Porretta appears in his Washington National Opera debut in “Un Ballo in Maschera” on Thursday and Monday. The opera runs through Sept. 25.
What is the storyline of “Un Ballo in Maschera” (A Masked Ball)?
The king is shown to be in love with a woman named Amelia, who is the wife of his best friend, so that’s the beginning of our tension in the story.
You play the role of King Gustavus. What is his character like?
This character as opposed to other Verdi tenor parts I think is decidedly more jovial. He’s kind of a nice guy, I think. This is how I see him. I mean he’s still the king and still wields a great deal of power and there are those moments where “I’m the king,” but I think he’s kind of a nice guy and he’s got a sense of humor and he’s kind of fun in this.
What is one of your most memorable performances of your career?
One was Verona. L’Arena di Verona. It’s an outdoor arena for 20, 000 people, no amplification of any kind, and it’s outside. It’s an arena that was built in 30 A.D. by the Romans, and no rehearsal to speak of and I went on and I get teased by my colleagues about which way to run and which way to jump and when to move. It was quite the adrenaline fest.
Your parents were opera singers. Did you always want to be an opera singer?
It wasn’t really far from home because I grew up with this music floating around the house so I’d come to these pieces and say, “Oh, Mom used to sing that! Oh, Dad used to sing that! I know that piece!”
What do you love about being an opera singer?
It’s just the whole variable nature of it really turns me on and it’s always a challenge, it’s a new game.– Anna Waugh
