Opera singer Máire Flavin sings the role of Countess Almaviva in Irish National Opera’s first main-scale opera in the company’s inaugural year, Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro.
Máire has been described in The Guardian as having 'a perfectly proportioned Mozartian voice, with a glittering upper register' - suggesting that she's an opera star about to sky rocket. She talks to RTÉ Culture about her cultural to-dos - should she have a weekend off anytime soon...
Film
I recently went to see the latest Marvel installment, The Black Panther, and loved it. It was the perfect film for being stranded in Shetland due to snow. A great action film but with brilliant character development, not just a load of fight scenes (although watch out for the war-trained rhino!) A lot of the recent battles in the arts world, as well as the world in general, have been to do with there not being enough diversity on our screens. Well, this film was a great example of the shoe on the other foot, with only one white main role. It was also a brilliant film for strong female casting.
Music
Having just released my own album Baby Mine - Classic Film Lullabies from Your Childhood with The RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra (with 100% artist royalty profits going to autism charities), I'm afraid listening to the masters of that as well as preparing my next role have taken up all my listening time recently. I have had a little time to click on some clips an old stage manager friend has been posting of his daughter, who has just released her own EP and I am loving it... so check out Mae Muller, too!
We need your consent to load this SoundCloud contentWe use SoundCloud to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Book
I usually have something light enough not to keep me up at night, but also completely enthralling so I can escape from work. My go-to airport author is Jodi Picoult, or some Jojo Moyes, but at the moment I am actually reading Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari, an account of humans on earth. Having only just started it (page 61 at the mo) it seems an interesting read. I just learnt that they believe we were at our healthiest as foragers with a very varied diet (makes sense). More and more I think we will all eventually have to return to a simpler way of living.
Play
Having been on tour for the last three months and in Zürich before that, I haven't been to a play in a while! One of the best theatrical experiences of my life, however, was going to see some Shakespeare in The Globe, London. I cannot recommend it enough. Go and see ANY Shakespeare play there. I remember being concerned that if I didn't go to see one of the plays I had studied I wouldn't get as much from it. Well, I can tell you, those actors are so fabulous you understand more than if you had studied it for two years! Also make sure if you can to arrive early (18.15 ish) and queue for standing so that you get a place at the front and can lean on the stage - just amazing!
TV
With all the travelling around I do for my work, Netflix is my constant companion. I am always looking for new series to start watching. I love legal drams like Suits and The Good Wife, but also something totally silly and fun like Jane The Virgin to switch off to.
Gig
Again with all the travelling I do, making it to gigs is often difficult. I did see that The Gloaming recently had a residency in the NCH. If you see them coming back any time soon, go! I saw them at the Royal Albert Hall in a celebration of all things Irish and LOVED it.
Art
I love photography and portraiture, so will often keep and eye out for any pop-up exhibitions. When I lived in London, I loved being able to drop into the National Portrait Gallery and just pick a floor to wander down for 20 minutes and see what interests me. I have never been one for doing a museum top to bottom - I like to pick a section and see what I am drawn to.
Radio
I love it when I am home for work and borrow my Mam's little Aygo and get to flit around all the radio stations!!! I admit to being a total channel hopper, though. Always looking for the best song. If I am ever driving back from a concert late, I will have whichever station is playing the most singable-alongable to music to keep me going.
Podcast
A colleague recently introduced me to a podcast on a tour called No Such Thing As A Fish and it is full of mad and interesting facts.
We need your consent to load this SoundCloud contentWe use SoundCloud to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Tech
There are so many great apps for musicians now I don't know what we did before. I use forScore all the time for my music and find it so user-friendly. With the ability to mark up your score, put your translation in, bring up a keyboard to notebash on the train, it is a travelling singer's dream. It also means not lugging around all your scores all of the time. I always have to have a physical score for what I am actually doing at the moment, but to have all audition arias etc on your iPad is so handy.
We need your consent to load this Vimeo contentWe use Vimeo to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
The Next Big Thing
Hopefully the next big thing is a bit of warm weather.... anyone else sick of their winter wardrobe?
Máire Flavin sings in Irish National Opera’s The Marriage of Figaro, which runs at The National Opera House, Wexford (April 13) and the Gaiety Theatre (April 17 – 21) – further info here.
