HEADACHE
| Photo: The Royal Opera House in London has dropped Deborah Voigt, partially shown, from the lead role in a summer production of Strauss because of her size and replaced her with ... |
| CREDIT: Stephan Trierenberg, The Associated Press |
LONDON - The Royal Opera House has cancelled a performance by one of the world's most sought-after sopranos because she is too fat, a theatre spokesman said yesterday. American Deborah Voigt had been scheduled to play the lead in a summer production of Richard Strauss's Ariadne on Naxos, but casting director Peter Katona decided a slimmer singer would be better for the part, spokesman Christopher Millard said. Mr. Katona had selected a black evening dress for the part and believed Ms. Voigt would not look right in it, Mr. Millard said. "Normally, Ariadne is presented on a stylized Greek island with the singers wearing toga-type clothes, but we wanted to present it in an elegant, modern evening dress," Mr. Katona said. Anne Schwanewilms, a more slender but lesser-known soprano, will sing the part of Ariadne. Ms. Voigt's weight remains a closely guarded secret. The best estimate of observers is that Ms. Voigt is on the heavy side of 200 pounds. "I have big hips and Covent Garden has a problem with them," she said. "Or, at least, their casting director, Peter Katona, has the problem, and he's made it clear that I won't be singing in his house as long as he's around. Which is sad." Mr. Katona said: "In making these kinds of decision, it is not just a question of how someone looks; it is also how they move on stage. "Mr. Millard confirmed by telephone that size was the reason the 43-year-old Ms. Voigt was no longer scheduled to sing in the Royal Opera House production. There is a growing movement against fat singers in the opera, traditionally one of the places where they are most welcome. Luciano Pavarotti was ordered on a diet after he cancelled some performances. Vocal coach Seth Riggs said the weight loss would most likely improve the singer's delivery. ''You do not have to be fat to have a beautiful voice,'' he said. ''Look at Renata Tebaldi, she was a large woman, but not a fat one, and she had a beautiful voice,'' he said. ''And Norman Treigle was the skinniest fellow you ever saw. But he was a bass baritone with a booming voice. Tenor Franco Corelli had a beautiful figure.'' There is a misperception, Mr. Riggs said, that large diaphragms, and therefore large bodies, are needed for singers to sing well. Last year, Toronto heldentenor Ben Heppner returned to the opera stage after a 14-month absence, with two big differences: His vocal problems were gone and so were 90 extra pounds. His voice returned after he stopped taking high blood pressure medication. Then came a new diet and exercise regimen to take off the weight that was contributing to the blood pressure problem. Mr. Heppner said people should know opera singers do not need big bodies to have big voices. 'That,'' he said, ''is a myth.'' Ms. Voigt was awarded France's Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2002, and was named last year's Vocalist of the Year by Musical America. Her debut solo album, featuring arias by Wagner and Strauss, is due for release on April 6. She is to give her Carnegie Hall solo recital debut the following day. Ms. Schwanewilms has sung at major European theatres and was a member of the Cologne Opera ensemble in the mid-1990s.AP.
