10 (or so) questions with... Carla Thelen Hanson, opera singer

By Steve Lange

Rochester Magazine: You’ve gotten great reviews from everyone from the New York Times to the New Yorker magazine. Here’s another: “When Carla Thelen Hanson grips the steak knife, she is so convincing as the instrument of retribution for tyrants, that every hand in the audience joined hers.” You get into the acting, too.
Carla Thelen Hanson: Absolutely. It’s in the score, you know? Listen, I don’t want to see somebody just sing well, I want to see somebody who actually is the character. They need to embed that, too. I always try to do that with my art.

RM: I’m going to quiz you about some other sopranos.
CTH: I’m ready.
RM: When Tony and Christopher are about to dispose of Ralph’s body, what is Christopher shocked to discover about Ralph?
CTH: What? Are you talking about “Rigoletto”?
RM: No. It’s from the TV show “The Sopranos.”
CTH: I don’t watch TV. Do you have a lot of TV questions? Because I’m going to tank on almost every single one of those. I’m too cheap to buy cable. I think it’s a waste of time just so I can watch the History Channel once in a while.
RM: Do you have a TV in the house?
CTH: Oh, yeah. We watch movies and we play a lot of Rock Band. And we watch things on Hulu and YouTube and do things on the internet instead.
RM: Are you the singer in Rock Band?
CTH: No, but I play a wicked, wicked drum solo. I’m a really bad guitarist but I can play the drums, which is hilarious to anybody that remembers me in college—I had no rhythm at all.

RM: Family?
CTH: Tom and I have three kids: Kai, 19, Carly, 17, and Emily, 11.

RM: First date with your husband?
CTH: He’s going to hate this. We went to Burger King.

RM: How did Tom propose?
CTH: The first time?
RM: There’s been more than once?
CTH: Yes.
RM: Excellent.
CTH: The first time was on our first date. He was completely serious. I said ‘Are you high? I think you’ve had too much bacon grease.’ The next time was about a year and a half later. We had just been shopping, which I hate to do but he loves. He took me into a jewelry place, and he had bought this ring. He asked me in the middle of the store in front of all these people. Later, he did it properly.

RM: Have you always been into singing?
CTH: Yes, but when I was younger I wanted to be a veterinarian. I still wonder if I should have been a veterinarian. I really wanted to be a large animal vet—cows and horses and pigs and stuff like that.

RM: You’ve got two Rochester shows coming up.
CTH: Yes, I’m doing ... oh what am I doing?
RM: On March 12, you’ll be doing the ART of Singing at the Art Center. They’ll be projecting art behind you while you sing.
CTH: Yes. It’s a lunch and learn for the Rochester Music Guild. Those are very cool. Also I have a concert on March 30 at RCTC.

RM: How may months a year are you on the road?
CTH: It’s not six months anymore, like it used to be. Opera is in a funny funk right now. A lot of opera houses are closing. I’ve gotten embers glowing but not a full fire that has been excited about me yet. So if anyone has any money to donate to a starving opera singer they can send it this way. I need to go to Europe and sing for this agent that wants to hear me out there.

RM: I’m going to give you some characters. You tell me the opera.
CTH: I’ll try.
RM: Duke of Mantua, Gilda, Sparafucile, Maddalena.
CTH: [laughing at how bad I’m butchering the pronunciation of the names]: Rigoletto.
RM: Yes. Canio, Tonio, Nedda, Silvio.
CTH: Pagliacci.
RM: Yes. Rosalinde, Frosch, Prince Orlovsky, Dr Falke?
CTH: Die Fledermaus.
RM: You’re good. Dottie Winslow, The Guy from Animal Control, Marmaduke.
CTH: That’s gotta be some [Dominick] Argento piece.
RM: No. Those characters are from the comic “Marmaduke.”
CTH: Argento is going to read this and call me and yell at me. He’s in Minnesota.

RM: Do you ever do karaoke?
CTH: Only when drunk. The last time I went I was with my sisters and we were all quite intoxicated because it was for another sister’s wedding. We sang “We Are Family.” Naturally.

RM: Is there anything you wouldn’t want me to know about you?
CTH: Why would I tell you something I wouldn’t want you to know?
RM: I always ask that, just in case. It never gets me anywhere.
CTH: [in a weird, sarcastic voice]: Oh, yes, I have six toes on one foot.
RM: I figure just once, someone will blurt out something really good.
CTH: I can’t think of anything like that I’m willing to share.
RM: So you don’t really have six toes on one foot?
CTH: No, I don’t.

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