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Harriet Marshall: giving local opera singers a voice

Tuesday, 09 March 2021

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  • Ms Harriet Marshall, WAAPA graduate

    Ms Harriet Marshall, WAAPA graduate

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In 2020, Ms Harriet Marshall, WAAPA alumna and soprano singer, was inducted into the WA Women’s Hall of Fame for her innovative contribution to opera in Western Australia.

Continued from Alumni News...

Four years earlier, Harriet founded not-for-profit Freeze Frame Opera, her vision to reframe the art form of opera in a way that reflects and challenges our current world while at the same time increasing accessibility to a diverse range of audiences.

But a large part of Harriet’s motivation was to give opportunities to the many local talented opera singers and artists here in WA, so they don’t have to travel interstate and overseas for work, including many WAAPA alumni.

“WAAPA is such a great training ground for singers, instrumentalists and those involved in production and design. I wanted to find ways to give local artists opportunities after they graduate,” says Harriet.

The organisation also aims to make the experience as affordable as possible with costumes all being locally made and much of the set design coming from verge collections. Nevertheless, artist costs remain a priority in ensuring performers can make enough to earn a living.

“Artists costs are always the main costs and that’s what we want to support, so artists can find paid work in their chosen artform and not have to seek alternative employment to make a living,” says Harriet.

A situation Harriet herself knows all too well, in addition to her work with Freeze Frame Opera, Harriet works part-time as criminal lawyer for the Aboriginal Legal Service while also being the mother of three children.

“I just need to keep doing exciting things, I can’t stop. It’s all high adrenaline activity and performing, so they match in that way,” she jokes.

In addition to performing at venues such as the Claremont Showgrounds, Harriet and her team began to perform highly successful street concerts on the back of a truck during COVID lockdown.

“We had people who had never heard opera before tearing up. One audience member told us it was the best birthday present their father (who was turning 80) had received in his entire life,” explains Harriet.

Harriet is also driven by the opportunity to perform opera to local school groups, particularly for students in less wealthy areas with the goal of making opera accessible for more children.

Over the next five to ten years, she wants to continue doing school performances, to start regional touring and continue to make operas that are accessible for all.

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