Matt Hewson
Geelong’s first ever dedicated opera company launches at the beginning of August, with an inaugural show focusing on the works and life of legendary soprano Maria Callas.
Geelong City Opera’s Callas, La Divina is an original work blending Callas’ most famous performed pieces with dramatic presentations of excerpts of her interviews and scenes from her life.
Geelong-based opera singer Lisa Breen and Melbourne-based Susan Nielson, are the company’s founders and will perform in the first show, alongside actor Sue Rawkins and accompanist Stefanie Gumienik.
Nielson said they had created the company with the intention of filling a specific niche in the Geelong arts landscape.
“There’s no end of fantastic singers in Geelong; there are a number of top-notch opera singers who perform professionally with the major companies who live in Geelong,” she said.
“And there are so many fantastic classical voice teachers in Geelong. And there are opportunities for performers, but at the moment, and for as long as I can remember, it’s been focused on music theatre and drama.
“And that’s fantastic, because they’re great skills and great learning grounds, but there’s been nothing specifically for opera.
“So if students, people starting out, aspiring to a career or even just at very early stages of learning want opportunities to sing opera they’re more likely to have to travel to Melbourne. So this is about giving young singers a place to perform and develop their craft.”
As the company expands and gathers funding, Nielson and Breen hope to bring experts to Geelong for masterclasses, seminars and other learning opportunities for young performers.
“It’s very early days… this concert is just the first step for Geelong City Opera,” Nielson said.
“We don’t want it to be the Lisa and Susan show, this is just to get it going, then we hope to bring in more young singers as well as experienced people and have them all work together to create something.”
Geelong City Opera’s Callas, La Divina is at All Saints’ Anglican Church, Newtown at 2pm on August 3. Visit trybooking.com/csqgy for tickets and more information.
