A Simple Question

Ah, the life of an almost opera singer...

That nagging question:

"So, what do you do?"

You wouldn't think that this was such a confusing question, but to tell you the truth, it always takes me a while to form an appropriate answer; and my answer tends to change based on who asked the question. If I want the conversation to be quick and dirty, I answer truthfully, "I am a Marketing Director." Unfortunately this tends to elicit a lot more interest that I usually anticipate, leading to a more lengthy discussion than I had planned. If I have a social connection to the asker and am more willing to explain myself, again, I answer truthfully, "I am an aspiring opera singer". Often I use a combination of the two; the Marketing used to offset the fact that I am barely "working" with my singing.

Most often I end up retreating into the depths of my mind, pondering the virtual circus of activities I perform weekly, trying to coherently communicate them to the person who at this point is now staring at me with the deep look of concern in their eyes.

But I honestly don't quite know how to say all the things that I am actually doing in preparation for a career in opera. They are not returning immediate results in the form of performances. They are not measurable by most people's standards. Many of them even sound like leisure activities: watch movies, read books, read magazines, go to the opera, go to concerts, sing, exercise. It is more of a lifestyle that it is a path of study. I suppose that at this stage, my career in opera is about taking the time to prepare for the moment when I do step out onto a stage.

Much of this preparation comes in the form of my many "job interviews" - the auditions. So as I embark on my second audition season, I have decided to keep record of the ins and outs of being an almost opera singer. Bare with me...this could get ugly, or more likely, dreadfully boring.