JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?
RIHAB CHAIEB: I am happy to be keeping busy with a few projects dear to my heart. From January until the end of July, I have been lucky to be singing an – almost – all Mozart repertoire, ranging from Zerlina, Cherubino, Dorabella, and even singing Mozart himself in the world premiere of “The Phoenix” in Houston, an opera on the life of Mozart’s main librettist, Lorenzo DaPonte. Of course, my first Mahler song cycle (Das Lied von der Erde) with orchestra at the Toronto Summer Festival is also a project that has kept me happy and fed my soul whilst learning it. But my biggest project is yet to come, and that is my first Carmen, which will be happening in Cologne in the fall and winter.
JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?
RC: Most people do not see that behind the “glamour” lies an incredible amount of hard work and, most of all, a large amount of time spent alone in your solitude. Being a singer is to be a loner on the road, staying in someone else’s apartment, adapting to different languages and different personalities every 2 months or so, and everyone just expects you to be in top shape at all times. It is definitely a certain lifestyle that compares to nothing else in the world. We need to make connections very fast, and hence I have met some of the most important, talented and wonderful people in my professional and personal life doing this incredible job.
JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?
RC: My entire self. This work is a three-dimensional workload. It is mental, physical, emotional, spiritual journey.
JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?
RC: As a creative person, I want to do EVERYTHING. All things. All the arts. I want to paint, draw, sing, learn the cello, be a videographer, a photographer, a digital marketer, a publicist, a bar owner, an agent, a stage director, a casting director, a gallery owner, and also, I want to own my own vineyard. You see the problem here?
JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?
RC: 1- Do you care if the trill starts from above or below?”
2- Did you compose this to be followed exactly or did you mean for personal liberties to be taken by the singer?
3- What were you on to write this glorious piece of divine music?
JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.
RC: When I got my first professional gig ever (after rightfully auditioning for the part), the head of opera studies at my school bluntly told me that I shouldn’t have gotten it because he thought I wasn’t good enough. It sparked that magical/scary reaction of “We shall see!”. I have always been very thankful for that moment, and for the lack of support I got from this person.
JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?
RC: You know, as a kid, I was always so excited about everything! I had a hard time choosing between hobbies because I wanted to do them all! Sports, painting, music… they all fed my soul. I am so happy with what I do right now because it nourishes me and gives me the possibility to share my craft with others whilst being on stage. I do not like to close myself too much this early in my career, but I love the idea of wanting to do everything, like when I was a child. Directing, artist management, casting, maybe even having my own opera festival somewhere in Tunisia or in Canada. Who knows?
JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?
RC: I wouldn’t. Everything has led me here, where I was meant to be. I know it sounds obnoxiously esoterica, but it’s true.
JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?
RC: You know, an art form that hasn’t died for over 400 years is not going anywhere. I mean, if it was meant to die, it would’ve died a long time ago, no? That’s why you still have to wait 2.5 hours to see the minuscule Joconde at the Louvres, the MET art museum gala is THE hottest event of the year, Sarah Jessica Parker is on the board of directors of the New York City Ballet, and people are still willing to create, perform, and pay for opera, which is the most expansive of all art forms. Why? Because the desire to be touched hasn’t died. Humanity wants to be moved and touched, even though a technological revolution, where even our emotions have been somewhat digitalized. Reading on a Kindle or an iPad is great, but the FEELING of reading a real book with real pages is much better, isn’t it? Watching new movies with CGI is great, but nothing will replace Breakfast at Tiffany’s or a Hitchcock. The future of the arts is not the death of its ancestors.
JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?
RC: I love being in the rehearsal process so much because it gives me the possibility to try different things with the character I am playing. It is always all about balance, but for balance to be found, you need to spill on one side and then on the other and eventually you find the perfect balance for you, the director and the conductor. Sometimes you have a wonderful director who will trust you and your skills, and give you the freedom and space to find your way in his vision.
JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?
RC: 1. You need to filter the “white noise”, i.e. advice that has not been asked for
2.Trust only a handful of people i.e. your “president council”
3.Trust your gut
4. And don’t wear high heels that are too high
JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?
RC: When on the road, in my everyday life as an opera nomad, I try to learn a new “hobby.” I have gathered a surprising number of different skill sets that aren’t limited to just singing and acting. When I was in Sicily for language lessons, I became a certified scuba diver. My last time in Glyndebourne, I decided to learn golf. Houston was sailing. Whenever I have some time, I love learning new things and new skills that broaden my “life repertoire,” make me happy, keep my body and my brain fit, and ultimately makes me a better singer and performer.
