The Unblinking Ear

For rising opera star Troy Cook, even listening to music is an active thing.

by David Shengold

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Published: Oct 25, 2006

Hot young American baritone Troy Cook has come a long way from band trumpet and school chorus in Eminence, Ky. (pop. 2,000). The Opera Company of Philadelphia phenom studied with retired Met diva Rita Shane at Eastman School of Music, took on key apprentice programs at Glimmerglass, Miami and Denver, and landed leading roles with the Met, City Opera, Minnesota Opera, San Francisco, Santa Fe and Geneva. A contented Bucks County resident for three years, Cook makes his OCP debut this week in the original "date opera," Puccini's La Boheme. Performances in Dresden are on deck. We sat down with him to discuss his burgeoning career and why he can't just turn on his stereo and unwind.

City Paper: What have some of your peak experiences been so far?

Troy Cook: Singing a stage audition at the Metropolitan Opera for Maestro James Levine; my sister happened to be visiting me and got to sit in and watch. Also my New York recital debut with Kathy Kelly at the keyboard. It was just after 9/11, and I could tell that the audience took this concert as a chance to escape from all of the pain and suffering around them. Never before had I felt that my job as a performer could be so important. As far as fun: Singing Figaro in The Barber of Seville with the San Francisco Opera. It was such a great production, and I got to ride around the stage on a candy-apple-red Vespa! Also, while I was there, I got to see Yosemite, which was beyond anything I'd seen before.

CP: What would you tell friends who don't know opera to get them to check out La Boheme?

TC: I would tell them that it's very much like an early Meryl Streep movie. The young Meryl Streep would have made a great Mimì. I would also tell them that Boheme is just the right length, no more than your average feature film. Most importantly, even though this piece was written over 100 years ago, it shows that friendship, romance, betrayal, love and loss are still the same now. I love playing Marcello — he's such a free spirit, a bit of a braggart, who puts on a good show for everyone, while deep inside he's a hopeless romantic with a heart of gold.

CP: Do you have a dream role? How about musical comedy?

TC: As far as things I could sing right now, I'd love to sing Britten's Billy Budd. One of my favorite roles, not that I would ever sing it, is Mandryka, from Richard Strauss' Arabella. The music is so beautiful, and finally, the baritone gets the girl in the end! If I did cross over to musical comedy I would like to sing Cole Porter or Rodgers and Hammerstein. Their music is more suited to legit singers and they spin amazing melodies. When I'm at home, I don't listen to much of anything. Usually when I'm not in rehearsal or doing a performance the quiet is music to my ears. Listening to music for me is an active, not a passive thing; so if the music is on I'm listening, and not getting anything else done — if you understand what I mean. For me music is never in the background. However, I do love Ella, Shirley Horne, Sinatra and the like.

CP: What's life like on the road for an itinerant young opera singer?

TC: I am on the road a lot, so the cell phone, much as I hate to say it, is my friend, my lifeline to my friends and family. I like to vacation at home! However, I've gotten to spend time in a lot of great places around the world. I was just in Belgium, France and Amsterdam, I spent three weeks in Japan, I've seen practically every corner of the U.S., and next winter I get to escape and spend a month singing in the Canary Islands. People say I am very lucky to get to do so much traveling; however it's both a blessing and a curse. When I get home from a long job, I usually want to toss the clothes in my suitcase in the garbage and go shopping!

CP: What do you do when not "being an opera singer"?

TC: I love gardening, cooking, good beer, yoga, spending time with my partner and my two Jack Russell terriers, and reading some of my favorite authors, like David Sedaris and Augusten Burroughs.

CP: Your impressions of Philadelphia thus far?

TC: It's my first time singing with the Opera Company! I find Philly a great city with all the hustle-bustle of New York, but a more manageable size, with great restaurants, great beer — especially Victory — and outstanding architecture.

(d_shengold@citypaper.net)

La Boheme, Oct. 27-Nov. 11, Opera Company of Philadelphia at Academy of Music, Broad and Locust sts., $5-$195, 215-893-1999, www.operaphilly.com.

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