Little Jackie Evancho to make debut with Pittsburgh Opera
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Jackie Evancho
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Sometime around mid-August of last summer, Pittsburgh Opera's General Director Christopher Hahn started receiving text messages from friends urging him to watch a 10-year-old girl on NBC's "America's Got Talent."
"They said, 'This Jackie Evancho from Pittsburgh, she's singing opera,' and I went, 'Yeah, right.' "
But he dutifully tuned in and watched her perform. "And I said, 'Uh-oh, I clearly have to pay attention to this.' "
He did. Now the pint-sized prodigy from Richland, who achieved international fame despite coming in second in last year's wildly popular talent show, will make her first concert appearance in the region at the Pittsburgh Opera's opening weekend festivities at the Benedum Center Oct. 16.
Jackie hasn't been completely absent from the Pittsburgh scene since her big break last summer. She sang the national anthem at a Pittsburgh Pirates game and at this year's Winter Classic for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
But life has been very busy -- she sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" on Oprah Winfrey's "Farewell Spectacular" show May 23 and has been in London promoting her new CD, "Dream with Me," which will be released June 14. She also will appear on PBS's "Great Performances," which will air on WQED Pittsburgh beginning June 5 at 6:30 p.m.
But, in an email, she wrote of how she's looking forward to this particular concert date.
"[It] feels really special since it is for my hometown. I grew up and live here," she said. "Even more special is that all the people that supported me on 'America's Got Talent' are able to come and see me in a concert in Pittsburgh."
And yes, Jackie will be singing Puccini's "O Mio Babbino Caro," which wowed the judges in last year's show and became a viral sensation on YouTube. Asked if she listens to opera for fun, she wrote that she likes all kinds of music.
"It's just that my voice is more suited for classical crossover type singing," she said.
Jackie won't be performing in an actual opera when she's here, but rather individual songs -- "When You Wish Upon a Star," "The Lord's Prayer" and "Nessun dorma" from Puccini's "Turandot" -- in a concert setting, even though after last year's show people were walking in off the street and demanding that Mr. Hahn hire her, he said.
At age 11, Jackie is far too young to be an opera singer, which requires tremendous physical stamina. "She's small and young, so you aren't going to see her sing for 25 minutes straight," Mr. Hahn noted. "What's interesting is that she herself likes this kind of music, because she feels connected to it and can express emotion through it.
First Published June 3, 2011 12:00 am
