Today I opened my Facebook mini-feed and scrolled through casting announcements, birthday wishes and silly memes of cats, or logs break-dancing. I scrolled past the engagement announcements, the inside jokes, photos of newly born babies and a recipe for roast chicken.
Then I saw something substantial. Something worth reading and I right-clicked to open in a new tab. The article headline reads:
KATE TAYLOR: WOMEN IN CANADIAN THEATRE HAVE A MESSAGE FOR RUSSEL CROWE
The article opens with a description of 12 actresses in a basement of a theatre speaking with the director discussing their characters and what cancer means to them. The women quickly find that what they have in common is not the thematic material, but find that they have all been struggling to get work as actresses over the age of 40-45.
Whoa.
This hits pretty close to home.
In a world where opera companies are "trying to stay relevant" and therefore trying to make opera "younger and sexier", this rings true.
Young Artist Companies are taking younger singers every year. Singers just finished undergrads, diplomas or freshly out of their Masters'.
It doesn't look like the world of straight theatre is any different.
"Give it ten more years and you will be ready to go."
"You're still so young, you have so much time!"
"Your voice is just going to take a little longer in the oven."
That advice is all fine and dandy, but what do you do when your 20-something colleagues are entering into YAP's before they're 26? What do you do when that tenor you attended programs with for years gets cast in the countries biggest opera house in a principle role in his early 30's?
I have a colleague who began music school slightly later than their peers and whose teacher refused to write a letter of reference not because they were not impressed by the level of performance, but because, although under the age limit for a program, was deemed "too old" by their teacher.
The pressure to perform at such a mature level which takes decades of life and professional experience is ridiculous. How are singers freshly out of university and conservatories supposed to hop up on the professional, A-house stage and be both academically, musically and emotionally prepared for these roles?
We can't be.
It doesn't matter how much natural talent they have. It doesn't matter with whom they studied in Europe. The emotional and professional maturity, let alone vocal readiness, is just not present.
While this pressure is big on the men in the field, it seems to be weighed even less in the favour of women.
“I have been watching my fellow actresses becoming older and more brilliant by the year and I have been watching many of them not getting enough work, not getting enough stage time,” says Ardal.
There has been press release after press release on women in this industry having their appearance commented on, praise for losing the baby weight so quickly, for bouncing back after a bypass or scathing comments on needing to lose the weight, or their voice being destroyed after losing too much weight, looking to old for the part and for not being "sexually appealing enough".
When women finally get to the peak of their vocal fitness, other life events will have happened and the beauty of youth may not be as present.
"Easier said then done if you find that, as soon as you have the chops, the roles have disappeared."
It seems to be true in both theatre, film and opera that:
“It takes a long, long time to get as good as you wish to be. Just as you hit your 40s and say, ‘I am so ready, ready to do big things,’ they are just not available,” says Reid.
While the article upon which I am reflecting begins to generalize about, as the title suggests, "Women in Canadian Theatre", I can't help but feel this age divide is so prevalent in the opera world and only getting worse for all young singers.
Is casting extremely young singers a Canadian issue or is this happening elsewhere?
Let me know your thoughts!
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Please find the entire article here:
j x.o
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