2023 Winter Newsletter

A winterscape in southern Ontario, Canada.

Is it still winter? According to the calendar… it still is, but I feel like the spring thaw is just around the corner now that we’ve sprung ahead an hour.

I haven’t been consistent with this quarterly newsletter — apologies for that — but I’m happy to be bringing your inbox some lovely highlights of the past while, and more soon of announcements of what’s to come this spring!

—tk.

 

A recap of 2022 (and a bit of 2023)

Teiya Kasahara 笠原貞野 in Nightwood Theatre’s production of The Queen In Me, 2022 (co-produced by Amplified Opera, Canadian Opera Company, and Theatre Gargantua). Pianist David Eliakis, co-directors Andrea Donaldson and Aria Umezawa, set and costume designer Joanna Yu, lighting designer André du Toit, projection designer Laura Warren. Photo: Dahlia Katz.

THE QUEEN IN ME

  • It was a triumphant year for The Queen In Me, with its sold-out premiere, a remount in North York to rave reviews, 5 Dora award nominations, and its first global stop at the Belfast International Arts Festival.

  • Check out the website with the latest photos and reviews from the most recent productions.

  • And more performances are still to come later this year. Stay tuned for the announcement…

Teiya Kasahara 笠原貞野 in the Amadeus Choir’s production of Carmina Burana. Photo: Taylor Long.

NEW ROLES

I performed my first Carmina Burana soprano solo with the Amadeus Choir, Toronto Children’s Chorus, the Bergmann Piano Duo and TorQ Percussion Quartet, conducted by Kathleen Allan in a Halloween-inspired dress-up concert.

  • This winter I had the pleasure to cover (understudy) the role of Salome at the Canadian Opera Company. It was such a wonderful challenge and experience to sing Strauss’s score and dive deep into this complex character.

Photo: Janet Kimber.

NEW MANAGEMENT

  • In early 2023 I signed with Dean Artists Management. I’m very excited to be working with the team to be able to perform more opera and concert repertoire.

Performing “Aru hareta hi” from Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. (L-R) Shoko Inoue (pianist), Teiya Kasahara 笠原貞野 singer. Photo: John Endo Greenaway.

NEW COMMUNITY

  • I met 100 Japanese (Nikkei) Canadian artists from across the country at the first ever gathering of its kind, called the GEI Art Symposium in Victoria, BC last fall and had the great privilege to perform the famous aria from Madama Butterfly but in Japanese to an audience that understood the language. A truly memorable experience and a chance to connect more to my heritage and community with these incredible artists.

(L-R) Teiya Kasahara 笠原貞野, Hillary Tufford, Evan Mitchell, Johnathon Kirby, Scott Rumble, and the Kingston Symphony Orchestra. Photo: Kingston Symphony Association.

RECENTLY

  • Performing the soprano solo in Beethoven’s 9th with the Kingston Symphony to packed house was a great way to spend these wintery days.

 
Teiya Kasahara 笠原 貞野・they/them