THE SOPRANOS

SONDRA RADVANOVSKY and KERI ALKEMA are rivals in Anna Bolena but the best of friends in real life. Here the sopranos interview each other before sharing the stage for the first time. 

Keri interviews Sondra

How many roles have you sung now at the COC?

With this Anna Bolena, I will have sung four operas at the COC. But, there are MANY more to come, I promise you! This is a love affair that has just begun with the COC!

Are there any other dream roles on your wish list?

Honestly, there aren’t that many dream roles left for me to sing. I am lucky that I have ticked off so many on my wish list. But there are still a few left and they are: Turandot, Medea, Pique Dame, Macbeth, La forza del destino and, maybe someday, Cavalleria rusticana.

Is it different singing Tosca and, say, Verdi roles as opposed to singing bel canto?

Another really great question! And my answer is “Yes” and also “No.” “No” because, in many ways, it is the same technique used to sing both. If you think about it, Tosca, which is verismo opera, was born from bel canto. But then “Yes” because the big difference for me isn’t the technique of singing them differently it is the size and VOLUME of the orchestra. Puccini uses vocal doubling, which is when the orchestra plays the same line that I am singing, and there are usually more instruments in the orchestra pit then with, say, Donizetti or maybe even Verdi.

Now that you've done all the queens, have you picked a favourite or do you love them all equally?

Wow, tough question there Ms. Alkema! Truly, I loved singing all of them at the time but now looking back, I loved bits and pieces of both Maria Stuarda and Anna Bolena... mostly the last acts of both of them as well as the mezzo/soprano duets in both of them... but my heart really fell in love with both the music and the character of Elizabeth I in Roberto Devereux. There is just something about her vulnerability at the end of her life in this opera which made her even more human and real to me, not some unreachable queen. Plus, her death scene at the end is just heartbreaking and playing her and singing her were just AMAZING!

What is your craziest moment on stage?

Hummm, well probably anytime I am going to be on stage with you! But kidding aside, I am going to say that one of the crazier moments I have had in my career just happed to me these last few weeks. I just finished singing Andrea Chénier in Barcelona, my role debut, with Jonas Kaufmann, which funnily enough was the first time we have sung together. I have known him for years but we just never have had our schedules click to sing together. So, I “met” him on stage for the first time at our final dress rehearsal and it was crazy! It was like he and I had been singing together all our lives and the chemistry was also palpable. Then, fast forward to the next to last show in the run. My mother came to visit us for a week because we celebrated her 80th birthday by bringing her over to visit us and the amazing city of Barcelona. So, she was at the show and the applause every night had been crazy after my aria “La mamma morta” and this night it was so crazy that they started yelling “Bis!” which means that they wanted me to sing the whole aria again! After about five minutes, the conductor turned to the audience and said, “We will do a ‘bis’ (encore) of the aria now.” And after singing the aria for the second time, the WHOLE public jumped to their feet and applauded. Of course, my mother started crying which then made ME cry.

Any advice you have for the new generation of singers out there trying to start a career?

Yes, STUDY, STUDY, STUDY! Study vocal technique, study acting, study languages and watch and observe the generations before you... they were one generation closer to the composers who wrote what you are singing. But, honestly, I tell young singers that this is not an easy job and, quite frankly, the singing part of it should come naturally at some point. The hard parts are the grueling schedules, travel, singing consistently well, being away from your home and family and trying not to get sick. You really MUST love this profession, or else don’t do it.

Also, I find it is SO important for young singers to learn about managing their finances and taxes. As a singer, your income comes in spurts normally and there can be months between pay checks. And they must learn how to budget for those months when the bills still keep coming in but there is no income coming in. Whoever said singing was easy never tried doing a tax return of an international opera singer!

We've been friends for awhile but have never shared a stage together. Do you think we are going to get into trouble in rehearsal for cracking jokes and laughing too much?

Um, what do YOU think?!?! The minute I met you, while singing Anna Bolena in Washington DC in 2012 I knew we were going to be friends for life. If I have ever met anyone so similar to me in so many ways, it is you. So, yes, we are for sure going to get detention during rehearsals! It is just how often and why we will get it that matters.

Besides the fact that we all love to work at the COC, what is the best part of being able to work while being in your home town?

There are SO many reasons why I love working at the COC as well as being at home. But the biggest draw for me is that I get to see my friends and family. Well, that and also sleeping in my own bed and not having to use someone else’s dull kitchen knives or someone else’s uncomfortable sofa or bed... I think you would agree with me about that. Truly, I LOVE Toronto and I love living here and everything it has to offer as a city. And the high level of music making at the COC is just another added bonus of singing at home. The casts that Alexander Neef consistently puts together rival the best in the operatic world and I am proud to be a part of it all.

You know that Chris and I love to be tourists wherever I am working. Do you and Duncan do the same or do you have just specific vacation dates separate from work travel? Are there any cities you have worked in that you would want to go back to and be tourists?

Well, we *try* to be tourists but more often than not work gets in the way of that. It is either too many interviews to do or new music to work on or that I am just tired from the busy schedule. Also, it really depends on what role I am singing at the time. It is much easier to sightsee if I am singing, for instance, Tosca or Andrea Chénier, which are easier roles for me, as opposed to Norma or Roberto Devereux, which are my harder roles to sing and require me to live like a nun during a whole run! So what we try and do is just pencil in vacation time in the schedule so that we MUST relax and enjoy life!

I think that there are two cities that both Duncan and I would like to go back and be tourists in and they are Stockholm and Prague. I sang concerts in both of the cities, the weather was bad in both of the cities at the time and we were there for just a few days in both cities. So they are at the top of the list to go back to for sure. Also, because of my Czech heritage, I have such a strong connection to Prague.

What are your MUST travel essentials? And what is the hardest part of traveling for you?

Oh, to be able to invent the transporter like they used in Star Trek! We could then travel all around the world without the hassle of airports and jet lag. Wouldn’t that be nice? So, there you go, that must be the hardest part of traveling. That and, as I mentioned before, not having your own things around you when you are renting an apartment. The older I get, the more I treasure all my own, personal things surrounding me. And this is hard when you can only take three suitcases weighing 50 pounds each. How do you choose which pairs of shoes to take with you? Also, if you are gone for a few months, as we both have been many times, and traveling to multiple cities with different climates, how do you pack?!?!

So, my MUST have accessories to travel with are a nice, large scarf/shawl (I have a great one from Lululemon which is almost like a lightweight jacket) because so many places we go to have either too much air conditioning or not enough heat. Another must have is my Humidiflyer mask for the airplane. With all the dry, recirculated air on planes, it is a breeding ground for illness. This mask keeps you hydrated and also filter the air that you breathe on the planes... amazing! My last must have is a trifecta... earplugs, eye shades and a great travel clock. You never know what kind of neighbours you are going to have when you travel, nor do you know what kind of curtains you will have to keep the light out in the morning because, let’s face it, we are complete night owls because of what we do. And a good travel clock to keep you on time for those rehearsals.

Do you have a favorite story of you and me.... at least one we can share with the public;)?

Let me see... if it is a story about you and me it will either have to do with shopping or drinking too much wine! Hahaha. I can think of so many of them but I think I will go with the story of us ordering take away Indian food in London. I think our eyes were larger than our stomachs. The food was just SO good that we had to finish it all and then afterwards I think we regretted eating so much of it that we had to undo our pants and lie on the floor for a good 30 minutes or else we were both going to be sick!

Well, that and also Christmas shopping in London and going to the card store. Remember that? I think we laughed like true opera singers at some of those cards that we read and I swear that they were going to kick us out of there if we didn’t behave!

Or how about the wooden plaque that arrived in the mail one day from you which read, Alcohol... because no great story ever started with someone eating a salad!”

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 Keri interviews Sondra

Keri, do you remember how we met and what show we were doing?

YES!!! I was hired to go sing my first Anna and I knew that Washington National Opera was doing Anna Bolena right before my production started. So a plan was hatched for me to come and cover. That can be such a useful tool in a singer’s training to do that before you put your own production up on its feet. To have the time to try the role out in cover stagings, to have the advice of the conductor and coaches on staff, to learn that what might have worked in the voice studio needs to be tweaked or reworked while on its feet in staging rehearsals. Also, it gives you a chance to talk with the one you are covering to see how she feels about the role. I was so lucky for all the obvious reasons that it was you I was covering, but you were so generous with your knowledge, experience and time that I will be forever grateful! The knowledge you passed on to me has been passed on to others—it’s priceless and you would think that happens all the time in our business but it really is a rare thing.

What was your craziest moment on stage?

I think we both have had many of those, but the one that always stands out the most to me was when I was accidentally punched in the face. The tenor forgot that I had to come and stand just behind him to the right and when he swung his fist in the air it made contact with the side of my jaw. The pain was so intense I was afraid to move it. I missed part of my next line because I had to open it to see if it would still work. I remember the conductor looking at me wondering why I missed a line. I came off stage at the end of the scene and all I wanted was ice, but couldn't remember the word for ice in Spanish, the language of the house. Funny how your brain works in stressful situations. Luckily I was fine, just swollen and bruised and the best part was that I think the rest of the show was my best sung performance of that run! HAHA!

How many roles have you sung now at the COC?

This will be my fourth sung role with the COC but I covered Amelia in Un ballo in maschera before I went to sing my first one in France.

Is it different singing Tosca and, say, Verdi roles as opposed to singing bel canto?

Yes and no. The technical foundation is the same for me. I started my training singing the bel canto repertoire. For me, the difference is in the body and not the voice. For the bigger Verdi and Puccini roles, I'm using more body stamina to carry over those orchestras and the volume levels the score calls for. The only exception to that in bel canto is with all the pianissimi. As you know, the support for those is as strong if not stronger than those high Cs in Tosca.

Do you consider Giovanna a mezzo role or a soprano role and do you think about it different vocally than other roles?

You know what's funny? I never thought it was a mezzo role! I just looked in the score now and it is listed as a mezzo. I have to laugh, because I have sung both Anna and Giovanna and Giovanna feels higher in my throat. She actually sits higher in the voice for a longer period of time than Anna. Anna has the range of the whole staff and when singing her, as you know, the stamina for the entire sing is what has to be planned. Giovanna doesn't have to worry about stamina, she has to plan how she sings the majority of her role in the top part of her voice without the break /release of coming down.

What are your MUST travel essentials? And what is the hardest part of travelling for you?

You will make fun of me, but I never leave home with out my hair straightener and hair products. :) Hardest part of travelling is being without Chris, my main squeeze.

Wanna share a funny story about us as friends?

You know, I thought it was pretty funny that when we were just recently asked if we had a photo of the two of us together, we were both positive we did. Then when we looked through our own pics, we couldn't find one! We realized that when we are together, we are having so much fun hanging out doing whatever we are doing that taking a pic is the last thing on our minds! I love that!!!