Melissa Sondhi ’11 Soars on Stage

By Cathy Yingling Chapelle ’87

Soprano Melissa Sondhi ’11 is embarking on a breakthrough season as a Resident Artist with Opera San Jose which will see her take on three leading roles - Juliette in Romeo et Juliette, Gilda in Rigoletto, and Rosalba in Florencia en al Amazonas. We were fortunate enough to welcome her back to campus for a special performance during Alumni Weekend, and she also conducted several master classes for Park Tudor students.

Melissa began performing in musicals as a student at Park Tudor, eventually transitioning to opera and earning a BM from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance and an MM from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. I recently sat down with Melissa to learn more about her burgeoning career.

Tell me about your upcoming season with Opera San Jose.

I’m extremely excited to take on three leading roles out of the four shows planned for the season. This will be the first time that I will be able to focus on performing full-time, and it feels like everything I was working toward throughout my twenties is culminating with this opportunity. I’m a bit nervous because it is a big undertaking - these characters really carry the shows - but I feel ready to rise to the occasion.

You began performing at a young age. How did you decide to pursue this professionally?

I knew that I absolutely loved performing and wanted to do it everyday. My sophomore year I was studying with Jeanne Bowling (private voice instructor) and I sang “Vanilla Ice Cream” from the musical She Loves Me during my private voice recital; it really clicked for me and I thought “I have to feel this as much as possible.” I am so grateful to Park Tudor for having private voice instructors - it is a rarity - and for providing a venue for me to perform. But it wasn’t always easy. When I told my parents, they warned me that it wouldn’t be the easiest lifestyle.

How did you decide to make the transition from musical theatre to opera?

When I started studying with Jeanne Bowling, who is classically trained, she heard that my high notes were larger so she gave me a short aria to try. That piece fit my voice like a glove and I finally felt like I could fully let it out. Prior to that, I felt like I had been holding my voice back a bit to fit the musical theatre format. Jeanne encouraged me to explore classical music and I came to appreciate it even more - it is so big and dramatic; it is really the human soul in all of its glory. Then I decided to pursue opera in college at the University of Michigan, and found it amazing to listen to all of these different languages and of course the exquisite music.

How are you able to express these characters in so many different languages?

Most classical voice programs require you to learn languages. At the University of Michigan, I was required to take one semester each of Italian, French and German, as well as diction classes in each of these languages. It helps to become somewhat conversational in the languages so that you can recognize basic lines, and you can also study translations - there are line-by-line translations available of most operas, as well as translations that give you the gist of what each phrase is saying since direct translations can sometimes be a little bit off. But it is challenging because you have to do a base level of work to understand the words before you are ready to perform and make the character your own. You don’t want to just be singing the lines; you have to feel the character within yourself. Something that I find helpful is to write out my own version what I would say as the character in each situation.

What have been your favorite roles to perform so far?

It’s a toss up. I loved playing Adele in Die Fledermaus; she is a chambermaid who is very talented and dreams of becoming an actress. I enjoyed playing her because she is strong, funny, confident and witty; it’s common to play a girl in love, but Adele is in love only with herself. I also identified with her desire to follow her dream to perform.

Another character I loved was Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro. Susanna is also a maid, interestingly, but smarter than anyone else and calls all the shots.

What role have you not yet performed that you would like to?

I performed a condensed version of Musetta in La Boheme and I would like to do the full version, and on the musical theatre side, Christine in Phantom of the Opera would be another role I would love to play.

This spring you visited Park Tudor. What was it like returning here to perform and to work with students?

How did your Park Tudor experience prepare you for your career?

Park Tudor encouraged all of us to try anything and everything, and gave us lots of opportunities to truly be a part of things. It also taught us to be able to juggle a lot of responsibilities. My junior year we performed Bye Bye Birdie and some of the boys in the show were running from musical performances to basketball finals. In my career I’ve had to juggle side jobs and opera jobs that I maybe didn’t particularly want to do, but my Park Tudor experience helped me learn to prioritize and stay focused and disciplined. Park Tudor also taught me to go after what I want and not to be afraid to try; I could say at least I had tried a sport even if I wasn’t that great at it, and so I never had to wonder if I could do something. I came out of Park Tudor knowing that if I didn’t try performing professionally I would regret it.

You’ve mentioned Jeanne Bowling and Heather Teets; who were some other Park Tudor teachers who influenced you?

Certainly Royce Thrush; he accompanied me during my recent performance at Park Tudor and I’ve always looked up to him as a musician and teacher. I took his music theory class, which provided me with a great foundation and helped prepare me for the future. In addition, Mr. (John) Williams - he was always so encouraging and a real cheerleader for my singing and also taught me a lot about performing.

Do you have any advice for students who are interested in pursuing a career in the performing arts?

My main advice is to keep going. There were so many times as I’ve pursued this - in college and then professionally - when I have thought there are so many talented people, how will I ever be seen? I’ve gotten 90 rejections for every five “yeses” - if that - and I’ve had several moments where I’ve asked “why am I wasting my time?” But I am so glad that I kept going - and so appreciative of the support of my family and loved ones. I made progress and chipped away at my goals and I feel like it has finally paid off, and this year so many big dreams are coming true. If I hadn’t kept going, I would be wondering “what if.” I would also advise students to remember that you have something special that no one else has; always keep that in mind.

It was so wonderful to return to Park Tudor, and great to see how things have changed and yet remained the same. It was gratifying to see the Fine Arts Department flourishing under Heather Teets. Heather was my photography teacher and I also went to Spoleto with her one summer, so I’m thrilled to see her in charge of the department. I know she cares deeply about all types of art and I’m so impressed to see all of the opportunities that she has created for PT students. I also enjoyed getting to work with Nolan (Brokamp) as I prepared for my performance, as well as Lamonte (Kuskye); Lamonte has done so much with the choral program and his cabaret class is fantastic - I wish I’d had that when I was a student.

Working with the students was very special; I can tell they love performing and were so open to wanting to improve. There’s a lot of talent at Park Tudor for such a small school, and it is clear that the teachers have created a safe space for them to feel confident performing in front of one another.

It also felt great to be back on the stage where I grew up. In some ways I was more nervous than usual because it can be easier to perform in front of strangers vs. an audience filled with people that you know, but I walked on stage and immediately felt comfortable looking out at so many warm and welcoming faces. It felt the same as when I performed on that stage years ago.

To learn more about Melissa and her upcoming performances, visit melissasondhi.com. More information about Opera San Jose’s 2023-2024 season featuring Melissa is available at operasj.com