Arts
Armenian-Australian singer Natalie Aroyan is one of the country’s leading sopranos, having taken on some of the biggest roles in the opera repertoire. But it wasn’t always her dream to be an opera star – instead, she had singers like Whitney Houston, Celine Dion and Tina Arena in her sights. In this fascinating conversation with Lyndon Terracini, Natalie reveals her journey from budding pop singer to centre stage at the Sydney Opera House. She talks about making her professional debut as Mimì in La Bohème, tackling the enormous demands of the title role in Aida, and learning her craft from opera world royalty. Natalie’s roles at Opera Australia also include Desdemona (Otello), Micaëla (Carmen), Amelia Grimaldi (Simon Boccanegra) and Eva (Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg). The conversation finishes with a special performance of ‘Krunk’ a song by Armenian composer Komitas, accompanied by Opera Australia’s Head of Music, Tahu Matheson.