Tell us a little about where you’re from.
I was born in San Diego, California, but grew up in Prescott, a small-ish town in the mountains of northern Arizona. I went to school in Arizona, Missouri, and Indiana, worked at a theater in New York for a while, and have now been living in Berlin with my husband Peter Furlong for the past seven years. I love every place I’ve lived, but the beaches of California and mountains of Arizona will always feel like home.
Have you always wanted to be an opera singer or did it develop over time?
I was absolutely convinced throughout my entire childhood that I was going to be a doctor (that dream later specified to geneticist). As it turned out, I’m extremely squeamish with medical procedures, and a biochemistry major in university proved that I hated being in a chemistry lab every day. At the same time, I was taking voice lessons as a hobby and some friends convinced me to join the opera chorus (I don’t think I’d ever even seen an opera at that point). I did, and the first production I ever did (La Cenerentola) was the biggest rush of my life. From that moment, I knew this was what I needed to be doing. I switched majors to voice performance (by a fluke – I meant to be auditioning for choral conducting) and fell head-over-heels in love with the entire process of making and performing opera. I’ve been chasing it around the world ever since.
What are you favourite operas or roles?
Favourite opera: Tosca. Runners up in no particular order: Der Rosenkavalier, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Giulio Cesare, Così fan tutte, Gianni Schicchi, Little Women, Rigoletto.
Favourite role to sing: that’s a hard choice. Gilda in Rigoletto is probably the best combination of challenging and fulfilling.
How do you prepare for a Wagner role or opera?
Time! The duration of Wagner roles and operas is so greatly extended compared to other operas, and the learning process is no exception. One needs a lot of time to get the music into one’s body, to have the notes and words “stick” into one’s memory. Wagner has many phenomenal qualities, but catchy tunes are not one of them, so memorisation takes quite a bit more time. Deep understanding of the text is essential.
Beyond that, for me, is just a very solid understanding of what my instrument can and cannot do in a Wagner role. I am not categorically a Wagnerian singer – I’m a lyric coloratura, and so there are very few Wagner roles which are appropriate for me to sing. I cannot come at one of these roles from a position of sheer vocal power. My approach has to be more measured, more calculated, and I have to strategise ways to capitalise on the strengths of my voice.
Since it takes a long time to say things in a Wagner opera, what are some tools opera singers use to keep the action and character development moving forward?
Looking at it from a directorial point of view, I think it’s important to keep in mind that Wagner’s music does not need a lot of help. His development, harmonies, and text are so incredibly nuanced and rich that they speak for themselves – excessive action or effects can’t do much to enhance what is already basically the apex of its genre. I get very tired by directorial concepts that seek to impose a director’s opinions (and often ego) onto Wagner’s music/drama. I prefer to trust the audience to know the score, to understand and be engaged with the text, and to actively participate in the unfolding of the story. Whether this is done with translation supertitles or with pre-study is equal – both would be preferred.
From a singer’s perspective, it is vital to know the text and intention inside and out, and to earnestly relate their character’s experience to their audience. Relationship with one’s audience is important. We all experience the energy exchange that happens during a live performance – a performer shows up ready to pour their heart into music and a character about whom they might not necessarily agree with or relate to but whom they care about very much, an audience shows up ready to open their heart to the power of the music and story, and both parties give and receive something transcendent. It doesn’t always happen, but it’s always the goal. The performer must commit to being engaged every single moment in that relationship – as a conduit between composer and listener, and between director and viewer.
What are some things your character does/says that the audience can watch/listen for?
Ortlinde is apparently the jokester of the Valkyries, getting (in my estimation sarcastically) annoyed at the fighting between the heroes which is disturbing the horses. She certainly elicits the most laughter of any of the Valkyries.
The Waldvogel has musically repeated themes, though they are slightly altered each time based on the text. Pay attention to how the flute solo is developed musically in the voice once Siegfried can finally understand the bird’s words.
Throughout the prologue of Götterdämmerung, pay attention to the Leitmotivs throughout the Norn’s scene – they give clues as to how the story will be concluded, and also harken back to previous events.
Do you have a memorable opera moment that keeps you motivated?
It’s often whatever my most recent experience was. It may be a cliché, but performing opera is an emotional high that is irreplicable. Each performance motivates me for the next one.
Do you have roles outside of your fach you’d love to sing if you had the chance?
Naturally Tosca, as it’s my favourite opera. I’m fascinated by the characters of the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier, and Senta in Der fliegende Holländer. If I step further outside the realm of possibility, I’d love to sing Nemorino, Rodolfo, Sarastro, and Rigoletto. Maybe in another life.
Do you have other passions you pursue alongside singing opera?
Still within the genre, I really love directing and producing opera, as well as administrating opera productions and training programs. I’d love to be an Intendant someday. Outside of the music industry, I love painting ceramics (my zen activity), non-competitive outdoor sports like hiking, biking, and rock climbing, and though I chose not to pursue it as a career, I still care deeply about math and scientific development and discoveries.
What’s your perspective on the opera industry today? Positive/negative? Is it still a viable career choice?
Positive: there are a lot of people doing really innovative work in the field, shedding new light and bringing modern perspectives to great works. I think there has never been a better time of independent creators making really compelling art. There are also many, many composers putting out relevant, fresh music who deserve to be championed.
Negative: cost of living and competition in the field have continued to increase, while wages have stagnated and opportunities have dwindled. I think the opportunities available to conservatory graduates are miniscule compared to what they were 20 years ago. Many governments are cutting funding for the arts every year, so companies and individual creators are operating on smaller budgets and yet expected to produce at the same level. Producers and artists must increasingly be beggars and wizards when it comes to finances.
Viable career choice? I really can’t answer that question. The chances of having a star international career are extremely slim, but there is always a way to perform, even if your primary income comes from something else, or from lots of something elses. If your heart’s desire is to sing, you will sing. Somewhere, somehow.
What would you say is special about a semi-staged opera in concert performance that Opera by Request does that perhaps can be missed in a large, fully staged production?
Semi-staged performances also tend to be more intimate by nature, and I think that affords both audience and performer to have a very unique experience of the music and story. It is much more a group process. Musical nuance becomes more obvious in the absence of large sets and lots of action. Text can probably be understood better as well. It puts a bit more responsibility onto performers and audience to understand the text and story because there isn’t the opportunity to just space out looking at pretty pictures (though I must say we have a very good-looking cast). But it also offers a much more fulfilling experience for those who fully commit to it and immerse themselves in it.
It also allows the audience perhaps a better opportunity to see what physically goes into singing a full Wagner role. It is a bit like sitting right on the sidelines of a major sporting event or marathon race – seeing the intense physical effort might not be as visually ethereal than seeing a big production from halfway back in a theater, but my goodness it’s exhilarating!
Finally, do you have any other upcoming performances you’d like to tell everyone about?
I’ll be performing in several revival productions with the chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin (Les Huguenots, Le Prophète, and Aïda) as well as with the Komische Oper Berlin (Der Zauberer von Oz/The Wizard of Oz – not the musical). As a soloist I’ll be presenting two concerts in March – one in commemoration of the fall of the Berlin Wall at the residence of a member of the U.S. State Department in Frankfurt, and one of music by the American composer Paul Bowles at the Film Museum in Munich. Then in May and June I’ll be singing the role of Norina in Don Pasquale at an opera festival in Chorin, Germany. Peter and I will be back in the area (specifically Massachusetts and New Hampshire) to sing two concerts in the Fall, one with the Boston Wagner Society and one with the Center for the Arts-Lake Sunapee Region.