Divas and dramas

Before Charlotte opera singer Melinda Whittington joins a rehearsal, she starts preparing months in advance of the performance. Whittington translates all the words — they’re typically in another language — so she understands what’s being said, a time-consuming endeavor for an average three-hour opera. She researches the origins of the opera and all its story iterations.

Prior to the first rehearsal, just two to three weeks before opening night, Whittington integrates the words, notes and rhythm on her own, then with a coach. “It is understood and expected that [cast members] will show up with everything learned and prepared — that is background work you do on our own,” Whittington says. “When we are together, it’s all about how you work with your fellow actors, where you’re going to move on the stage and what story you’re trying to tell and create.”

Whittington plays Violetta Valéry, the lead in La traviata, the final production in Opera Carolina’s 2022/2023 HERstory season. Performances are April 20, 22 and 23 at Belk Theater. La traviata, an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, is based on La Dame aux camélias, a novel by Alexandre Dumas fils that was later adapted into a play. Set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave,

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Violetta, a courtesan, falls in love with Alfredo Germont. Drama, love and tragedy ensue as the couple, from two separate worlds, try to remain together despite interference from Alfredo’s father.

Violetta’s character moves through the three acts singing in various Fachs (types) of sopranos. “It seems to be written for at least two, maybe three different kinds of sopranos,” Whittington says. “My challenge in La traviata is Act 1, where Violetta’s in party mode and sings the famous Act 1 ‘Sempre Libera’ which has a lot of coloratura (fast vocal passages in a high register) and a lot of high singing.”

Ten years ago, Whittington played Violetta at the Brevard Music Center, a training company for young singers, as part of a summer program. “My voice is really different now,” says the mother of two. “My voice has changed a lot over a decade and especially after having kids. [It’s] deeper, darker and richer, sits lower.”

Whittington’s father was a minister, and the family moved every two to five years, living in Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia and finally settling in Wilson, N.C. In 2005, she graduated from UNC Chapel Hill with a degree in music, followed by a master of music from UNC Greensboro. She later spent two years at the Academy of

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