For those of us who have identified as performers for most of our lives, 2020 has made us question our very identities.
For those of us who have dreamt of a life on the stage and have done everything in service of that goal, 2020 has made us question our goals.
For those of us who draw inspiration and spirit from watching and supporting live performances, 2020 has made us question our priorities and values.
We have had to pivot to keep ourselves relevant, valued, and employed. And in many ways, we have learned much that we would not have if we had continued along the same path we had been on pre-COVID. About what we were capable of, about what our clients and audiences needed and what they didn’t need right now, and about what they will need, going forward.
For some people, the pivot has involved a career change.
For some, a redirection.
2020 is almost over (thank g-d) and I have hope that things will change for the better.
The ground may not have been stable under us for these past 8+ months, but we are still artists. Even if we’re currently not making a living at it or that living has been diminished, our identity is still that of artist (or arts supporter).
This has not changed and will not change.
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If you want to explore your own artistic identity, touch base with me here and we’ll talk. Whether your goals are to perform professionally or for fun, I’ll be happy to help you reach your goals.
Christine Thomas-O'Meally, a mezzo soprano and voice teacher currently based in the Baltimore-DC area, has performed everything from the motets of J.S. Bach to the melodies of Irving Berlin to the minimalism of Philip Glass.
As an opera singer and actress, she has appeared with companies such as Charm City Players, Spotlighters Theatre, Chicago Opera Theater, Opera Theater of Northern Virginia, Opera North, the Washington Savoyards, In Tandem Theatre, Windfall Theater, The Young Victorian Theater of Baltimore, and Skylight Opera Theatre. She created the role of The Woman in Red in Dominick Argento’s Dream of Valentino in its world premiere with the Washington Opera and Mary Pickersgill in O'er the Ramparts at its world premiere during the Bicentennial of Battle of Baltimore at the Community College of Baltimore County. Other roles include Mrs. Paroo in Music Man, Mother Abbess in Sound of Music, Dorabella in Cosi Fan Tutte, Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro, both Hansel and the Witch in Hansel & Gretel, and many roles in Gilbert & Sullivan operettas. Her performance as the Housekeeper in Man of La Mancha was honored with a WATCH award nomination.
Ms. Thomas-O'Meally received an M.M. in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore. She regularly attends master classes and workshops in both performance and vocal pedagogy, and is certified in all three Levels of Somatic Voicework™ The LoVetri Method. Her students have performed on national and international tours of Broadway productions, at prestigious conservatories, and in regional theater throughout the country.
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