A tale of two audiences

Op-ed

This isn't a post about how singers need to become better actors. The problem of dual-audience opera is almost a microcosm of an issue that's becoming more in the foreground of what's demanded of opera singers today. Many of these same singers - who have all the right stuff for the world's largest stages, yet lack the refined acting skills that are required of the camera - would be equally out of their comfort zones in much of the so-called "indie opera" happening in small venues.

T-shirts and tender artists

Op-ed

The trope is that when kids are trailblazers of sorts, the kind to think outside the box, they rebel and turn their attention to something slightly verboten, perhaps exasperating to their parents. Often, that's the arts. It's not difficult to find a tale from a musician or one of his friends about their unsupportive parents, and their stubborn pursuit of their artistic career in spite of their family's disapproval.

Good ideas: rehearsal-as-performance

Op-ed

For those involved in the creation of opera, we know that there's a less-glamourous method of reaching that finished product; so, we're able to experience the joy of watching a singer achieve something we watched her struggle to do, or admire how things like set, costume, and lighting design can turn a regular old opera scene into utter magic.

Who are our comprimarias, & why aren't they funnier?

Op-ed

I have a sneaking suspicion that labels like "Charaktersopran" or "Charaktermezzosopran", as pure equivalents to *comprimario* tenors or *buffo* basses, are slightly off-putting to women. It may be because the available supporting roles for women seem too serious, or too important to the plot, to be "downsized" with the "character" classification.

The Ghost of Christmas Carols Past

Op-ed

People listen to substantially different music at Christmas than during the rest of the year. How different? Consider the information I found in this article in Time, listing the 19 most recorded holiday songs since 1978 (the earliest data they had). Those songs were, on average, around 164 years old, and the newest was 65 years old. They were basically a bunch of older religious songs, and a few secular ones composed around the 1940’s.

There's still no opera on Netflix

Op-ed

The idea that companies are teasing, luring new opera lovers to their theatres with a taste of Verdi online, is outdated. Opera will begin to be consumed in video form only; purists can argue all they want that this is a lesser experience (and I'd agree with them), but the argument won't persuade people who aren't already into opera.

Artists: they walk among us

Op-ed

I suppose it's the same as anybody with an interesting enough profession; I've probably stood in a Starbucks line with someone on Bay Street who just made himself $50M or something, or walked by a brain surgeon or two on my way up University Avenue. From my point of view, I simply saw another guy in a great suit, or a faceless person in scrubs outside a hospital.

Rehearsing "a Messiah that moves."

Op-ed

Of course, the final product was something greater than the sum of its parts. Each night, there was that great Against the Grain alchemy onstage, that amazing thing that happens when performers reach out to the audience, and the audience gives back. The proof is in the audience feedback, in truth. The run has stirred up the usual AtG-show Twitter buzz, full of people loving the novelty of this Messiah.

Knoxville Opera, poor diction, and prerogative

Op-ed

There are assumptions being made about the phrase, "age appropriate, attractive artists," the first of which is that it's synonymous with saying, "no ugly, old singers allowed." Age appropriate can mean not too old to pass for a character in La bohème (including Benoit, I figure), or not too young to sing Rodolfo right to the end. "Attractive" could mean a lot of things, but Knoxville Opera didn't specify what; they also didn't say that they were planning to prioritize physical attractiveness over vocal.

Supporting roles, and stars on deck

Op-ed

There are singers like Luciano Pavarotti, Monterrat Caballé, and Renata Scotto, whose professional debuts were as Rodolfo, Mimì, and Violetta, respectively. Clearly, this is not the usual career trajectory; even Maria Callas started off in supporting roles (much to the envy of her leading castmates). For opera singers, starting "at the bottom" is the only way to work towards title roles.