Siren song: Cork opera star Niamh O'Sullivan hoping to strike a chord with younger generation
Over the next two years, Douglas native Niamh O'Sullivan and three other Irish opera powerhouses will collaborate on several very special performances at Cork Opera House. Picture: Miki Barlok
As she embarks on yet another whirlwind season, Cork opera singer Niamh O’Sullivan recalls the woman who first sparked her fascination with the art form.
The mezzo-soprano was always a fan of the stage, spending much of her childhood in stage school and doing musical theatre, but when a past pupil visited her primary school in Cork it sparked something in her.
“I remember thinking, oh my god, how can this lady sing like this without a mic?” O’Sullivan recalls. “I just couldn’t understand how she could make the sound.”
The woman was opera legend Cara O’Sullivan, who paid a visit to her alma mater, Regina Mundi School, to sing Christmas carols and join the class in a rendition of 'O Holy Night' at the carol service.
From that moment on, Niamh O’Sullivan was hooked, and the now 28-year-old says Cara remained a source of support for her during her studies at the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin and through her early career.
“She really supported me as a teenager going to Dublin. She always told me: ‘Niamh, if you need any music or if you’re stuck for anything just give me a call’,” O’Sullivan said, her appreciation evident as she speaks about her late mentor.
“Cara was a massive influence on me as a young singer. I always say that Cara is a massive reason for me having a career today because she was the first opera singer I heard.”
Things have come full circle in a way as O’Sullivan, whose voice has been described as “bewitchingly beautiful, dark vibrant”, was named among the second cohort of the Cara O’Sullivan Associate Artists earlier this year.
The programme was founded in Cara’s memory to honour her life and work as well as ensure that future generations will benefit from her legacy.
Over the next two years, the Douglas native and three other Irish opera powerhouses will collaborate on several very special performances at Cork Opera House.
Dublin bass-baritone Rory Dunne counts prizes from Feis Ceoil, Wexford Festival Opera, and Blackwater Valley Opera Festival among his awards. This season, he will make his German debut as Talbot in Verdi’s Giovanna d’Arco with Opernfestspiele Heidenheim.
Wexford soprano Kelli-Ann Masterson has performed at the National Concert Hall with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and recently marked her debut with the National Symphony Orchestra as a soloist in their summer concert.
Rounding out the quartet is Clare tenor, Dean Power, who spent nine years as a member of the ensemble at the Bayerische Staatsoper before embarking on his career as an international solo guest artist.
Cork Opera House CEO and artistic director, Eibhlín Gleeson said she is thrilled to welcome the exceptionally talented group whose sold-out opening performance with the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra went down a treat with the audience.
“Through the Cara O’Sullivan Associate Artists programme, these artists will be allowed to develop their craft in a structured and safe way, allowing them to feature as leading artists in prominent productions,” Ms Gleeson said.
There is great buzz ahead of the group’s next performance which is The Magic Flute — Mozart’s final operatic masterpiece, a tale of adventure, endurance, passion, and revenge.
Conducted by John O’Brien and directed by Davey Kelleher, the foursome will be joined by a host of Irish and international soloists on the night.
The rest of the programme has not yet been revealed but O’Sullivan teases that they have “a lovely programme lined up for the next two years”.
As well as the Cara O’Sullivan programme, last month also saw Niamh named one of the BBC’s New Generation Artists for seasons 2023-25.
“It involves recitals and recordings for BBC and with the BBC orchestras for the next two years which is really exciting,” she says, speaking to me from London, where she was performing at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in a production of Wagner’s Das Rheingold.
Could young Niamh have dreamed of becoming an acclaimed international opera singer when she was enthralled by Cara in school that day? Not at all.
“I did it in the beginning because I loved it and I have never lost my love for it,” she says passionately.
“It’s such a difficult career that you kind of have to love it and you have to sacrifice so much. I said that yes, I was willing to sacrifice because I love it so much.”
All of the sacrifices and hard work have certainly paid off as O’Sullivan has already performed in a number of the big houses including the iconic Carnegie Hall.
Although she has wowed audiences in the US, Britain and across Europe, there is no place like home — something Cara O’Sullivan instilled in her from a young age.
“She showed me how important it is to sing at home and sing for your people. How it is so nice to give back to your people,” Niamh says, who adds that Irish people — especially in Cork — are so supportive of singers going abroad.
“That is why it means so much when the opportunity arises to sing at home and to feel like you are giving something back.
“Being a proud Irish woman hits different when you leave home, you reach new heights of pride in where you come from, she says.
Looking ahead to the upcoming season, O’Sullivan is hopeful that the performances will introduce a new generation to opera and that perhaps she can help to inspire a young audience just as Cara had done for her.
“I am really determined to try and get children’s opera going in Ireland. Children can come along and maybe they’ll think that it’s really fun and then learn some of the easier songs,” she says.
Opera is not the elitist, stuffy type of show as many perceive it to be and that is something O’Sullivan hopes will change.
“I think people think it’s very different to a play, or a musical or a film, and it’s not. Directors and others in the industry are trying all the time to make it something that will suit all,” she tells me from her bustling rehearsal studio.
“It’s not elite. All of the big opera houses in the world, there’s no dress code. You can go in your runners, you can go in your tracksuit. It doesn’t matter, it’s not what the idea of the old opera is.”
There is no need to break out your evening gown or top hat and tux, she assures. Modern opera is filled with dance, brightly coloured sets and exciting costumes, it is not just people standing around and singing. Some operas feature some pretty cool special effects as well.
Listening to O’Sullivan’s excitement and joy in describing the opera scene today is infectious and it is easy to see her encouraging a whole new audience to enjoy the art.
“It’s cool now, it’s cool to go to the opera,” she says with a laugh.
“I see in Germany now these young, cool groups of teenagers going to the opera together. I just find that so exciting because it’s changing, it’s definitely changing.”
For anyone feeling a bit tentative about attending their first opera, O’Sullivan’s advice is simple: Just go.
You won’t be disappointed, she promises.
She has convinced me anyway, so I guess I’ll see you all at the opera — sans evening gown.
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