A Casey choir will take to the stage in an operatic classic later this year, joined by Australia’s leading opera company.
The Melbourne Youth Chorale – formerly Berwick Youth Choir – will perform ‘Carmen’ with Opera Australia at Bunjil Place on Friday 28 May.
Kerry Alexander, vice president of the chorale, said the event was an “exciting opportunity” for the performers.
“Our choristers are really looking forward to the experience of actually performing on stage with Opera Australia,” she said.
After nine months of online rehearsals, the choir is back learning music face-to-face once more.
Ms Alexander said she’s proud of her singers for rising to the challenge and learning the music to Carmen in just over two months – a very tight turnaround.
It’s not the first time the Melbourne Youth Chorale has had the chance to perform with Opera Australia; the two first collaborated in 2018 on Madame Butterfly.
Chorister Catherine Charles is fortunate to have been involved in Madame Butterfly and is now looking forward to her role in Carmen.
“It’s even more exciting to be invited to perform a second time in Carmen. It’s such a famous and dramatic opera,” she said.
The Berwick local is no stranger to challenging operatic pieces; in Madame Butterfly, she and her fellow choristers performed the Humming Chorus, which she described as “sad but very beautiful”.
“It was a challenge to learn to control your breathing for that piece,” she recalled.
One of her favourite memories of Madame Butterfly is of watching the costume makers creating a wig for character Cio-Cio San – the eponymous Madame Butterfly.
This time around, she’s also looking forward to seeing the costumes and sets, as well as learning the music for Carmen.
Ms Charles said the experience of performing with Opera Australia will stand her in good stead for the future.
“I think the experience will come in handy for any other future plays or productions that I might take part in.
“It’s a very professional atmosphere and we learn to listen carefully to directions and make sure we remember our cues.
“We also learned to adapt quickly and had to be prepared to make changes at the last minute. In a choir you stand in the same place next to the same people in your section, but in an opera production you might be expected to stand in lots of different places, and you might move around as part of the action,” she explained.
“It is an honour to perform with Opera Australia and I am proud that our choir can have the opportunity to show how capable we are.
“I hope people in the audience enjoy the performance and that we might have some new choristers be inspired to join MYC.”
To purchase your tickets to see Melbourne Youth Chorale perform Carmen with Opera Australia at Bunjil Place, visit https://www.bunjilplace.com.au/opera-australia-carmen
