Once upon a time, Lauren Michelle, freshly graduated from The Juilliard School, paid for a mock audition to prepare herself for the professional Opera world. Darren Woods, General Director of the Fort Worth Opera at the time, would be on the panel. Fort Worth Opera in Texas held a special place in her heart, as she dreamt of working in their beautiful, new, English productions. She prepared by adding a special logo and pretty font to her résumé, pressed her little white dress, put on her golden heels, and placed her worn-out music in a matching golden folder.
She walked into the audition room brimming with hope. After she sang her first aria, Darren asked “Why are you here?” Lauren‘s heart stopped until he broke the silence with a compliment on her professional résumé and attire. He was taken aback by her sound and interpretation, declaring to the room that he had no critique. He confirmed this with his fellow white jury members who all agreed this young American singer was impeccable. Lauren left the audition half-excited, half-confused, with nothing more than some compliments and receipts. She went on to audition for Fort Worth Opera in 2013, and was rejected.
The other day, Fort Worth shared her performance of “Ain’t it a pretty Night” in celebration of Carlisle Floyd's birthday. Lauren must be forgiven for her lack of enthusiasm over Fort Worth’s post amidst the Black Lives Matter protests. The timing of this post is too convenient. True, this performance is the second most viewed recording of this aria on YouTube, having been collectively viewed nearly 40,000 times following its live broadcast on the BBC. It would have been easier to post the most viewed — Renée Fleming. The sad truth is, Lauren is the only black soprano singing this aria with orchestra on YouTube in 2020. It is simply not acceptable to use black artists as poster children for companies’ new unproven values.
This story is one of many examples of what Institutionalized Racism looks like in the world of Opera. People aren’t protesting for your words, posts, or likes. People are protesting for real change.
American Opera Houses: What will you DO to change your legacy of racial and artistic suppression?
Put your money where your posts are.
#JustGettingStarted
This content was originally posted on Facebook June 14, 2020