Pride Spotlights: Spencer Britten
Our next pride spotlight is Chinese-Canadian tenor Spencer Britten! Performing at the intersection of opera and musical theatre, Britten trained in singing from a young age and obtained a B.Mus. and a M.Mus from the University of British Columbia. Britten has a rich history of musical achievements and performances. He was a Young Artist at The Glimmerglass Festival (where he took part in productions such as Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Silent Night, The Cunning Little Vixen, Trouble in Tahiti, and West Side Story) and at L’Atelier Lyrique de l’Opéra de Montréal. In 2018, he debuted in Montreal with the Choeur Metropolitain as a soloist in Benjamin Britten's Rejoice in the Lamb and Dvořák's Mass in D Major. Credits from his 2019-2020 season include Triquet in Eugene Onegin (Opéra de Montréal); the Tenor Soloist in Carmina Burana (Les Grands Ballets); the final rounds at the Neue Stimmen International Voice Competition in Gütersloh, Germany; and a reprise of his role as Léon at Château de Versailles. He is currently a member of the International Opera Studio at Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin.
Image sourced from https://www.spencerbritten.com/
More recently, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Britten’s luminous voice was featured in Against the Grain Theatre's internationally acclaimed Messiah/Complex, a multilingual interpretation of Handel’s Messiah that gave support to Indigenous and underrepresented voices and amplified Pride and inclusivity across Canada. This online production featured a diverse cast of twelve soloists and four choirs performing in six languages, representing every province and territory across Canada, and was accompanied by the powerful sounds of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Praised for his effervescent rendition of “Comfort Ye/Every Valley”, Britten’s performance—filmed in Davie Village, Vancouver’s vibrant gay district—was a beautiful tribute that exemplified intersectionality and Pride. Regarding this memorable performance, in which he sang in front of a rainbow sidewalk and proudly sported high heels, Britten explains, “The film is about my journey to self-acceptance and self-confidence. At first, I’m bundled up in my coat, wearing boots, and then I evolve to a more confident Spencer. The next location is in Davie Village, downtown Vancouver, a gay neighbourhood of course, with bright colours and rainbows all over the place. And then I’m wearing heels, strolling on the sidewalk. It’s about my personal growth towards loving who I am and the gratitude to my past experiences and where I have come from.” Check out his moving performance below—a beautiful fusion of lush vocals, charisma, acceptance, and Pride.
