Conroy Scott: from Atlantis to the stage in Carmen

Taking on the role of a matador is somewhat nostalgic for Atlantis-born opera singer Conroy Scott who lived in Spain for six years, where he watched the popular bull run in Pamplona city.

“It was absolutely terrifying. We watched crazy Spaniards run down the roads,” said Scott during a rehearsal break at the Artscape Theatre in central Cape Town.

Conroy plays Escamillo in the popular opera Carmen which composer Bizet premiered in 1875. The show is produced by the Cape Town Opera (CTO) company. In the rehearsal room, under director Steven Stead’s guidance, Scott devours the role.

“Escamillo is suave, smooth and the showman. He’s in the opera for only 13 minutes but makes such a massive impact. He has his own song which is recognised throughout the world. It’s a fantastic role,” said Scott.

Scott’s Escamillo also gets into a fight with soldier Don José as both men desire Carmen, described as a “fiercely independent heroine”. Don José’s “obsessive love for Carmen drives the opera’s tragic arc”.

While this story is not new and has been staged many times worldwide, Stead’s treatment incorporates dancers from the Figure of 8 and Jazzart Dance Theatre companies. He is collaborating with a 92-member cast, including children. Music accompaniment is from the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by maestro Tim Murray.

While Scott has studied opera at the University of Cape Town, he believes his experience in musical theatre, jazz singing and Motown shows in Spain has enhanced his performance in opera.

“My former voice teacher, professor Virginia Davids, always told me 'don’t shoehorn yourself into a box' when it comes to music genres. We love opera but there is no reason why we can’t do other music too,” he said.

“A lot of people make the mistake to study opera and then forget about other genres. As a musician, before singing opera, you have to have musicality.”

Scott said when "doing a musical theatre piece, there is always something from opera I can bring into that and vice versa”. This helps especially as opera now needs more emotive delivery.

“There are moments where it’s just park-and-bark, when you are just standing and singing. In opera it has become more than just the musicality but also physicality. That makes it more believable. Audiences are expecting that.”

Scott’s early musical life started in childhood at church where every Saturday morning the local priest would command the choir.

“Being New Apostolic, music has always been a big part of the church. When I got older I started playing instruments and was singing in the adult choir. I have always been singing. I always loved classical music. I did all of that while studying and working,” he said.

“Then one night in church we watched an interview with (opera singer) Laura English and she had just done Phantom of the Opera. I was 25 and then I decided I want to study opera. I asked a friend who studied at UCT to bring me a prospectus.”

But this was a detour from a career already on track. Scott quit his mechanical engineering job and headed to Cape Town for studies.

“I said I want to study music. I wanted to do what I love. The first question my dad asked was, ‘Are you sure you can make a career?’ I said, ‘If I work hard enough I can’. I gave up a well-paid job. That was tough,” he said.

“I remember calling my mom saying that I might have to move back home. That was in my first year of studying opera. But I had to stick to it and make it work.”

His parents and two younger sisters still live in Atlantis. Scott intends to do opera for as long as he can and is also a bassist at the philharmonic orchestra. If all else fails, he always has mechanical engineering as a back-up plan.

Carmen runs for six shows at the Artscape Theatre from 19 and 31 May.