Elisabeth Boudreault: A Return to Puccini at Opéra de Québec

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Opéra de Québec’s upcoming production of Puccini’s La bohème comes at just the right time in Elisabeth Boudreault’s career. A native of the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region, now based in London, England, these days the Quebec soprano is spending more time on this side of the Atlantic. With her Opéra de Québec debut as Musetta, she reconnects with a composer she particularly admires and who has brought her luck in the past.

“I fell in love with opera when I heard Puccini,” says Boudreault. “When I started singing at age 14, I didn’t want to hear anything else! My teacher tried to get me to sing Mozart, but nothing worked. I needed drama, opulence, and Puccini was right up my alley. Later, when I entered my first competitions, like the Canadian Music Competition, I sang many of his arias. Once I got to Europe, he was a composer I kept in my back pocket, but after all this time, I think it is the right moment and the right place to tackle a full-fledged [Puccini] role. Musetta is actually a short one, even though it’s seen as the supporting role after Mimì.”

This debut is also a chance for Boudreault to collaborate with conductor Clemens Schuldt and director Jacques Leblanc for the first time. That said, the soprano is no stranger to the Capitale-Nationale and its opera scene. She lived in Quebec City for three years while studying languages at Cégep de Sainte-Foy. When she was 18, she auditioned and landed the role of Madame Silberklang in an adaptation of Mozart’s Der Schauspieldirektor as part of Festival d’été de Québec in 2016. “During that audition, I sang, among other things, Musetta’s aria. Then when I was offered the role, it made me laugh; I thought to myself that I’d come full circle.”

Although, up to now, Boudreault has spent most of her professional and personal life in Europe, she is delighted to have recently taken on projects in Quebec. Notably, in February, she joined Ensemble Éclat, a group of 15 up-and-coming Montreal musicians from Montreal specializing in immersive events.

“It’s a creative contribution that isn’t necessarily found in the operatic repertoire. It nourishes me to be in the room with composers, working together to achieve the effect they want—to feel that I’m not only making a difference, but that I’m bringing everything I have as an artist and musician to a score. The energy I draw from the contemporary repertoire, I can then transfer to the operatic repertoire, allowing me to be more fully present.”