Nicolas Reveles, San Diego Opera’s Geisel Director of Education and Outreach, is a pianist with a doctorate from the Manhattan School of Music. For the past eight years, he has been director of the San Diego Opera Ensemble. The annual program accepts six singers, lasts for 26 weeks, and provides performances for more than 25,000 young people in the counties surrounding San Diego.
Ensemble members receive no main stage opportunities—but the parent company has no “cattle call” auditions, and ensemble graduates are often first in line for comprimario main-stage roles. Those engagements can be expected to go to the most talented, hard-working singers, singers whose performances are consistently on the highest level. At the end of the ensemble’s 2004-2005 season, Classical Singer met with Dr. Reveles to find out more about the group’s mission and how its members are selected.
How can singers apply for the ensemble?
Acceptance is based on audition. Every year we mail applications to conservatories, universities, and singing teachers, and we post the form online. With the application, singers are asked to send in a resume, picture, and a recording. After going over the 80-100 packets of materials that usually come in, and listening to the recordings, I select 20-35 singers to come to San Diego for live auditions. Judges for the auditions are resident conductor Karen Keltner, chorus master Timothy Todd Simmons, the stage director for the following year’s ensemble productions, and myself.
Is there an age limit for the ensemble?
There is no upper age limit and we do not ask singers their age, but most of them are in their late twenties or early thirties, since our minimum requirement is a bachelor’s degree. We prefer singers who have graduate degrees and have either been auditioning, or have done one young artist program and are looking for more experience.
How much do good looks count?
It depends on what role we are casting. We choose the voice type that is appropriate for the roles in the chosen operas. I am casting physical types as much as Ian [Campbell, SDO’s general director] would on the main stage, but I have a bit more leeway. In our program, there is room for an artist to make necessary changes that will make him or her better able to have a lasting career.
What are the duties of a singer in the program?
Singers in the ensemble spend their first month rehearsing. They do two abridged operas in English, as well as season previews and “Opera Unplugged,” a show for middle-school students. After the rehearsal period, the group takes those programs out to local performance venues.
Our artists are contracted to do two shows per day for up to six days in a row. Every other week they get a vocal coaching day, which they can use for instruction or rest. Rarely, however, do they perform 12 shows in a week. Often they do eight shows, occasionally 10—but the singers are still very busy and have to watch their health. On the plus side, singing that many shows allows the singers to try out new interpretations and to work on the nuances of their characters.
During their 26 weeks with us, they find out how well their voices stand up under pressure, and in general, they learn a great deal about themselves. At the end of that time, they will have a very good idea as to whether or not their voices will take the wear and tear of an operatic career.
Members of the ensemble are paid $550 per week and given room and bath with a host family, but they must have their own transportation, even though we drive them to performance venues from a central point.
Do program members ever sing main-stage comprimario roles, or cover leading roles?
No, they don’t sing small roles or cover leads for the main stage, but graduates of the program often do that. Ensemble members can earn extra money by singing in the chorus. It’s a separate contract with the company, but we try to keep our schedule from clashing with the chorus rehearsals.
What are the most common mistakes applicants for the ensemble make?
Sometimes we get materials that don’t have a name on each piece. Then, if the picture gets separated from the resume, we don’t know whose it is. Also, some young singers don’t know how to choose the offers that are best for them. A program like ours helps them focus on their proper niche in the opera world.
What would cause you to fire a singer?
Only twice in my eight years in this position have I had to let a singer go. If I feel that the program is stunting the singer’s growth or that the singer is harming the program, of course they have to leave—but I always try to talk that out with the young artists, so that it is a mutually beneficial outcome. We have had very few actual problems.
How long can a singer stay in the program?
We keep singers for a second year if they are doing well. If the singer has a positive attitude, is enthusiastic, the voice is progressing, and the personality is growing, I have every reason to rehire that person for a second year.
