Kiwi Opera Star Shaun

The Tenor Is Ready To Pass On All He’s Learned.

- Fiona Fraser

Shaun Dixon is a bit hoarse. “It’s laryngopharyngeal reflux,” explains the New Zealand-born tenor, sipping on a ginger tonic. “It’s because I’ve been working really hard at rehearsals, as well as teaching – it’s full-on and non-stop.”

A bit like Shaun himself. The spirited protégé of opera great Luciano Pavarotti is back on home turf for just a few weeks, to perform the role of Alfredo in Festival Opera’s La Traviata – set to be a standout event at Napier’s Art Deco Festival.

For Shaun, it’s an opportunity to reconnect with the country that raised him and to embark on something new.

That something new is teaching – because as part of his short tenure in Hawke’s Bay, he’s working with the kids of Project Prima Volta (PPV), the immersive opera experience offered to 30 talented youth from around the region annually.

“I get very little opportunity to pass on my knowledge,” laments the 41-year-old. “And I have a wealth of it that needs to come out! PPV has blown my mind. It’s like the programme has uncovered some new genetic breed that can really sing!”

Shaun’s own trajectory from Tokoroa schoolboy to opera star is a fascinating one. Identified as a singing talent from a young age, “because I was the loudest at assembly”, he got his first break aged 10 − a lesson with a Swiss voice teacher visiting New Zealand.

“This was a guy who trained the soloists for the Vienna Boys’ Choir... Afterwards, the teacher asked me to come to Europe to train. But Mum couldn’t agree to that. I was just too young.”