In the upcoming and much anticipated "Sweeney Todd" at NYCO,
Andrew Drost tackles the role of Pirelli. BWW's Marie Forbes
sat down with Andrew to talk about his NYCO Debut...
MARIE: Andrew, before I talk to you about Sweeney Todd, tell me how you decided to pursue a career in opera?
ANDREW: Before I even entertained the idea to try and become an opera singer I was a professional ballet dancer for ten years. During my last year with the Miami City Ballet I had become good friends with a young dancer who was an opera fanatic. We would listen to opera recordings together and I really felt a connection with the music… it was so beautiful and passionate. So one day while listening to the great Franco Corelli I said to my friend, "I wonder if I can sing like that? I bet I can." So I let out this high B natural (not really knowing what was going to happen), and I guess it was pretty good because he went crazy. Next thing you know Miami City Ballet is on tour in the New York area and I decided to take a voice lesson with a coach that was a cousin of a friend of a friend… literally! I chose two arias; "La Donna e Mobile" and "Lamento di Federico" (both great arias) and I "taught" them to myself by listening to recordings. So, I Sing the "Lamento" followed by "La Donna e mobile" and the guy says: "Well, there definitely is a voice there!" He made a phone call to Josh Hecht, who would later be my first voice teacher, and said, "I have a kid here that wants to be a Tenor. I think you should hear him." The next day I sang for Hecht. Same arias, same order. He looked at me very seriously and said, "Kid, that is the worst Italian I have ever heard in my life! But there IS a voice there. Come back and see me when you are done with this whole dance thing." Ten months later.... that is exactly what I did.
MARIE: So you first had a career in ballet and then opera? That's pretty unique...Now that you have experience in both fields, what would you say the differences are?
ANDREW: One of the first thing I noticed is that I am now a "Young" person again, in ballet once you're past 25 or 26 it's like you are "Old man river!" because everyone else is 17, 18, 19, etc. The other major difference is that in ballet I relied on my whole body to get through a performance and if I had a backache or tendonitis somewhere, I could still pull through a performance without the audience knowing any better. But with singing, yes I use my whole body but I rely mainly on two little folds of skin (vocal cords), and if I'm having trouble with those, forget it! It could be a very painful evening for the audience and myself. So I really have to take even better care of myself as a singer. People laugh sometimes when they see a singer with a scarf on when it is relatively warm out but I think you have to be a little paranoid as a singer. Better safe than sorry, right?
MARIE: Now let's talk about Sweeney Todd. First, how did you land the role of Pirelli?
ANDREW: My voice teacher, Virginia Grasso, decided to have me sing for the Head of Music Preparation at NYCO. I was starting to make some progress with Virginia and she wanted another opinion. He thought we were on the right track and made a few suggestions and we left. Shortly there after, Virginia called and told me that there was an audition for the role of Pirelli in Sweeney Todd and that NYCO would like me to sing for it! I quickly learned the music and prepared for the audition. I sang Pirelli's aria and the aria from "La fille du Regiment", and literally four days later they offered me the job!
MARIE: Tell us a bit about Sweeney Todd, the production, the rehearsal process, the cast…
ANDREW: First of all, in my humble opinion, Sweeney Todd is Sondheim's masterpiece. Not to mention that it is one of the greatest musicals ever written. I love to hear different bits of information from the director about Sondheim's intentions with certain musical selections. I think I love the show even more now, if it's possible! I notice something different everytime I am in rehearsal. It is brilliant!
