PRESS: Fiona Ramsay stars in THE OPERA SINGER at the Baxter Theatre

Baxter Theatre Centre

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Fiona Ramsay returns to the Baxter Theatre from 20 January 2025 to embody the high-stakes world of the diva in THE OPERA SINGER.

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After captivating audiences in Austria in 2024, the hit play, THE OPERA SINGER, starring Fiona Ramsay and Owain Rhys Davies and directed by Janna Ramos-Violante, begins its highly anticipated South African tour at the Baxter Studio on 20 January 2026, running until 7 February 2026. Performances take place Tuesday to Saturday at 20:00, with a Saturday matinee at 15:00.

Presented by Tony Flack and Janna Ramos-Violante, THE OPERA SINGER premiered in August 2024 at the Salzburg Arts Festival, followed by a successful run at Vienna’s Das Off Theatre. The play is a poised and lyrical exploration of legacy, artistry, and connection, told through the eyes of an ambitious journalist and lifelong opera devotee. It grants intimate access to the private world of a once-revered diva, confronting the cost of celebrity and the moment when a worshipped voice becomes inseparable from the person behind it.

THE OPERA SINGER interrogates notions of fame, celebrity, and the sacrifices required to sustain a career in the fiercely competitive world of opera, as well as the toll this can take on a life. Deceptively filmic and deeply immersive, it offers a rare window into the inner world of a creative spirit and a life defined by the pursuit of perfection.

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Welsh actor Owain Rhys Davies plays the journalist who seeks an interview with the opera singer, a writer conflicted by journalistic ethics and his desire to uncover the real person behind the diva. What emerges is an intriguing and enigmatic figure grappling with immense talent, profound lack of self-worth, and deep loneliness.

Despite its searing insights, the play crackles with wit and a wry philosophy on the human condition. It probes the ripple effects of immense talent - not only the responsibility it places on those who possess it but the inevitable toll it can unleash on the artist and those around them.

Audiences and critics alike have responded powerfully to THE OPERA SINGER. Thomaz Stein described the play as “timeless,” praising the way it hooks audiences with “glamour, honesty, and wit,” and ultimately leaves them changed by its humanity. Opera singer Wolfgang Meisner found the portrayal of Ramsay’s diva “sublime” and “profound,” calling it a deeply touching representation of a life devoted to an art form - one that resonated strongly with his own experience. Julia Connelly recalled sitting “motionless at the end of the play,” moved to tears by the beauty, richness, and emotion of an artistic life. Annie Sonnenberg highlighted the production’s depth, noting its insight into celebrity culture and the danger of social media distorting facts in ways that can reshape a person’s legacy, while also praising the fascinating portrayals of both the journalist and the vulnerably brittle diva.

THE OPERA SINGER runs at the Baxter Theatre from 20 January to 7 February 2026 at the Baxter Studio Theatre, at 20:00 from Tuesday to Saturday, with a 15:00 matinee on Saturdays. The play is 90 minutes long without an interval. Booking is through Webtickets online or at Pick n Pay stores. The production will travel to Johannesburg in March before London tour dates later in the year.