Irish opera singer finds herself at centre of sexism storm over 'puppy fat'

An Irishwoman - one of opera's rising stars - has found herself at the centre a debate on body image in the arts world after opera reviewers dismissed her latest performance based on her weight.

Dublin native Tara Erraught is one of Ireland's best singers, and widely regarded as a powerful voice in the opera world, where she performs as a Mezzo-Soprano.

But 27-year-old Tara found herself making headlines not for her vocals, but for her physical appearance.

The controversy began last week, when Tara performed on the opening night of Der Rosenkavalier, an opera by Richard Strauss, in Glyndebourne.

The reviews, however, took issue with the casting for the opera - labelling Erraught as "a chubby bundle of puppy-fat", "a dumpy girl", "stocky", and "unsightly".

The reviews in the British press – from the Times, Guardian, Telegraph, and Financial Times - have nothing bad to say about Erraught's vocal performance, and find fault only in her appearance.

And the reaction online has spread far beyond the opera world.

'A slurry of sexist attitudes'

Classical music site Slipped Disc led the revolt, as they took issue with the "sexist attitudes" they felt the reviews had.

"The boys – late-middle aged men, actually – were having fun at the expense of a beautiful young singer, an artist whose self-image could be seriously damaged by such mindless assaults," wrote Norman Lebrecht.

The same site published an open letter from Mezzo-Soprano Alice Coote, who laid out the simple truth about opera, as she sees it: "This is the Olympics of the human larynx attached to a heart and mind that wants to communicate to other hearts and minds."

"Singers and teachers know that being underweight is far more damaging to a singer’s wellbeing and performance than being overweight," she said.

"Similarly I can tell you that if our stomachs are toned anywhere near a six-pack our sound will suffer. The relaxation needed for low breathing is not aided in any sense by an over worked out body."

"If young singers are pressurised into accepting a bigger emphasis on physical shape over sound and this becomes any more pressured onto them than it already is today.. then we are robbing ourselves of the great singers of the future."

Widespread support

The Guardian, one of the newspapers involved, also rowed in with two separate columnists slamming the attitudes.

"Have we arrived at a point where opera is no longer about singing but about the physiques and looks of the singers, specifically the female singers?" asked Jennifer Johnston, herself a singer.

And all agree that Tara is, in fact, an attractive woman - simply not "thin and statuesque" as body image activist Katie Lowe comments, claiming "the merits of her performance were, on the whole, overshadowed in favour of derisive body shaming and outright pettiness."

The Telegraph's critic is standing by his review, however, arguing that Erraught simply wasn't well-cast.

"Let me make myself clear: she is a very pretty girl with a delightful smile and an endearing stage presence … but she cannot visually embody any conventional idea of Octavian.

"I do not think this is fair on her, and the costuming and wigs (not least a frumpy pink dressing gown) she has been assigned are not flattering."

He and the other under-fire critics appear to be in the minority, however.

Her official Facebook page has been flooded with supportive comments from all over the world, as her story was picked up by NPR, Jezebel, the Daily Mail, the Washington Post, and more.

Tara has not issued any statement on the matter, preferring to focus on her performance, but nonetheless, the support for the Dundalk native online has been roundly positive.

And, with vocals like hers, why wouldn't it be?