 

Performance THE STRINGS will take place at 11:00 a.m., with limited seating available. However, the performance is planned to be streamed on YouTube. A second show for the general public will take place in the afternoon at 3:00 p.m. Additional solo performances by participating ensembles will follow. 

Venue: NATIONAL DAY HALL

• 15:00–15:40 – THE STRINGS: joint performance by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and Cirk La Putyka, with the Czech Radio Children’s Choir and AIKO 
• 16:00–16:30 – Musical performance: Czech Radio Children’s Choir 
• 16:45–17:15 – Musical performance: AIKO 
• 17:30–18:00 – Musical performance: Czech Radio Children’s Choir 
• 18:15–18:45 – Musical performance: AIKO 

Additional programme elements will take place in the Czech National Pavilion in the afternoon, with President Petr Pavel and Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado also in attendance. As a tribute to the host country and its rich cultural heritage, the programme will feature a joint Czech–Japanese artistic production showcasing traditional Japanese kyōgen theatre and martial arts. One performance will be held in the Daisue Hall, and the other will be held in front of the Czech Pavilion. 

Documents of the father of genetics presented in Japan for the first time
The Czech National Pavilion will also offer both Japanese and Czech visitors a rare opportunity to view the original manuscript by Gregor Johann Mendel. It will be on display at the pavilion on 23 and 24 July (on 24 July, the pavilion will be primarily open to Czech visitors). 

Mendel’s manuscript, titled Experiments on Plant Hybrids, is a handwritten 1865 document that laid the foundation of genetics by describing his experiments with pea plants, which led to the discovery of the laws of inheritance. The twelve-page manuscript is especially valuable as it is the only surviving direct record of Mendel’s key experiments. Written in German in neo-Gothic cursive, it is both historically and visually remarkable. This year, the manuscript is being nominated for inclusion in UNESCO Memory of the World programme, which preserves humanity’s most significant documentary heritage. 

The manuscript will be transported under strict security measures by the prior of the Augustinian Abbey, Father Wit. It will arrive in Osaka aboard the presidential aircraft on Tuesday afternoon, 22 July. It travelled from Brno to Prague airport with a security escort and will remain under protection throughout its stay in Japan. Its export required special approval from the Ministry of Culture Czech Republic, as such transfers are extremely rare. The only previous time it left the country was for one day in 2022, during the Czech presidency of the Council of the European Union. 

Expedition ROBOT retraces steps from EXPO 1970
On Wednesday, 23 July 2025, a fleet of historic Czech automobiles will arrive at the EXPO 2025 site on Yumeshima Island. On a symbolic mission of friendship and international understanding, the team covered over 14,000 kilometres through eleven countries. Their extraordinary journey will conclude at EXPO 2025, where the vintage vehicles will be exhibited from 23 to 24 July in front of the Festival Station, next to the French Pavilion. 

The expedition, called ROBOT, began in June 2025 in Prague. Seven Czech vintage cars travelled over five weeks through Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, and South Korea, ultimately arriving in Japan. The journey pays tribute to Czech engineering prowess, courage, and the enduring tradition of long-distance expeditions. 

The expedition’s name honours the famous word “robot,” which Czech writer Karel Čapek introduced to the world in his 1920 play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots). Today, the word is a staple of the global tech lexicon and a symbol of Czech creativity and innovation. 

The expedition also pays homage to the legendary 1970 Sakura Expedition, during which four young Czechs reached EXPO 1970 in Osaka by hitchhiking and on foot. It was part of a unique “challenge” launched by Japanese broadcaster NHK to arrive at the world’s fair by any means. Fifty-five years later, this new journey builds on that legacy, strengthening the long-standing friendship between Czechia and Japan. The arrival of the vintage cars will take place as part of the Czech National Day celebrations at EXPO 2025. The team was personally seen off in Prague by President Petr Pavel, who will now ceremonially welcome them in Japan. 

“Arriving with a vintage car all the way from Prague to the Czech Pavilion at EXPO is a huge moment and a relief. We proved that even with fifty-year-old cars, you can conquer 14,200 kilometres across continents. And that when something is built with care, be it an engine or a watch, it can withstand the toughest tests. But this journey wasn’t just about cars. It was about people. About a team that always had each other’s backs, about mechanics performing miracles on the fly, and about partners without whom we might never have even started. We owe them all a huge thank you. What a ride – and now we’ve reached its symbolic peak,” concludes Josef Zajíček, head of the ROBOT Expedition.  

First visit of a Czech president to Japan in 17 years
President Petr Pavel will first visit the city of Himeji in Japan, where he will sign a memorandum of cooperation between Prague Castle and Himeji Castle. He will then pay tribute to the victims in Hiroshima and visit the Atomic Dome designed by Czech architect Jan Letzel. On the second day of his trip, the president will inaugurate the Czech National Day at EXPO 2025. At the end of his visit, Pavel will travel to Tokyo to meet Emperor Naruhito and Prime Minister Kishida. The last Czech President to visit Japan was Václav Klaus, in 2007 and 2008. Before him, the first Czech president Václav Havel made a four-day visit in December 1995. 

National restaurant menu inspired by EXPO 1970
On Monday, 21 July, two chefs from the “Old Guard”, part of the Czech Association of Chefs and Pastry Chefs, arrived in Osaka. These chefs once cooked alongside Ladislav Nódl, head chef of the Czechoslovak Pavilion at EXPO 1970 in Osaka. In his honour, a special menu has been created for the National Day using ingredients that were once featured in the pavilion, now presented with a fresh, modern twist. The special menu will be served in the Czech Pavilion from 24 to 26 July, or while supplies last. The starter showcases buckwheat tartare topped with a delicate quail egg, followed by a main course of succulent duck breast served with chestnut purée, and to finish, pancakes drizzled with rich plum sauce.  

More information about STRINGS
THE Strings – threads or strings connecting the history of our country, craftsmanship, values, visions, the Czech Philharmonic, Cirk La Putyka, the Czech Radio Children’s Choir, and singer Aiko. 

To represent our country, we selected several pieces by Czech musical greats, and for each piece we found a theme, a scene, an image with its own story. 

A. Dvořák - Humoresque 
Both Czechia and Japan have a rich history of puppetry. Rostislav Novák Jr., director of the entire concept, is himself the eighth generation of the traditional puppeteer family of Matěj Kopecký. For this piece, we also involved the international animated film festival Anifilm, which prepared visual content for projection. This will accompany the live performance. On stage, traditional string marionettes will appear—passed down through the Kopecký family for generations. The oldest puppets date back to the mid-19th century. 

B. Smetana: The Moldau 
A massive treadmill measuring eight meters in length, two meters in width, and reaching speeds of up to 29 km/h becomes a metaphor for the passage of time, the surface of water, but also the image of our everyday lives—where families grow with new generations, and older ones leave us. Time that flows and cannot be stopped. 

L. Janáček: The Saws 
The National Day Hall stage transforms into a carnival procession. A whirl of masks, symbols, colors, and Czech tradition. Choreography that flows off the stage and into the audience. Tradition, convention, instinct. 

A. Dvořák: Largo 
Icons. Role models. Gods of sport. 

Sport and art have the power to create role models and icons. Together with the Czech Olympic Committee, we selected icons of the Czech sports scene who resonate across the world—not only through their achievements, but also through their stories. The entire scene makes full use of the expressive possibilities of circus art, as well as the treadmill, which becomes a symbol of victory, defeat, emotion, energy, and solidarity. One of the main costume elements is the judo kimono. It has a strong and long tradition in Japanese sport, but thanks to the success of Olympic champion Lukáš Krpálek, it is also connected to our country. 

Ej, lásko lásko and Akatombo
Two folk songs—one Czech, one Japanese—arranged by Mr. Kučera and performed by the Czech Philharmonic together with the Czech Radio Children’s Choir. Two songs born on opposite sides of the planet, yet so similar they can be played together. 

The entire composition will gain a visual form through footage from the film I’m Not Who I Want to Be Yet by photographer Libuše Jarcovjaková, processed by director Klára Tasovská. 

This is a selection of several pieces from the Strings project. 

THE STRINGS project not only connects, but also brings forward themes that are important to us in our artistic work. Tradition and our roots clashing with technological progress. Musical giants alongside sports icons. Czech craftsmanship and talent that lives and creates in a free country and continues a rich cultural history of our nation. THE STRINGS is not only about the Czech Philharmonic, Cirk La Putyka, the Czech Radio Children’s Choir, and Aiko—but it also brings energy, courage, and above all freedom: in life, in creation, in thinking, in crossing boundaries.

Quotes from individual performers 
“The preparation of the main cultural program for the National Day is a great responsibility for me, to deliver the core message to the audience within 46 minutes. I was inspired by my experiences in Japan, having performed in Tokyo and also studied the traditional Japanese Bunraku theatre in Czechia for some time. We aimed to create a special show for July 24 that would resonate not only in Czechia but also in Japan. National Days at World Expos usually follow a traditional spirit, with performers in folk costumes. Our performance, of course, respects history but views everything from a contemporary perspective. We combine classical and modern music, dance, circus arts, theatre, and puppetry,” explains Rosťa Novák, artistic director of Cirk La Putyka. 

“The Czech Philharmonic has a long-standing tradition of regularly touring Japan, and the local audience is one of the most important foreign communities supporting the first Czech orchestra. Our chamber performance at EXPO 2025 is meant as a thank you for the enduring appreciation from Japanese listeners and as an invitation to the orchestra’s autumn tour with chief conductor Semyon Bychkov,” says David Mareček, General Director of the Czech Philharmonic. 

“Czech classical music enjoys great popularity in Japan, and the same goes for choral works. It is a great joy for Czech Radio to be part of the Czech National Day at EXPO 2025 through our children’s singers from the Children’s Choir of Czech Radio (DPS CRo), led by choir conductor Věra Hrdinková. For the children, it will surely be a life-changing experience and a great honor to represent their country at such a prestigious global event,” says Kateřina Konopásková, Director of the Corporate Support and External Relations Section at Czech Radio. 

“For the National Day, the choir has prepared three pieces under the direction of Jan Kučera — a folk song ‘Ej, lásko, lásko’, and for the hosts, besides the anthem in Japanese, we will perform the song ‘Akatombo’. At the end, we are pleased to present a piece by the 20th-century Czech composer Vítězslava Kaprálová called ‘Můj milý člověče’ (‘My Dear Man’). We very much look forward to collaborating with Cirk La Putyka and players from the Czech Philharmonic,” adds Věra Hrdinková, choir conductor of the Children’s Choir of Czech Radio. 

“It is a great honor for me to represent the contemporary Czech cultural scene, especially with the opportunity to perform alongside Cirk La Putyka and the Czech Philharmonic. Performing in Japan and at EXPO 2025 is a wonderful opportunity and another beautiful milestone in my career. I visited Japan when I was 18 and fell in love with it, which partly inspired my artistic pseudonym. I am really looking forward to returning,” says singer Alena Shirmanova-Kostebelova, performing under the name Aiko.