From the Met to Carnegie Hall: One Female Music Theater Opera Singer’s Journey

Join me on my journey from the Met to Carnegie Hall! As a female music theater opera singer, I’ll be sharing my ups and downs, as well as tips and advice for aspiring singers.

Introduction

I am a music theater opera singer who has been performing professionally for over 20 years. I have sung leading roles at some of the most prestigious opera houses in the world, including the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, and the Vienna State Opera. I have also performed at Carnegie Hall, the Royal Albert Hall, and other iconic concert venues.

I grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania and started singing when I was just a child. From an early age, I knew that I wanted to be a professional singer. After high school, I studied voice at the Indiana University School of Music. After graduation, I moved to New York City to pursue my dream of being a professional opera singer.

Since then, I have had an amazing career and have been fortunate enough to perform some truly incredible roles. Some of my favorite roles include Mimì in La Bohème, Violetta in La Traviata, and Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro. I have also performed many contemporary works and am always looking for new repertoire to explore.

Throughout my career, I have had the opportunity to work with some of the most talented conductors, directors, and musicians in the business. I am constantly learning and growing as an artist and strive to bring my best self to every performance.

I feel so fortunate to have had such a rich and varied career thus far and am looking forward to many more years of making beautiful music!

Early Years and Training

I am a female music theater opera singer. I have been singing since I was four years old and professionally since I was eighteen. I have always loved music and being on stage. I was born in Queens, New York and my parents are both from the Dominican Republic. Growing up, they always encouraged me to pursue my dreams. I went to a performing arts high school and then studied opera at The Juilliard School.

First musical experiences

I cannot remember a time when music wasn’t important in our family. My father, an amateur singer and music lover, filled our home with the sound of opera and musical theater recordings, which my mother (an amateur pianist) and I would listen to attentively. On weekend mornings, we would watch old black-and-white movies featuring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Judy Garland, and others, marveling at the way the stories were told through song and dance. We often sang along with the performers onscreen. These early experiences kindled my love for music and planted the seed of a dream to someday perform on stage myself.

My parents enrolled me in piano lessons when I was six years old, and I took to it quickly. I loved learning new pieces and showing off my progress to my family and friends. By the time I was eight, I was performing in recitals and school talent shows. I also began taking voice lessons around this time, and discovered that singing came just as naturally to me as playing piano. It wasn’t long before I started dreaming of becoming a professional singer.

College years and training

After completing her undergraduate work, the young woman spent a summer study abroad program in Vienna, which deepened her love for classical music and opera. She then enrolled in a master’s program at The Juilliard School, one of the world’s most prestigious performing arts conservatories. It was during her time at Juilliard that she began to seriously consider a career in music theater. After graduation, she moved to New York City and started auditioning for Broadway shows.

The Met

On September 23, 1983,27 year old African American Saundra Santiago made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera house as Azucena in Verdi’s Il Trovatore. Santiago, a music theater opera singer had just come off of a successful tour in Europe as Butterfly in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. Santiago’s debut at the Met was a stunning success.

The audition

The story of my journey to Carnegie Hall began with an audition for The Metropolitan Opera. I had just graduated from college with a degree in music theater and opera, and I was intent on making my dream of singing on the world’s biggest stage come true.

I remember the audition vividly. I walked into the room and was greeted by a panel of three people: an opera coach, a music director, and an administrator. I sang two arias for them, one from an opera and one from a musical theater show. When I finished, the coach told me that she liked my voice but thought I needed to work on my acting. The music director said he liked my voice but thought I needed to work on my musicality. And the administrator said he liked my voice but thought I needed to work on my stage presence.

I left the room feeling deflated and defeated. It was only after talking to some of my friends and mentors that I realized that the feedback I received was actually quite positive. They all told me that being told you need to work on your weaknesses is actually a good sign, because it means that you have potential in those areas.

So I took their advice to heart and started working on my weaknesses. I took acting classes, vocal lessons, and dance classes. I participated in workshops and masterclasses. And eventually, all of that hard work paid off – in March of 2018, nearly 10 years after that fateful audition, I made my Carnegie Hall debut as part of The Metropolitan Opera’sLindemann Young Artist Development Program.

Life as an opera singer

There are many different paths that one can take to become an opera singer. Some people are born into musical families, others start taking voice lessons at a young age, and still others may not start singing until they are in their teens or even older. No matter what your path, there is one thing that all opera singers have in common: a love of music.

Opera is a form of musical theater that combines singing, acting, and sometimes dancing to tell a story. Opera singers must be able to do all three of these things well in order to be successful. They must also have a good ear for music and be able to sight-read (read music quickly and accurately).

Opera singers typically undergo years of training before they make their debut on the operatic stage. During this time, they learn how to use their voices correctly, how to control their breathing, and how to project their voices so that they can be heard over an orchestra. They also learn how to interpret the music they are singing and how to act out the emotions of their character.

After years of training and rehearsing, opera singers finally get to perform on stage. This is where they can really show off their skills and give the audience an enjoyable experience. There is nothing quite like seeing an opera singer in person!

Carnegie Hall

It was the kind of Metropolitan Opera audition that could have spiraledinto self-doubt and anxiety. Sarah Larson, a young soprano with a burgeoning careerin music theater and opera, was scheduled to sing for the prestigious role of Violettain “La Traviata.” But she had never sung the role before.

The big performance

It was the day of the big performance. Carly had been practicing nonstop for weeks, and she was finally going to sing on the same stage as some of the most famous opera singers in the world. She warmed up her voice with some final scales and then walked out onto the stage to a thunderous applause.

The music began, and Carly sang her heart out. She hit every note perfectly and brought the audience to their feet with her powerful voice. When she reached the final note, she bowed and blew a kiss to the cheering crowd. It was one of the most magical moments of her life.

After the performance, Carly was met with congratulations from her friends and family. She had finally made it to Carnegie Hall, and she knew that there was no turning back now. She was destined for greatness.

What’s next?

After a successful performance at the Metropolitan Opera, many aspiring singers hope to move on to even greater things. For some, that may mean a leading role in an international opera production. For others, it might be a part in a Broadway musical. But for many music theater and opera singers, the ultimate goal is to perform at Carnegie Hall.

Carnegie Hall is one of the most prestigious concert venues in the world, and it has been the home of some of the greatest performances in musical history. For a singer to be invited to perform at Carnegie Hall is a true honor, and it is a sign that they have truly arrived as a star in their field.

If you are an aspiring music theater or opera singer, then performing at Carnegie Hall should definitely be on your list of goals. Here are some tips on how to make it happen:

1. Get your start at a young age. Many of the singers who have performed at Carnegie Hall started taking voice lessons and participating in musical theater productions when they were children. If you want to have a shot at singing at Carnegie Hall someday, start working on your craft now.

2. Study with a great voice teacher. A good voice teacher can help you develop your vocal technique and interpret songs in an interesting way. If you want to perform at Carnegie Hall, you need to make sure you have a strong vocal foundation.

3. Build up your resume. In addition to taking voice lessons and participating in local theater productions, try to get involved with regional or national tours of musicals or operas. The more experience you have performing onstage, the better your chances will be of being invited to sing at Carnegie Hall someday.

4. Keep your goals in mind. It can be easy to get sidetracked when you’re trying to build up your career as a singer. But if you want to perform at Carnegie Hall, you need to stay focused on your goal and work hard towards making it happen..