Julia Migenes

Julia Migenes (born March 13, 1949) is an American operatic soprano. She was born on the Lower East Side of New York to a family of Greek and Irish-Puerto Rican descent. She is sometimes credited as Julia Migenes-Johnson.

Early years

Her first experience in opera was as the child in Puccini's Madama Butterfly. While attending the New York School for Performing Arts, she was chosen by Leonard Bernstein as a soloist for the Young People's Concerts which was shown on television.

She began her Broadway career in the original cast of Fiddler on the Roof with Zero Mostel in 1964, and she then played Maria in West Side Story (1964). In the late 1960s she joined the Volksoper Wien at Vienna, Austria where she sang Maria in Marcel Prawy's German version of West Side Story in 1968 (at the time she had been singing in the chorus for a musical of the Theater an der Wien).^{[citation needed]}

Developing like a star

In the 1970s, she moved to Munich, Germany. She turned to opera and operetta, becoming famous and popular. She starred in many operetta films and television programmes, receiving several TV awards. Her Metropolitan Opera debut was in Alban Berg's Lulu (in John Dexter's production, 1980), as a substitute, for which she was cheered. She was then cast as Richard Strauss's Salome in Grand Théâtre de Genève. While in Geneva, film director Francesco Rosi saw her performance and cast her as Carmen opposite Plácido Domingo in his 1984 opera film Carmen (credited as Julia Migenes-Johnson).

Achievements

She has recorded more than 20 albums and won a Grammy Award for the soundtrack to Carmen. She was also nominated for the César Awards as best actress. Her one woman show, Diva on the Verge (2000), is available on DVD from Kultur Video. Her fame has spread worldwide and in other performance media and genres. She appeared in an episode of the Emmanuel Lewis vehicle, Webster. She guest starred in the TV series The New Twilight Zone episode, "Grace Note". Director Peter Medak asked her to appear in his opera film La voix humaine (1990).

In 2004, she was in the opera version of Angels in America which premiered at the Théâtre du Châtelet: a TV broadcast version is expected to be released on DVD.^{[citation needed]}

Migenes became a Scientologist and was a highly visible spokesperson. She was one of the performers on the Scientology music album The Road to Freedom (1986).^{[citation needed]}

Selected discography

• Hollywood Divas (2009)
• Alter Ego (2006)
• Le Meilleur de Julia (2004)
• La Argentina (2003)
• Infamia, Tangos de Barcelona (2000)
• Franz Lehar (1999)
• Robert Stolz (1999)
• Lulu (1998)
• Man of La Mancha (1996)
• 100 ans de Cinema (1995)
• Smile (1995)
• Vienna (1993)
• Kismet (1991)
• Rags (1991)
• La voix humaine (1991)
• Mack the Knife (movie soundtrack album) (1990)
• Live at the Olympia (1989)
• The Seven Deadly Sins (1989)
• Berlin Blues (1988)
• Show Boat (1988)
• In Love (1985)
• Carmen (1984)
• Recital (1983)
• A Christmas Concert (1983)
• Welterfolge (1983)
• Latin Lady (1982)
• Julia Migenes sings (1981)
• Operette (1981)
• Fiddler on the Roof (1964)

See also

Puerto Rico portal

• List of famous Puerto Ricans
• Irish immigration to Puerto Rico

External links

• Official website (English & French)
• Julia Migenes at the Internet Movie Database