The stages of an operatic performance

The complex tasks an opera singer undertakes during a performance have been examined in research by Victoria University of Wellington PhD graduate Dr Margaret Medlyn.

Dr Medlyn, who has a successful opera career and is a senior lecturer at Victoria’s Te Kōkī New Zealand School of Music (NZSM), has used her experience in roles by composers Wagner and Verdi to illustrate how a performer embodies a character during opera—and how a composer can influence that embodiment through the opera’s score.

Her research was inspired by a desire to academically explore embodiment, to provide a new perspective on the tasks an opera performer must undertake. She also wanted to demonstrate the ways a composer can manipulate elements of a performer’s body and mind through the musical score.

Dr Medlyn defines embodiment as a performer using all of their physical and emotional abilities to best portray the character and the opera’s text.

During the research process, Dr Medlyn devised a model of embodiment, which identifies nine elements that a performer employs during a performance: engagement of extrinsic muscles, and release of intrinsic muscles; kinaesthetic awareness of body in space; musical awareness; character and reactions; emotional connection; acoustical awareness and response; quality of presence/charisma; activation of the articulators; vocal fold activation.

Dr Medlyn says embodiment is an essential part of any operatic performance.

“My primary service as a performer is to the composer and the person who wrote the words. This makes me the conduit and co-creator of the music—otherwise it’s just marks and text, which mean nothing until it’s brought to life by the performer.

“To truly embody this, a performer must call on all of their physical power, but they must also know how to cope with the lighting, the costuming, the fact there is no amplification on stage. And then to act—a performer must draw on emotional experiences to do the character justice.”

Dr Medlyn is now interested in exploring the connection between the audience and the performer.

“It would be great to understand how the communication from performer to audience works. Live performances and theatre are something extra—you become part of the experience. Opera is all about live performances, which is why I think it’s important to talk about and to research.”