"Not Just an Aria Machine": Chabrelle Williams Interview

Jan 18, 2019

In the interview links below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi75KKzPUgg&list=PL_YbUYOUFafYoEjFpukp-zM6CPpN2PMa6&index=1
https://soundcloud.com/user-836840458/not-just-an-aria-machine-chabrelle-williams-interview

I talked to Chabrelle Williams a few weeks back about her experience at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and the fact that she won her district of Philadelphia, which is really exciting! I also learned more about Chabrelle’s operatic craft. This is a part of The Connective Tissue Podcast series that’s supported by Opera Omaha.

Chabrelle had a powerful homecoming as she teared up during her audition. Her friends, family, and supporters were able to see her hard work and dreaming come to fruition. The experience brought her full circle as she sang an aria about a girl from a small town girl who wants to leave, but her heart leads her to return. Chabrelle talks about the audition process, but I encourage listeners to stick around through the whole interview, as you’ll learn about what sets the soprano apart not only as a performer, but also as a person off the stage.

Chabrelle has always had a knack for acting, and this manifested in a surprising way: voice acting to bring life to characters in her video games. To get herself ready to embody operatic characters, she walks around in her performance heels and mouths the words and gesticulates to her songs like a crazy person. But personally, I like to be reminded that performers are human, with details like the fact that for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, she ate salmon cakes for breakfast made by her grandmother.

If there was any doubt before, this interview should demonstrate that Chabrelle Williams is not just an aria machine.

By Lillian Snortland
Opera Omaha Weitz Fellow

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