Medlyn in understudy role with English National Opera

By LINDA HERRICK, arts editor

Mezzo-soprano Helen Medlyn has been confirmed to work with the English National Opera in Wagner's Tristan and Isolde, which opens at the Coliseum in London in May.

Medlyn moves to London to start rehearsals in mid-April; she will understudy mezzo Jane Irwin in the major role of Brangane, Isolde's companion, under the direction of David Alden. Never underestimate being an understudy - the singer goes through a rigorous casting process. In Medlyn's case it is an important foot in the door at ENO and, in the world of opera, anything can happen which might lead to her performing on stage.

"It's not the real thing, so the likelihood of going on is minimal, but you never know," said Medlyn from Wellington, where she was last week performing her Hellbent show. "I'm going in with not a lot of responsibility, but the role is so big - Jane Irwin may decide in rehearsals she may want to slip out and have half an hour off, that sort of thing does happen. You have to be good enough to step in."

The opportunity came about when Medlyn was voice-coaching in London with ENO senior resident conductor Michael Lloyd, who is conducting The Pearl Fishers in Auckland this month.

"He asked me if I'd ever auditioned for the ENO," said Medlyn. "I was like, 'Ooh no, I'm just a girl from New Zealand.' But Michael got John Barry, who was the casting director, to sit in on one of the coaching sessions.

"John had met me eight years before, when I was having a master class, and I sang so feebly then. I thought John was going to go, 'Oh, not that Medlyn woman.' But I must have done okay."

It's been a terrific year for Medlyn, with high praise for superlative performances in a diverse range of works, including Prokofiev's lament, The Field of the Dead, Mahler's Symphony No 2 and Mahler's Eighth in Oregon with Auckland Philharmonia artistic director Miguel Harth-Bedoya as his farewell to the Eugene Symphony.

At the time, Harth-Bedoya said, "With so many singers, the words become secondary. The tone of Helen's voice is so beautiful she doesn't need to worry so much about expressivity."

Medlyn screeches when I suggest that Jane Irwin should watch her back. "A few colleagues of mine who live in the UK have said they'll set up their own germ warfare."