OperaWire: How have you been during this pandemic? What has it been like for you to not be able to get on a stage and have so much work canceled?

Leah Crocetto: Thanks for asking. I’m not going to lie, it has been rough. There have been moments of fear and wondering where I was going to get rent money. There have also been moments of deep gratitude and complete solace. Gratitude for the time to just center myself and remember what is most important in life, and solace in the knowledge that we will get through this.

The hardest part has definitely been not knowing when or if I would get on stage again and also the knowledge that my savings will run out at some point.

OW: When did you get contacted about the “Tosca” with the Northern Lights Music Festival and what was your first reaction?

LC: I was contacted by my dear friend Tamara Sanikidze six days before rehearsal started, and she asked me if I wanted to do a Tosca for my soul.

I said, “Of course. Where?”

She told me: “Northern Lights Music Festival.”

Truth be told I had never heard of the company, and when you think of Minnesota, the first place you think of is usually Minneapolis. Well, this is NOT happening in Minneapolis. It is in Chisholm, MN and it is five hours NORTH of Minneapolis. You really have to zoom in on the map to see it, and it’s a lovely place to be.

Tata’s connection to the company is that the director or the production is the director at the University of Texas at Austin’s Butler School, where Tata is in charge of the opera program. And Gavriel Heine, the conductor and music director of the program, is married to Tata’s high school best friend. This music business is such a small world! So, she asked me, and I didn’t ask how much the fee was, or who was involved or what the circumstances were.

I simply said, “Yes. I need this. I need to sing. Now.”

And this “Tosca” has indeed been feeding my soul. Of course, there was a bit of fear too because we are in the midst of a pandemic, but the company has been great and we have collectively taken every precaution.

OW: What does it mean to get back on stage after three months of not performing?

LH: Oh my goodness. Our first music rehearsal as a group, we get to “Vissi d’arte” and in the middle of the aria, I couldn’t continue. The tears just flowed. This is what it is all about.

“Vissi d’arte, vissi d’amore … Art is love and I live for it.” Music is a gift from God and without it, we are not fulfilled. This moment was one of the most special moments in my career. Returning to the opera and the aria that started it all for me, is a sensation that I don’t know how to put into words.

OW:  During quarantine how often did you sing? Or did you take a break, as many artists did?

LH: To be honest, it took a couple of months for me to be able to open my mouth. It was very depressing. I was being asked to record things and sing for certain other things and I said no to many, in the beginning.

Then, after a couple of months, I was asked to do the Opera Jukebox for Artist Relief Tree, hosted by David Hyde Pierce, and that was an incredible experience. He is a wonderful man.

Then I was asked to do a Couch Concert for The Kennedy Center and Washington National Opera. It was a co-concert with Quinn Kelsey and hosted by Francesca Zambello. That was my real return to singing. They wanted a full Verdi concert so I needed to brush up my chops! It felt really good to study and get back to basics and to really SING the Verdi! Since then, I never looked back and I began singing regularly again. It feels good.

OW: Tell me about the first reaction getting back on stage and what was it like to get into the rehearsal room?

LH: With our first music rehearsal, the tears flowed. With our first staging rehearsal, the butterflies came. There is nothing like discussing character and filtering the character through yourself after so long! Stagecraft is one of the most rewarding parts of performing.

OW: This is the first production of an opera that is being staged in the U.S. Can you tell me about the safety regulations that the festival took with the artists? What do you guys have to do before you get into the rehearsal room? Do you guys get constant tests?

LH: The Festival has been really great about this. We were all quarantined beforehand and once we arrived, we quarantined together. We are all staying in the same place and are only around each other.

Tests were administered and we have been taking temperatures every day. We have been rehearsing in masks unless we are singing, then we take the masks off. Hand sanitizer and masks are a constant when we are not singing and everything about the approach has been very cautious.

OW: The production will be outdoors and will follow social distance. Tell me how this Tosca will be done and how these protocols and regulations will work in the drama? How much physical contact will there be, if any?

LH: Yes, it is outside and the staging is not as intimate as your normal Tosca production. We are staged pretty far apart and far from the edge of the stage so as not to get into the space of the orchestra.

The only physical contact is between Mario and myself. There is no kissing. There is a brief embrace in Act three. But I think we manage to get the chemistry going without the physical contact. Rafael Davila and I have known each other for a long time, so we are very friendly, and I think that helps.