Tara Erraught
The Washington Post has hit out at a number of UK-based critics over their treatment of Dundalk native Tara Erraught in reviews of Glyndebourne’s new ‘Der Rosenkavalier’.
The mezzo-soprano, who comes from Ravensdale, recently made her UK stage debut in ‘Der Rosenkavalier’ after building up an impressive resumé in Germany.
However, five male UK critics have criticised Tara not for her level or tone but for her physical appearance – branding her “chubby” and “dumpy”.
“Tara Erraught’s Octavian is a chubby bundle of puppy-fat,” wrote Andrew Clark in the Financial Times, adding, as an afterthought, “albeit gloriously sung”. In the Telegraph, Rupert Christiansen said that she “sings with vibrant assurance and proves herself a spirited comedian. But she is dumpy of stature…”
The critics – all men – have been accused of “overt sexism” by singers who pointed out that Luciano Pavarotti never came in for criticism over his large frame.
Responding to the criticism Anne Midgette of the Washington Post leapt to the defence of Tara, saying: “Five of them designated Tara Erraught’s Octavian as a problem with the show, more or less explicitly, based entirely on her looks.
“No critic should be too eager to cast stones. I have certainly written things in reviews that had people up in arms, and I have certainly observed that a given singer was not small, when the occasion warranted it. But there’ s a distinction between description and criticism. Mentioning a singer’s looks may be relevant in some cases, but dismissing a strong vocal performance as a “problem” because of those looks seems to me singularly clueless.
“It’s also a shade disingenuous, since I believe that if Erraught had been really fat, rather than simply curvy, the press would have held its collective tongue. We’ve learned enough not to call the fat lady “fat,” in her own hearing, but when she’s merely zaftig, it seems, she’s fair game. Furthermore, it’s lazy. It is perfectly legitimate to be underwhelmed by a singer; but there is an accompanying responsibility to think carefully about what was or wasn’t lacking in the performance, rather than kissing a singer off with faint praise (“gloriously sung,” if true, surely merits more than an offhand mention?) and blaming everything on her weight. (Not everyone, incidentally, saw problems. Fiona Maddocks of the Observer tweeted, “Ahead of full review: Tara Erraught’s Octavian is touching, innocent, beautifully sung, beautifully acted.”)
“It certainly brought wider attention to Tara Erraught, who, among other future engagements, will be singing the title role of “La Cenerentola” at the Washington National Opera in almost exactly one year. It would be a nice twist on “Cinderella” story if the story of badly-treated young woman who triumphs could actually come true.”
You can read the full Washington Post article here.
Websites dedicated to opera have been swamped with messages of support for the 27-year-old former Dun Lughaidh student. She has so far kept her thoughts to herself, though Rupert Christiansen of The Telegraph has defended his comments, saying that though she is pretty and appealing, her physical appearance makes her unsuited to a role where she is playing a young nobleman, a principal-boy type.
The incident has caused quite a stir in the operatic community, even warranting an article on The Daily Mail website.
Talk of the Town 