The countdown is on. With less than 100 days until our 2018/2019 lineup kicks off, we asked the creative talents behind our season what they're looking forward to and what inspires them the most about the pieces they're tackling with the COC.

“What is so powerful in Eugene Onegin is not only what is said, or in the case of the opera sung, but what is written. Tatyana’s letter, the outpouring of her young passionate soul, becomes a symbol of everything that has ever been written, or composed – including the poem and the opera themselves – and which has been misunderstood or unappreciated.”


“Over the past three years, the more I delved deeper and deeper into Hadrian’s world and his time, the more resonance I feel with his story and our world today. Hadrian presided over the end of era where faith and religion and power were so intertwined that each was unrecognizable from the other, and, even more central to Hadrian’s story, his remarkable devotion to Antinous brought tragedy and treachery to the empire due to a fear of same-sex love. As they say, the more things change… It is my hope that Hadrian will speak to the danger of the politics of faith, will help to illuminate a history that feels increasingly more current, and will hold up the remarkable relationship between Hadrian and Antinous as a timeless model of love.”

“I am often asked, 'What is your favourite role?' or 'What is your favourite opera?' The honest answer to that question is usually which ever one I am singing at the moment, but I definitely have a very strong attachment to the character of Elektra. She is strong, she is weak, she is brilliant, she is naïve, she is broken, but I feel the one thing she is most definitely not... is crazy. She is the only one who sees things as they are, and does not try to sweep the past under the rug... to find a shortcut to end the affliction. She is willing to suffer for justice, no matter how long it takes or how difficult it may be. Strauss has given us one of his most spectacular scores, and to have the opportunity to sing it at COC with one of my favourite musical families is a true gift!”


“The miracle of opera is hearing the depth and dimension of the human voice as it explores every nuance of emotion and feeling. In Così fan tutte, every type of desire and love is explored in so many ways, from the comical and ironic to moments of lingering beauty and remorse. There are arias that simply overwhelm with their deep sincerity contrasted with expressions of shyness, rage and betrayal. I am excited to plunge back into this stunning work of musical theatre.”

“The power of a human voice is so total it hits us with immediate emotion but also creates a lingering effect, something that continues to move our hearts long after we’ve heard it. These are things we can hold on to forever.”

“At eight years old I heard the operatic voice for the first time and my life was changed forever. There’s something visceral about the depth of emotion that’s communicated through the human voice. Verdi’s opening storm sequence to Otello’s ‘Esultate’ will elicit the same reaction. When it’s right, it’s life changing.”

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