Singers glittered early in Calgary
Throughout its 40year history, Calgary Opera — either through mainstage productions or training program for young emerging Canadian singers (and sometimes both) — proved an important early career step.
Here are four testimonials:
Andrea Hill
Voice: Mezzo-soprano From: Born and raised in Calgary Based: Paris Current show: Small touring production of Carmen. Upcoming: The role of Diane in Rameau’s Hippolyte et Aricie, scheduled for June at the prestigious Palais Garnier (Paris Opera). Last Calgary Opera production: Gounod’s Faust (as Siebel) in 2008. Value of her Calgary Opera experience: Hill took part in the inaugural year of the Emerging Artist Development Program, which she says enriched the skills she had already gained through university by providing a more realistic approach to her chosen profession.
“Also, very importantly of course, it (the program) gives you a connection with an actual opera company, and you therefore see the inner workings of the organization and how it functions,” Hill says.
“It gives you insight into the actual business — not just the singing portion of it.”
Chris Mayell
Voice: Tenor From: Kingston, Ont. Based: Toronto Upcoming: A Gilbert & Sullivan concert with Toronto Operetta Theatre. Last Calgary Opera production: Ariadne auf Naxos (2009). Value of Calgary Opera experience: A participant in the Emerging Artist Development Program for two seasons (2007-08 and 200809), straight out of university, Mayell describes the stints as “great, because I had a chance to get my feet wet in the ‘big leagues.’ ”
Aside from the intense training and performance preparation the program provides in everything from yoga and dance to acting and stage combat, it also gave him his first major mainstage opportunity.
Four weeks after starting the program, Mayell got a small role in Rigoletto (2008) because of illness on the part of the performer slated to sing it.
“So there I was, only a month into the program — I was in rehearsals with (Canadian coloratura soprano) Tracy Dahl,” Mayell recalls.
“I’d done school productions and other small productions, but it was nice to get to see for the first time the ‘grown-ups’ rehearse.”
Mayell was also impressed by the camaraderie of fellow cast members in the Calgary Opera shows he was in.
“Bob (Mcphee) is so good about hiring people that are good colleagues,” he says.
“It was nice to see that balance of people having a good time in rehearsal.”
His unmiked gigs with the company (Mayell was also in The Ballad of Baby Doe) also taught the singer about projection in a hall the size of the Jubilee, “to really make a character fly to the back row, both in voice and gesture.”
“That was definitely new, to be in this huge hall,” Mayell says.
Daniel Okulitch
Voice: Bass-baritone From: Calgary Based: Variable Upcoming: Peter Grimes (Swallow) at Milan’s La Scala. Last Calgary Opera Production: Little Women (2010). Also, Dead Man Walking (2006). Value of Calgary Opera experience: Okulitch says he got his first exposure to opera in Amahl and the Night Visitors (1989), and right from the start (and through subsequent stints in company productions) found the atmosphere “supportive.”
“Every time I get to go back and sing (with the company) is a joy, because it is like coming home,” Okulitch says. “For someone who travels as I do, you can’t understate the importance of being made to feel welcome.”
Furthermore, “Calgary Opera gives young singers a chance to hone their craft (by performing alongside established artists). It’s all about recognizing and helping to promote and encourage young talent.
“For me, that’s what it was.”
Laura Whalen
Voice: Soprano From: Fort Mcmurray Based: Toronto Upcoming: Night at the Proms with the Toronto Symphony and a concert performance recording of The Inventor with the Vancouver Symphony. Last Calgary Opera production: The Inventor (2011) Value of Calgary Opera experience: Whalen has sung major roles in six Calgary Opera productions, including the career-launching Filumena (2003).
“I think Bob (Mcphee) took a risk on me for the premiere of Filumena,” Whalen says. “I was a singer who really didn’t have much except opera school (University of Toronto) under my belt.
“He really didn’t know much about me. But he had faith in me, and trusted me with the part. “I’m really very grateful. “There is just such a positive vibe from everybody in the company,” she says.
“It feels like family.”