Winnipeg soprano Andriana Chuchman makes Met debut

A Winnipeg soprano is making her operatic debut at the Met Thursday night.

Andriana Chuchman will sing the role of Adina for the first two performances of Donizetti’s “L’Elisir d’Amore” at the Metropolitan Opera in New York January 9 and Monday January 13. Italian conductor Maurizio Benini leads the production. It includes singers Ramón Vargas, Nicola Alaimo and Erwin Schrott.

Chuchman is replacing Russian soprano Anna Netrebko who had to cancel due to the flu. Netrebko is one of the biggest opera stars in the world so this is a daunting yet exciting opportunity for Chuchman.

According to her mother Irene, "Andriana said that the news is incredible, that she is ecstatic and not nervous. She said this is what she's always wanted."

Ms. Chuchman studied with Winnipeg coloratura soprano Tracy Dahl, who also made her Met debut in a similar situation, in 1991.

Chuchman was originally supposed to make her Met debut in February, singing the role of Miranda in a Baroque fantasy called The Enchanted Island.