Nick Fletcher: reps at the ROH

Interview

"It's taken me a long time to realise that as a rep you're not just a piano player meekly sitting in the corner, but instead a wide-ranging and versatile musician whose ideas, even if ultimately rejected, should still be part of the creative process that happens in the rehearsal room."

Talking with singers: Craig Irvin

Interview

Perhaps not surprisingly, Irvin learned some big truths about his singing life from being an amateur comic. "If it was about the applause, I wouldn't have gotten up and done it again," he explains. "It was about the performance. That's what I'm drawn to most of all."

One mezzo's Met debut: "I just can't wait."

Interview

We carry a flag, the Metropolitan Opera flag, but also the opera flag in a general sense. We are ambassadors of this art form and everyone really knows this, and they are so helpful and supporting of our jobs and of the fact that we are here to learn from them. They always get so happy and excited when I tell them I'm one of the Lindemann singers!

Talking with singers: Sidney Outlaw

Interview

"I try my best to lead by example," he says. Outlaw sees his singing as an opportunity for putting something positive in the world, "to perform and sing and be a blessing in people's lives, so if they have that kind of hate in their heart, when I'm done with them, they don't any more."

Big history & big operas: Festival Verdi 2016

Interview

From October 1-30, the Festival Verdi takes over theatres in Parma and Busseto for their annual celebration of Giuseppe Verdi. On the performance line-up for 2016 are Il trovatore, Giovanna d'Arco, I masdanieri and Don Carlo; plus, the month is filled with gala concerts, recitals, and community building programs, like Emozioni Under 30, Il piccolo Verdi, and their Verdi Off series.

Talking with singers: Audrey Luna

Interview

"I can be left depleted after something as intense as premiering Exterminating Angel," says Luna. She relishes the chance to return home to Hawaii, which grounds her between high-paced singing gigs. "In some way, it just fills my cup back up, and then I'm ready to go out again."

Spotlight on: Chelsea Rus

Interview

"Of course I have had moments of doubt (and I have tried to imagine my life as a lawyer), but the bottom line is that I am an addict. I will always itch to sing and perform, and I will never feel like myself doing anything else."

Talking with singers: Daniela Mack

Interview

"One of the big motivators for me will be setting an example for her so that she will also be able to follow whatever her passion is, and to show her that that's a possibility."

Talking with singers: Keri Alkema

Interview

"I was really hoping my voice was going to drop so I could sing the big Verdi mezzo girls," Alkema remembers. But instead, the natural change in her voice led her to higher rep. "I kind of walked into that in a natural way."

Talking with singers: Steven Cole

Interview

"I have a secret: I have taped (yes, old fashioned) every performance out of my mouth for 40 years. So I always listen to the tape before the next performance and make little notes: 'too much consonant on X...sharper rhythms at Y...Steven, enjoy more the double consonants tonight...stay more in head...E flat was flat...support more...keep the legato in that passage...that went well, you reached all your personal goals in getting the text across...'"