Ileana Montalbetti as Elettra in the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Studio performance of Idomeneo, 2010. (Photo: Michael Cooper)
Living a Dream: The Journey to Ellen Orford
by Ileana Montalbetti
Canadian soprano and Ensemble Studio graduate Ileana Montalbetti last performed with the Canadian Opera Company as The Voice of Antonia’s Mother in The Tales of Hoffmann. Her COC appearances include Clorinda (La Cenerentola), the Russian Mother/Newspaper Seller (Death in Venice), Anna Kennedy (Maria Stuarda), Mavra Kuzminichna (War and Peace), and with the Ensemble, the First Lady (The Magic Flute), Elettra (Idomeneo), and Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte). Ms Montalbetti’s credits include Antonia in The Tales of Hoffmann (Edmonton Opera); Leonore in Fidelio (Michigan Opera Theater); and the Fifth Maid in Lehnhoff’s production of Elektra and Anaï (understudy) in Moïse et Pharaon under Riccardo Muti (Teatro dell’Opera di Roma).
The journey to singing Ellen Orford in Peter Grimes has been long and winding and sometimes I have to pinch myself to believe that I am now living my dream; not only to be singing this role but of being a principal artist at the largest opera company in Canada!
I was raised in a wonderfully artistic household. My mother is a trained singer and Artistic Director of Saskatoon Opera and my father is a trained actor; they now both teach in their respective fields. Performing has always been a huge part of my life and there was always a huge emphasis on singing and opera in my home. I never felt pressure from my parents to pursue a career in the performing arts; I just did not know that other careers were an option. Performing and singing have been my passion from a very early age and it seems very fitting that my first principal role at the Canadian Opera Company is a role in a Britten opera. The first award I was ever given for performing was in the under 13 Folk Song Class at the Saskatoon Music Festival. I sang Sweet Polly Oliver, a Britten folk song, and was awarded first place. Skip ahead a few years and in the fourth year of my undergraduate degree, at the University of Manitoba, I sang the role of Ellen in an excerpt from the opera for our opera scenes class. I then sang the Embroidery Aria as one of my audition arias for the University of Toronto Opera Division, where I was accepted. After completing my Opera Diploma I went on to sing in the Canadian Opera Company Chorus and the following year I was accepted in to the Ensemble Studio and now here I am singing the role surrounded by a cast of world-class singers.
