Rigoletto at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre: "It's a story of universal themes that transcend any barriers of language, age and time"

It’s swiftly approaching teatime on a crisp autumnal afternoon in Manchester, when I’m greeted by acclaimed Soprano Soraya Mafi. Born to an Iranian father and a second generation Irish mother in Greater Manchester, Soraya has been surrounded by music her whole life.

She tells me it’s a profoundly moving tale, and that Giuseppe Verdi’s Rigoletto is as relevant to modern society as it was in the 19th century. Based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 play Le roi s’amuse, Rigoletto tells the heartbreaking story of a father’s overbearing love for his daughter, and how it ultimately leads to both of their downfalls.

Akin to a Shakespearean tragedy, the court jester Rigoletto bears a fatal flaw, is cursed, and seeks revenge on the lustful Duke. Soraya plays the role of Gilda, Rigoletto’s daughter.
“It’s such a pulling-at-every-heartstring show,” she remarks. “It’s a story of universal themes that transcend any barriers of language, age, and time. It’s also about how people who are in a position of strength in society can oppress those below them in a very callous way. When Verdi wrote it, he knew it would be a hit, so he kept it a secret.

“He thought: if anyone hears someone hum this, within hours, they’ll be singing it at the pub, down the road, before the opening show. It had to be kept a secret. It’s one of those pieces of music where you think, ‘I can’t imagine it never having been written’”. The tunes in it are really beautiful.”

This will be Soraya’s third time portraying Gilda, and her affinity with the character is palpable.

“She’s my favourite role to sing,” she notes. “She’s so vulnerable and complex. Gilda sees the good in everybody. She’s extremely inquisitive, because she’s been sheltered her whole life and just wants answers. Gilda is a girl on the brink of womanhood and exploring what that means. The timing is all wrong, but in her mind it’s alright, so it is really tragic. Every time you go back to her, you discover something new.”

Soraya Mafi by Rosie Hardy.

Soraya decided to pursue a career in singing after winning the National Junior English Song Prize at the Royal Academy of Music. The singer later studied at the Junior Royal Northern College of Music and the Royal College of Music, where she made her professional debut as Soeur Constance in Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmelites. She has since performed across the world, with McCaw Hall in Seattle a firm favourite for the singer.

“Seattle as a city is so beautiful, it’s where I made my role debut as Gilda, so that will always be really special to me,” she enthuses. “My dad passed away soon after that, and that was the last thing he saw me do. He loved Maria Callas, so to see me sing a role that she’d sung, it was a big deal. We went whale-watching there, and my son took his first steps in Seattle, so there’s a lot of beautiful memories around it.”

This will be Soraya’s first time performing in Ireland, and coming from an Irish family of music lovers, she is sure that Rigoletto will go down a storm,

“I’m fairly confident that people will adore it, because I think it’s part of the fabric of the Irish community.”

While we inhabit an ever-fluctuating world with a continually changeable society, Soraya maintains that what draws modern audiences to opera is its deeply satisfying depth and substance.

“It’s the antidote to everything being on tap,” she says, “like streaming, and the short-form media we’re all addicted to. It’s taking that time out of your day to sit for a couple of hours and experience something live and raw. It’s following the story and being invested in it.”

• Rigoletto is at Bord Gáis Energy Theatre from December 1 - 7. Tickets start from €15 and are available here.