Frederick Ballentine discusses "Porgy and Bess", and "Building your team"!
Kevin Ray Johnson
It is my honor to introduce you to Frederick Balletine. Frederick is blowing crowds away in his The Metropolitan Opera debut as Sportin' Life in George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess; a role he has previously performed with The English National Opera, as well as De Nederlandse Opera and, will be reprising with The Washington National Opera in the spring. Frederick truly embodies the energy and feeling of Porgy and Bess with his performance and everyone who comes to see him will truly attest that he is definitely worth the price of admission. Mr. Ballentine has quite a rich performance career having performed all over the world. I am happy to have the chance to interview Frederick as he discusses his earlier years, memorable performances and his journey with Porgy and Bess.
1.) How old were you when you knew you wanted to be a performer?
I was around 14. I went to a performing arts high school where we only did opera. I wasn’t sure if it was something I wanted to peruse until around sophomore year when my voice changed. Once I realized that singing in the male voice could also be fun, I decided to give it a shot.
2.) Where did you study? Are there any mentors that truly helped make you the performer you are today?
I went to the University of Cincinnati’s Conservatory for my bachelor and Rice University for my Masters. I was very lucky throughout my education. So many educators saw potential in me and push me to continue on this path. However, The person Id truly consider a mentor passed away before I could finish my undergraduate degree. His name was Robert Brown, and his confidence and faith in me helped me to have confidence in myself. I think watching the performances of the black singers that came before me also helped to shape the way I perform. People like Shirley Verrett and Jessye Norman had such an infallible presence. I wanted that.
3) In my opinion Sportin' Life truly embodies the spirit of Porgy and Bess. Having performed this role all over the world what can you say draws you to the role and to this wonderful Opera?
Sportin Life is intensely dynamic for me. The character never feels the same from night to night. It’s his nature to roll with the punches and assimilate into any situation. That’s given me the license to remain as flexible as possible in its performance. I think we feel like that with many roles, but none of the others I’ve performed have allowed me to do it on this level. As to the opera, THIS MUSIC! This music has an immediacy to it that isn’t present in all opera. I feel like the emotions are in real-time.
4.) Are there any moments or performances in your Porgy and Bess journey that truly stick out?
I’ll never forget the rush of energy on the opening night of Porgy at the MET. I was under the weather and running on limited sleep, but when I sang my last note and walked off the stage with Bess, I suddenly realized what a huge thing we’d just done. The weight of it was almost overwhelming, but I loved it.
5) Are there any other shows that you have done in your career that will always be near and dear to your heart?
A few years back we debuted the new edition of Phillip Glass’s Appomattox. The weight of that performance was similar to that of our show at the MET. It was such a community-driven piece, And it felt like we were performing for some type of greater good. It was fulfilling in a way.
6.) What advice would you give young performers who want a career in this business?
Build your team and listen to them. This career has so many ups and downs and twists and turns. It’s just too much for one to navigate on their own, so have a small group of people that you can use as a sounding board.
To learn more about Frederick please visit his official website at - https://www.frederickballentine.com
Performances for Porgy and Bess start back up on January 8th and three additional performances have been added to the schedule (the first time ever in modern history of The Metropolitan Opera that shows has been added to a run). To Learn more about the show please make sure you visit - https://www.metopera.org
Check out this rehearsal clip from Porgy and Bess at The Metropolitan Opera of Frederick performing Sportin' Life's 11 o'clock number "It Ain't Necessarily So" -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxOW6x22I98