Erin Morley
Big Change
The purpose of this project is to provide a collection of transcriptions from the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. This project seeks to give a platform to all parts of the vocal performing arts to better understand the lived experiences and mentality of those professionals. In collecting stories from the COVID-19 pandemic Erin Morley, soprano, talked about the pandemic’s effects nearly a year after the Metropolitan Opera shut down.
Erin Morley, soprano
Interviewed March 3, 2021
TB: I always like to start off on a positive note, so what is the best thing that has happened to you in the last week?
EM: I accepted my first Adina, which I am really excited about. I have had the role of Adina learned since I was a student at Juilliard, but I never had a chance to perform it and it has been on my bucket list.
TB: You have had a very interesting and diverse career, but what would you say is one of the proudest moments for you?
EM: A few big things stick out when I think of my breakthrough moments. I loved the whole experience of singing the role of Marguerite de Valois in Les Huguenots at the Bard Summer Festival in 2009. The first time I sang Sophie at the Met was in the old Nathan Merrill production. I jumped in two days before the opening and sang the whole run. That was a big jump up for me. Then I sang the new production of Der Rosenkavalier, which was another big moment. I got to be part of a historical moment when Renée Fleming sang her last Marschallin. It was also Elīna Garanča's last Octavian in the new production by Robert Carsen, which was so smart and beautiful.
'Proudest' is an interesting word because there are roles that are bigger challenges for me than others. One of my proudest moments on stage was singing Lucia for the first time. It is a really long sing requiring a lot of pacing and stamina. I was also pregnant when I sang it for the first time, so I was doubly proud. I was in my first trimester and really tired. For me, [the first trimester] is the hardest time to sing. I find it easier to sing later in the pregnancy, so I was really proud of that.
TB: Lucia is such a workout. When you get to the ending, it is just a marathon.
EM: When she dies and falls onto the stage, you really don't have to act that much. You are ready to collapse too!
TB: It is such a legendary role. Let's talk about the pandemic. Can you back up and describe where you were and how you first realized that you were going to be affected by COVID-19?
EM: My first COVID cancellation was in February of last year. I had a Zerbinetta in Hong Kong, which was supposed to be part of the touring production of Ariadne auf Naxos with the Bayerische Staatsoper. I would have rehearsed in Munich and then traveled with the company to Hong Kong for the Hong Kong Arts Festival but that was the first affected part of the world. I thought this would be a one-time thing where COVID made it impossible for us to perform. It had not sunk in that this was going to be a long-term problem. It hadn't sunk in for a lot of people.
My next job was in March at the Metropolitan Opera. I was supposed to sing the other Sophie, which is Sophie in Werther. And we didn't make it to the dress rehearsal or to opening night. I was in the building on March 12th, and I had just finished a costume fitting. Everybody was on edge and waiting for an announcement but hoping that we could stay open. But I still remember the intense professionalism of the ladies in the costume shop. It could have seemed absolutely futile to do this costume fitting, but they treated it like all these details still mattered. They did their job until they were told they couldn't do it anymore. I have held onto that moment quite a bit because that is intense professionalism.
As I left that costume fitting, I saw people start to exit the building. Chorus members were coming up from the rehearsal rooms and were saying, "They finally did it. They shut us down, and everybody was asked to leave the building." I felt like I couldn't leave. I actually went back down to the rehearsal room to find someone involved in Werther to ask about this. There wasn't really very much said. It was just 'it is over, and we have to leave.
After the Met closed, I went to my apartment in New York. I got my kids, and we drove home to New Haven, Connecticut.
TB: You have had a year of ups and downs. But it seems like Wiener Staatsoper has been making art happen or certainly trying to. Can you talk me through a bit of your experience with them?
EM: Yes. I had a lot of work planned in Austria this season. So much so that, at one point a couple of years ago, I actually considered moving to Vienna this year. I didn't end up doing that, but I had four engagements at the Staatsoper this season. I had two Zerbinettas, a Sophie and a Tytania. Only Der Rosenkavalier materialized into anything, a live stream to an empty theater in December. I was immensely grateful as it was my only performance with an orchestra on a stage for the entire year. It was also my last performance before the pandemic (I think it was December 31, 2019).
The Staatsoper has been a beacon of light to the opera world. They have continued in a way that so many opera houses have not been able to; mostly because they have state funding, which is what we are missing in the United States. The pandemic has shone a light on the difference in how far-reaching the funding from governments can really be. When they have been locked down, the employees of the Staatsoper still receive 80% [of their pay]. In the United States, and while seems so foreign to us, it is what should happen.
TB: You mentioned you had four contracts with Wiener Staatsoper. However, only one of those came through. But you are grateful for that opportunity, because as you noted, that 25% represents a huge leap from the COVID-19 shutdown. Is that true?
EM: Absolutely. It would take too much time to count all my losses, which isn't the most useful exercise. But I do feel it is important to grieve each loss. And I have to make sure I do that, and it is not quantitative. It is not like I am going to grieve for three days, and then I am going to be done grieving. As an artist in this time, you have to acknowledge that what we are going through isn't normal. It will have long-lasting traumatic effects. The grieving process may be much longer than the time that we are actually unemployed. We have to acknowledge that and that it is going to take awhile.
TB: I also want to ask—because I hear little feet in the background—about the balance that you've sought in the pandemic, as you are both a parent and an artist. Could you talk to me about that?
EM: It has been an interesting journey from March 12, 2020. Basically, we've had to find a completely new balance. It has morphed, changed, ebbed, and flowed. We lost childcare (like many people did), and Overnight, I became a stay-at-home mom who was homeschooling (big change). And so many of us have been in that situation.
In June, we moved from New Haven to New Canaan. Our old house was over 100-years old. There were no locks on doors and a lot of very small spaces. It was such a circus and hysterical. My husband is a law professor at Yale. He would be teaching in our bedroom, and I would be trying to homeschool my daughter on Zoom. And the two little ones—who were one and three at the time—were all over the map. They kept going into my husband's law lectures!
Still, I had a lot of work I needed to do. As soon as school was over, my husband would take the afternoons to watch the kids. So, I was able to keep up my vocal skills and had a chance to practice. I was also able to keep performing virtually, like for the Met Gala. There were also many videos that I did for different organizations, such as for the New York Times and a fundraiser for my daughter's music school in New Haven. I accompanied myself because nobody was setting foot into anyone else's homes at that point.
I would be lying if I said we didn't really enjoy this time together as a family. We grew a lot as a family and had many beautiful moments together. It was so nice not to be traipsing around the globe. It was nice not to have a nanny. I grew as a mother quite a bit because I have been forced to do some hard things.
TB: Can you talk to me about how the pandemic has had a financial effect on your life?
EM: I am very lucky because we are a two-income household. I am very grateful my husband has a stable job right now. That doesn't mean that it hasn't been incredibly stressful financially, though. In the first week of March 2020, right before the world fell apart, we put down a deposit on a house. After everything started closing down, we had to sit down and budget whether we could make it if I didn't work for 18 months or possibly two years (to chart out the worst-case scenario). But I felt very strongly that we needed to make this move. And since then, having a bit more space has been a game-changer as we’ve all spent so much more time at home. I have felt very grateful that things have fallen into place the way they have. My top priority during this pandemic has been to give my kids a sense of safety, security, and stability. This move really helped us to do that for them.
TB: What would you say is the hardest lesson that you've had to learn in COVID-19?
EM: The biggest challenge for me as a singer has been the rollercoaster of preparing music that might not ever see the light of day. That is a lot on your psyche and figuring out how to view that work has been hard. I've come to a place now where I have to be (as I have said to a lot of my friends) a psychotic optimist. I have to hope and think that every job will materialize until I am proven wrong. Because that is the only way I am going to get that work done.
If I don't invest, then I can't get it done. I have also started viewing the work that I am doing on pieces that may not see the light of day as an insurance policy. It is insurance in case the performance happens. That is the only way that my psyche can handle this because it is such a rollercoaster. When something that you've put so much effort into gets cancelled... You don't realize how devastating it is until it happens and it doesn't get easier as the pandemic goes on. It actually gets harder because the fatigue of doing this up and down all the time doesn't desensitize you, it actually makes those crashes more painful. That is where I am at. So I have to view my work as insurance.
TB: Minus a pandemic, it is March 3, 2021. Where would you be, and what would you be preparing for?
EM: Actually, today, March 3, was going to be the opening of Ariadne auf Naxos in Vienna. This was a sad cancellation. My manager is Maria Mot, and she was looking forward to this because three of her artists were in the production. It was Lise Davidsen as Ariadne, Angela Brower as the Komponist, and myself as Zerbinetta. The three of us had sung these roles together before at Glyndebourne and we were looking forward to that reunion. There is also something extremely special about singing Strauss in Vienna with that orchestra and for that audience that knows every word and could sing along with you.
TB: How do you think that this is going to change the musical landscape as we go forward?
EM: We are all embracing video in a way that we didn't before, though some artists have been resistant to it. We see how many people we can reach via social media if we have a video to share with them. The Met streaming program has seen a tremendous response. I hear people talking about it all the time from back home in Utah. Those who didn't have as much exposure to opera are now watching every single night. Because they didn't know that this was all happening at the Met. It is so positive that we see a great appreciation for the art form as it is. By that, I mean live and in the theater so that you can experience the sound unamplified and the purity of the art form.
We, who have tasted it, are now realizing how precious it is and how different it is from a streamed performance. Social media is not the same. And I think what we're seeing is a real hunger to go back to the theater, a hunger to hear voices and an orchestra in person again. That is extremely positive because we need our audiences to really want it. As artists, we need to appreciate what we are doing in a new light. I think that is what the pandemic has done for us.
TB: It sounds like though this has been a painful time, it has also shown you some things that are of deep importance. Whether that is the idea of using social media to reach out to a new audience or the appreciation of the art form in its traditional capacity.
EM: That sums it up right there. I'll also say it is nice to have a little more time to do stuff. But I don't want to say I have more time on my hands. That was one of the funniest things because when the pandemic went down, everybody kept emailing me, "Since you have more time on your hands now..." I was thinking, I have never had less time on my hands! But we do have more time for some things that actually matter more.
I have found that as painful as things can be professionally, I am extremely grateful to have little kids in my house and have another role to play. Because if I can't fulfill one of my identities, I can be fulfilling the other. That is a gift, to be able to throw myself into motherhood. I really appreciate having little kids who don't know what is happening. They will grow up and not remember this as a crisis. Their reality is how their home and family functions. So if I can give them that gift of a positive experience right now, I feel like I am accomplishing a lot.
TB: That is a really beautiful way of looking at this situation. On a different subject, what is your advice to young artists during this period?
EM: There is definitely a balance. As humans, we are programmed to want to produce something, I think. Young artists are in a really tough situation. COVID-19 makes things difficult for them to continue their studies, and it has to be a very, very hard place to be. But I am very heartened when I see universities continuing and finding new ways of doing something. For instance, Yale Opera is doing their scenes programs and aria showcase via YouTube. The students are getting exposure and the experience of producing a professional performance. We didn't do that when I was at Juilliard.
I am also really heartened when I see people get creative about keeping students going, like the Met competition. It was no small feat, and my hat is off to Melissa Wegner. She is really remarkable. I want to say thank you to those people, to the artists for their work, and to the people who are giving them goals to work towards.
I do also think it is important to step back and say, "We are surviving a pandemic." Sometimes it is healthier to look at our productivity as the decision to keep going. Even if we are not producing something that feels tangible, we have to look at our decisions to keep moving and keep going as heroic. I do. So, I want young artists to realize how much we all admire them for keeping going.
TB: Thank you for talking about that. Lastly, what is your video binge recommendation?
EM: My latest obsession has been this Korean drama, which is called Crash Landing On You. It is totally fascinating because it is a love story about North Korea and South Korea. It is so charming, delightful, and funny. I will also say that I went to a movie for the first time this past week in a movie theater. My husband and I were the only ones in the theater. It was sterilized and so clean. It was the best movie experience ever. We went to see this movie called Land, directed by Robin Wright. It was really beautiful and on-brand as it is about isolating yourself, trying to grieve, and find reasons to keep going. It was almost too on brand. I was bawling through the whole thing going, "This is me!" But so beautifully done and offers so much hope in the end.
TB: It has been an honor speaking with you today. Thank you for sharing your insight.
Sophie’s aria from Der Rosenkavalier by Strauss
Erin Morely, soprano
Brian Waghorn, piano
“Chacun le sait” from La Fille du Régiment by Donizetti
Erin Morley, soprano and piano
About Erin Morley
Highlights of the 20/21 season include Zerbinetta Ariadne auf Naxos and Sophie Der Rosenkavalier at Wiener Staatsoper; Tytania A Midsummer Night's Dream in Santa Fe; and a show-stopping appearance during the Met Stars at Home Gala where she delighted the audiences by accompanying herself at the piano and singing an extraordinary rendition of “Chacun le sait, chacun le dit” from La Fille du Régiment. On the concert platform Morley joins Christian Thielemann and Staatskapelle Dresden on tour with a programme of Strauss’ Brentano Lieder, and appears in recital in Paris together with Gerald Martin Moore. Morley was also invited to sing Olympia Les Contes d’Hoffmann with the Metropolitan Opera and Tytania A Midsummer Night's Dream with the Wiener Staatsoper.
Some of her highlights last season include Tytania in a new production of Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Wiener Staatsoper and Gilda Rigoletto at Bayerische Staatsoper. On the concert platform she appeared in the famous televised New Year’s Eve concerts with the Staatskapelle Dresden and Christian Thielemann, performing Princess Mi in Léhar’s Das Land des Lächelns. Morley was also invited to perform Gilda Rigoletto with Semperoper Dresden, Sophie in Massenet’s Werther with the Metropolitan Opera, Zerbinetta Ariadne auf Naxos with the Bayerische Staatsoper at the Hong Kong Arts Festival, and Handel’s Il delirio amoroso with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Emmanuelle Haïm.
Further recent performances include Konstanze Die Entführung aus dem Serail; Sophie Der Rosenkavalier at Opera de Paris; Gilda Rigoletto, Zerbinetta Ariadne auf Naxos and Sophie at Wiener Staatsoper; Fiakermilli Arabella and Gilda at Bayerische Staatsoper; Lucia di Lammermoor in Nancy; Queen of the Night Magic Flute, Roxana Krol Roger, Mme Silberklang Der Schauspieldirektor and Stravinsky’s The Nightingale all at Santa Fe Opera; Zerbinetta at Glyndebourne; and Sandrina La Finta Giardiniera in Lille and Dijon with Emmanuelle Haïm. Cunegonde in Candide, another role that Morley has made her own, has been performed in stellar company at LA Opera with James Conlon and actors Kelsey Grammer and Christine Ebersole; with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Phildalephia Orchestra with Alek Shrader, Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan; and at the Carnegie Hall Centenary with John Lithgow.
The breakthrough moment in Morley’s career came when she stepped in at the last-minute to sing Sophie in an entire run of Der Rosenkavalier at the Metropolitan Opera during the 2013-2014 season, which was hailed by critics as “a major success”. Since then Met audiences have also seen her as Sophie in Robert Carsen’s new production of Der Rosenkavalier; as Olympia Les Contes d’Hoffmann; as Constance Les Dialogues des Carmélites; and as Pamina The Magic Flute, among others.
Equally at home on the concert platform, Morley has performed with leading orchestras such as Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, LA Philharmonic, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, and Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. She has appeared on tour with Harry Bicket and The English Concert, Louis Langrée and the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and with the Met Chamber Ensemble in Carnegie’s Zankel Hall.
A dedicated recitalist, her appearances include recitals with pianist Vlad Iftinca (Salt Lake City’s Virtuoso Series, Carnegie’s Weill Hall, and Festival du Lied in Fribourg, Switzerland), and with pianist Ken Noda (at the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Brigham Young University, and the Alice Tully Hall Vocal Arts Honors Recital).
Her many recordings include Sophie in the Met’s GRAMMY-nominated Der Rosenkavalier on DVD/Blu-Ray for the Decca label; Sandrina La Finta Giardiniera with Emmanuelle Haïm in Opéra de Lille’s production for the Erato label; Woglinde Götterdämmerung in the Metropolitan Opera’s GRAMMY-award winning Lepage Ring Cycle for Deutsche Grammophon; Marguerite de Valois Les Huguenots, live from Bard SummerScape for the American Symphony Orchestra; Carl Nielsen’s Symphony No. 3 “Espansiva” with Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic for Da Capo Records; and Sylvie in Gounod’s opéra-comique La Colombe with Sir Mark Elder and The Hallé Orchestra for the Opera Rara label.
Morley spent her early years studying violin and piano, and frequently collaborated with her violinist mother. An undergraduate of the Eastman School of Music, she went on to earn her Master of Music voice degree from The Juilliard School and her Artist Diploma from the Juilliard Opera Center in 2007, where she received the Florence & Paul DeRosa Prize. Morley also trained at the Opera Theatre of St. Louis as a Gerdine Young Artist, the Ravinia Festival Steans Institute, and the Wolf Trap Opera Company as a Filene Young Artist. She won 1st Prize in the Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition in 2002, 1st Place in the Licia Albanese – Puccini Foundation Competition in 2006, 3rd Place in London’s Wigmore Hall International Song Competition in 2009, and received the Richard Tucker Career Grant in 2013.
