Melinda Bargreen | 3 NOV 2025
The title of Verdi’s La traviata means “the one who strayed.”
For soprano Mané Galoyan, however, this opera is a very welcoming home turf, where the role of Violetta fits her like the proverbial glove.
The upcoming Atlanta Opera production, which opens this Saturday, November 8, at Cobb Energy Centre, is the fifth outing in that big role for Galoyan, an international prizewinner who holds two degrees from the Yerevan State Komitas Conservatory in Armenia.
“This production has all the things you want with it,” Galoyan observed in a recent telephone interview. “It’s pretty traditional; the set is gorgeous, and the costumes are so beautiful! And I like Atlanta a lot; this is my second time here, and my husband (conductor Roberto Kalb) has also worked here.”
Galoyan is eager to revisit the role of Violetta, whom she considers “kind of my best friend. It’s one of the biggest roles I’ve done for the past ten years, and it’s ever-changing—my life changes, too. It’s about her profoundness and her elegance. Violetta was a self-made businesswoman—a well-educated courtesan, hosting salons, engaging in sophisticated conversations. When you go deep into the character, you discover she is certainly not just a prostitute, but a real person who is so complex, and so interesting as an artist to portray.”
“Verdi did such an incredible job of giving us music that does the work for us. It’s all there in the score: the nobility, the flirt, the drama, the tragedy. It makes our work much easier.”
Galoyan often goes back to Alexandre Dumas’s novel, La Dame aux Camèlias, on which the opera is based.
“Every time it’s different. I keep reading the book, the novel, to get into the world of Violetta. Every time I see it in a different light. The core of it has not changed. But I get more insight, more personality.”
Inspiration also comes from Galoyan’s fellow cast members and the production team.
“When you work with so many different partners, you interact with them differently. Maybe you sing the aria when you’re alone, but when your partner changes, you change. It’s so much more interesting that way! My favorite part of the process is the rehearsal time: we get to find so many colors together, and that creative part is very fun.”
The costumes can be fun, too. In last summer’s Traviata production in Santa Fe, with director Louisa Moller, Galoyan wore “a party girl costume with a huge, gorgeous headpiece. I felt so empowered wearing that costume!”
In Atlanta, Galoyan promises “another very beautiful production, on the traditional side with a straightforward story: nothing crazy! The only different thing is that the Overture is staged, and we begin by seeing Violetta on her deathbed—a scene which comes full circle in Act III.”
Galoyan has some strong feelings about adherence to Verdi’s score, and the high-flying E-flat that many sopranos insert in the last line of the opera’s great aria “Sempre libera.”
“I’ve never sung optional E-flat, and I don’t think it adds anything,” Galoyan observes.
“The aria is high enough, and it’s perfect as it is. We don’t need to add an E-flat. Now more and more people respect the score and sing the aria the way Verdi wrote it.
“I don’t feel obliged to show off. I’m here to empower everyone not to do it!”
Galoyan’s journey in music started with piano studies at the age of nine, followed by voice lessons “just for fun, to be able to sing a little.” Gradually, the singing took over, and at a singing competition in St. Petersburg she met Diane Zola.
“She was the casting person in Houston Grand Opera, and she’s actually the reason I’m where I am. She invited me to the young artists’ summer program, and I participated in a Concert of Arias competition, and auditioned to be part of their studio in 2015—and that is where everything started. I never thought that would be my path: I thought I would go to Germany and be in an ensemble. But Houston Opera Studio was one of the best in the country, with the best coaches, and an incredible voice teacher (Stephen King), and the opportunity to sing for so many agents and companies. It was very challenging: I needed thick skin!”
Galoyan’s debut in Atlanta was three years ago, when she sang Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, and she’s looking forward to her return.
“I’ve known Tomer Zvulun since 2016, and he is a very supportive colleague. I’m very lucky—I have friends, and I like people, just like Violetta! I want to encourage people to come and see us: La Traviata is such a good first-time opera for everyone. And this production is so beautiful: heart-warming, and heart-breaking!” ■
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Mané Galoyan: manegaloyan.com
- The Atlanta Opera: atlantaopera.org
Read more by Melinda Bargreen.
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