How did it all begin?
Life is s funny - you decide what you want and then life decides what it’s going to give you. And the two things can be completely different.
A friend suggested I start up my own opera company. I said it was a ridiculous idea. I wouldn’t know how to do it. The friend insisted it would be fine. I thought about it. I worked as a lawyer and asked my secretary if she wanted to be a treasurer, no fee, and I was really surprised when she agreed. Surprisingly, on the same day, I also got a music director. Then I thought it was meant to happen. So I went with it, not having a clue… Don’t do it, unless you know what’s involved! Because what’s involved is a lot of work.
We’ve done seven operas in five years. I didn’t know anything about lighting engineers, set designers, stage managers, music directors. You learn, and you learn quickly. It’s been a very interesting, stressful, funny journey.
The people I got together are phenomenal. We did our first concert in a church in Stratford. When you’re really enthusiastic about something, you just go for it. I rang the papers. They ran a big story about us. We got 110 people in the audience when we showed up! That really gave us a big boost. We had a fabulous reception. People were really impressed with what we were doing.
Then I decided to do an opera, Cavalleria Rusticana. I contacted several people I knew. I went around getting people, I asked some people from my church. I once overheard a costumer in a shop who was talking about her concert and asked her to join our opera group. I almost dragged people off the street(she laughs)
It was supposed to be four of five professional people getting together and it ended up as something completely different, not at all what I’d envisioned. Suddenly, it had gone from a professional thing to a community thing with professional singers. It’s amazing.
At Vision Opera, we involve lots of kids, which is very important to me. I am passionate about it because people who normally go to see opera tend to be somewhere between their forties and sixties. Kids, especially kids from multi-ethnic backgrounds in East London, would not spontaneously think of opera. They would be doing reggae or R&B.
We’ve been involving more and more kids in every production: there were 22 of them in Amahl and the Night Visitors . The main role was taken by two West Indian brothers, age nine and 10, who had the most amazing voices. It opened their eyes to other possibilities in life.
Fifty percent of Vision Opera singers come from multi-ethnic backgrounds. In our new production we have a Canadian, an Australian, a St Lucian, a Nigerian. But to me the greatest thrill was to see what a mix we had in the audience: Indians, Africans, West Indians. A melting pot. Opera is not necessarily something they would have turned to on their own.
You want to make opera more accessible.
I really passionately believe that opera is much more accessible than people actually perceive it to be. Really, opera is East Enders to great music. In every opera you have people falling in love, people going through difficult time, people fighting for love and power. That’s why I get really cross when I hear that opera is posh. The music is enormous joy; when you add good acting to that, you get things more special than pop music or musical theatre.
As an opera singer, you have to go deep into your body and your emotions. It can become a really touching experience for those who are listening to it. It took me a long time to learn that - I used to think that that most important thing was to get heard. Now I think the most important thing is that people should feel it. I really try to get the connection with people, so that they can feel the excitement, feel the sorrow. I’m a bit mad about opera! (she laughs)
That also means taking opera to prisons.
At the beginning, we did some performances in East London and then four workshops in prisons. I was really proud of it. It was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had, even if it was exhausting.
I wrote to a lot of prisons and we ended up in Pentonville. It was the most amazing experience. First time we went there, in 2002, we did Dido and Aeneas. That’s a shock, isn’t it? But we needed something shocking, and we needed something with a lot of men, like the sailor scene in Dido and Aeneas There were only four professional singers in it.
We had no problems whatsoever. Of course, the prisoners tried it on. For them coming to work with us was getting out of their routine. They were doing something new, something different.
I’d sent them the tapes in advance and we were going to teach them all the chorus. Then, a day and a half to go, our stage director let us down and I had to do the directing myself, first time ever. I had no experience of working with prisoners, either. I am very bubbly and that’s what I did. I introduced the singers and everybody sang a little bit. Then I told them what we were going to do.
I cannot quite describe the experience. It was amazing. The prisoners loved the music. They were so committed and so enthusiastic. It was a privilege. They worked really hard. They were wonderful.
We had two days to put on the production, one show only. Other in-mates and visitors were allowed to come and watch it. At the end, when I sang “Remember me”, Dido’s lament, I was exhausted, after two days of constant watching, giving directions, chatting. I thought I couldn’t do it, but the atmosphere was great and it went well.
Next year, we went back to Pentonville Prison and did Amahl and the Night Visitors, just after Christmas. The timing was perfect. Obviously we didn’t take children with us to play the part of Amahl; one of our singers did it and she was wonderful. It was really special.
How do you cast your shows?
I insist on having good singers in principal roles. With the chorus, we try to give smaller roles to those who have been with the group a bit longer, as they develop. There is growth for everybody, which is really, really important.
How do you deal with egos?
I worked for many groups: there were cliques, people who thought they were more important than others. I think everybody is equally important. You can’t put on an opera like Carmen without a chorus! We are totally interdependent. Obviously, people who’ve worked harder should be acknowledged for it, but it doesn’t give them the right to sneer or belittle anybody else. I would expect them to act in a manner that inspires others, especially with kids and younger people around. Be an example of what can be achieved. That’s exciting.
Running a community group must have its own problems.
Yes, it has its own complexities. With other opera groups, people pay their subscriptions and want to sing, they are driven about it. With a community group like Vision, people want to have a good time. They are not too interested in turning up to rehearse every week. It can be frustrating, when I want them to be there and they’re not.
But what they do bring to it is an incredible energy and enthusiasm. With professional singers it can sometimes get lost. That, and also seeing people develop and grow, is a lot of joy with Vision Opera.
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There is something contagious about your vision.
It would have been impossible for Vision Community Opera to have continued without the good will of some absolutely amazing professional singers, who accepted either no fee at all or a minimal fee.
We have been very privileged to work with people who have had careers with ROH and ENO. We have had a lot of support from vicars from St John's Church Stratford, All Saints Church and Wanstead United Reform Church, organisers of Leytonstone Festival and Waltham Forest Arts Council and the members of the group who have taken on various administrative roles. Tom Wright deals with all the IT and Vanessa and Marian have taken over the PR for the production of Carmen, to name just a few. Even the local fishmonger and builders have helped by providing us with props or sawing bits of wood for us for free. All these people have understood that we are trying very hard to access opera to a wider audience - and they have caught the vision.
What are your plans?
Before we do anything big again, we have to raise more funding. We’re most likely to do a series of workshops first. Maybe some Mozart or L’enfant et les sortileges . That’s lots of smaller roles, so we can give more people a chance to sing.
What is your background? Did you grow up listening to opera?
No, not at all. When I was at school I was told to shut up because I sang too loudly. I have younger brothers and sisters; they were in a drama group that did musicals. I wanted to take some singing lessons, but the teacher was very involved in church, so I was afraid I would end up doing hymns. She suggested I did Italian songs. It was just one step from opera. And the moment I got introduced to opera, I thought, ‘That’s it. That’s absolutely it!’
Everybody around me was saying I should be singing gospel, I should be singing jazz. But I never really wanted to. Of course, I love it and I sing it, but I feel alive beyond anything when I’m singing opera. Something just completely connects inside my brain.
I did a fair bit of singing in Bournemouth and then I decided to move to London. I was a relatively big fish there, but here I wasn’t even the algae! (she laughs) I was very determined when I marched into the Morley College audition. I never thought I was the bee’s knees but I thought my voice was good. I sang for this guy, who did not even look up, did not even acknowledge my existence. I came out of the building and I cried, cried, cried. I thought I would never get in. But I did. I ended up doing a course with a German teacher. Everything I did was wrong, I cried, but I decided to do it. I decided I was going to sing.
Voices are complex. We are so wrapped up emotionally and physically, that we have no concept what needs to be done to release the voice. For years, it didn’t work. I had teachers who really didn’t have a great understanding of my voice, but they were lovely people. I had very little understanding of my voice myself. Then, after a while, I found an amazing teacher, Jenny Cox. She did know what to do with my voice. I started getting positive comments. Then I started getting irritated with all those people telling me how good the instrument was but not employing me. I’ve managed to do some things in Germany and in Italy.
Who is your favourite opera composer?
Verdi. He and I, in the previous life, must have had a hugely passionate affair (she laughs) . The other one I love is Puccini, but isn’t it outrageous that he wrote only one role for mezzos?! His music is wonderful. Then, as a Wagnerian voice I love Wagner.
The roles I would kill to sing are Clytemnestra in Elektra, Kostelnicka in Jenufa, Tosca, Lady Macbeth. I’m not into the lovey-dovey stuff unless put under pressure (she laughs) . I tend to like the women with more character.
And your favourite operas?
Jenufa. It’s just such a stunning piece. The Glyndebourne production was fantastic. I adore Porgy and Bess. I love Carmen, although people say it’s an old hat.. Trovatore. Amahl and the Night Visitors - everybody says it’s so twee, but I love the message and I love the desperation because it’s what so many of us feel at different points of our lives.
Another one is Madama Butterfly. I love the music but it’s always spoilt for me by the fact that I want to put my hands around Pinkerton’s throat … (she laughs)
The opera that I’d love to do with Vision Opera is I pagliacci. You could involve a lot of kids in the fun.
Who are you favourite opera singers?
Jessye Norman! Mirella Freni - she has the voice from heaven. Placido Domingo - there is something so passionate about his voice. Let me at him! (she laughs) Jussi Bjorling. De Stefano. Marilyn Horne, Leontyne Price, Willard White. Bryn Terfel. Dmitri Hvorostovsky, with the most phenomenal line in his voice. Renee Fleming, an amazing instrument.
Is there anything you would like to change in the world of opera?
I’d like to change the concept that opera is only for young singers, that once you get to a certain age you can’t sing certain roles. Of course, one has to be realistic. But I get very angry about ageism and physicality. We seem to have come to a point where opera is ruled by the same criteria as pop culture: if you don’t look the part, you won’t get it. The voice should be the most important thing. The rest can be adapted accordingly. Otherwise, you’ll miss out on the life experience that more mature people can bring to the characters. For example, Carmen doesn’t have to happen between very young people; it can be an older man who has never met a woman like Carmen. I find it utterly frustrating and very limiting that people are not willing to try that. The important bit is that the singer can sing it beautifully!
As a singer, a very annoying thing is to be told that it is a natural, God-given talent. It’s not! All singers have spent thousands and thousands of pounds on this natural, God-given talent. Voice teachers, repetiteurs, accompanists, language coaches, trips abroad to improve your accent. How about the huge amount of work that goes into it? Yes, God gave me the talent, but my teachers had to work very hard, and so did I.
Also, I feel strongly about putting limits to opera. When I started Vision Opera, I was repeatedly told that people in East London wouldn’t appreciate opera. Are people deaf and stupid because they live in East London? Why do we assume that because of the area they live in, or the background they come from, people couldn’t appreciate something as passionate, exciting and inspirational as opera? Get yourself out of your box and be willing to see things in a different light. Don’t limit yourself.
What do you do in your spare time?
I love films. I love gardening. I like Philip Pullman and Harry Potter books. Once a month I go home to see my sister’s new baby boy. I try to find time for friends. I love cooking for other people: I do a great roast chicken with Yorkshire pudding or a mean lasagne. And I’m writing a book about all the experiences I’ve had with Vision Opera.
Carmen is showing on 29th April and 6th May 2006.
VIEW Vision Opera’s page HERE.
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