Reilly Nelson - a Sault native and opera singer who has performed on two continents - says she is “beyond excited” to perform at New York City’s Lincoln Center Feb. 3 and 4.
She will appear in Blind Injustice, a modern American opera that tells in song the story of six real life individuals who were wrongfully imprisoned but later exonerated.
Nelson portrays Nancy Smith, a former bus driver from Ohio who was arrested and falsely charged with sexually abusing children in her care in 1994. She served more than 15 years in prison for crimes that never took place.
“A mother made up a story that she had molested those children. There was really no evidence but prosecutors are elected in the United States and one of them wanted to get reelected. One mother created some mass hysteria around it. Other mothers came forward and said ‘Nancy Smith molested my children too’” Nelson told SooToday in a recent interview.
Smith was exonerated in February 2024.
The majority of the Blind Injustice text comes from interviews with the real life exonerees, meaning that Nelson will be singing Smith’s own words.
The two women have met and worked together on the production.
“It’s very unique to meet someone you’re singing about. In traditional opera you’re representing a character that may have been a real person at one point but you’re really making up your own ideas about the character. With contemporary opera you get to tell stories about things that are happening now," Nelson said.
“The choir is a huge part of this piece. They’ll be onstage behind us and each of the singers playing exonerees will have our part in the front of the stage.”
A graduate of the former Sir James Dunn Collegiate, Nelson’s formal training as a singer began at the age of nine under the direction of Agnes McCarthy at the Algoma Conservatory Of Music.
“My mom, Carrie Nelson, was my first and greatest inspiration. She took voice lessons herself growing up in the Sault.
"A lot of people tell me ‘your mom sang at my wedding!’ She taught voice lessons in our house when we were growing up. She had opera CDs and they were the soundtrack to my childhood in a way.”
Nelson earned a Bachelor of Music from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, and both master's and doctoral degrees in vocal pedagogy from the University of Cincinnati.
She has performed in cities across North America and Europe.
“It’s different from regular tourism. When I perform internationally I get to become a part of a city’s artistic community while I’m there. I love to discover new places but mostly I’ve enjoyed making new personal connections. A city’s operatic community is very tight,” Nelson said.
She has fond memories of her European debut at Tiroler Festspiele Erl in Erl, Austria in 2021.
“My favourite performances in opera don’t always align with what is the biggest role in an opera. It’s more about the people I meet and work with in any given place. That’s what makes a place special for me. I really loved the group of people I worked with in Austria. It was magical being in the mountains and the music was stunning.”
Other key performances for Nelson have taken place with Cincinnati Opera, Kentucky Opera, the Reno Philharmonic and in fall 2024 she made her Canadian début at Pacific Opera Victoria.
A winner of the 2018 Lotte Lenya Competition held by the Kurt Weill Foundation for Music, Nelson has been called “a revelation” by Opera News and praised for her “distinctly warm and burnished” sound.
“It feels great to have your work validated, especially when it reinforces a performance I felt good about. I always hold my breath before I read a review but I’ve been pretty lucky so far. It’s good career wise to get a good review,” Nelson said.
She lists Maria Callas and Barbara Hannigan among singers who have influenced her.
“I look up to singers who are great actresses and great singers. For singers who are living now, Barbara Hannigan is probably my biggest role model. She’s a conductor and a singer, and she’s Canadian as well. She’s one of the most riveting performers I’ve ever seen.”
Now based in Toronto, Nelson said the Sault will always be home, stating she tries to get home for a visit every few months.
“It’s where my family is. It’s where I find the most peace and calm."
“Sometimes I feel like I didn’t choose singing. It’s just something that I’ve always done. The more I perform the more I realize it’s exactly what I’m meant to be doing.
"It’s not just about making music. It’s about creating moments when myself as the performer and the audience can connect to something authentic in a world of mass media and artificial intelligence. There’s no soundboard, no auto tune. It’s all real and I think people crave that authenticity going forward. Going to the opera is very meaningful and that’s a huge reason why I sing.”