Morag McLaren

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Morag McLaren
Born1957
Edinburgh, Scotland
GenresOpera, musical theatre and cabaret
Occupation(s)Singer, actress, director, coach

Morag McLaren (born 1957) is a Scottish soprano singer, director and vocal coach. She has performed in opera, musicals, concerts, one woman shows and cabaret acts.

Contents

Early life and education

McLaren was born in Edinburgh and attended The Mary Erskine School. [1] She graduated with a Bachelor of Education in Music [1] at Lancaster University and trained as an opera singer at the Royal Northern College of Music, [1] [2] where she studied singing with Frederic Cox. She completed an MA degree with distinction in Performance Health and Personal Development at London College of Music.[ citation needed ]

Performing career

McLaren played principal roles in the West End (Carlotta in Phantom of the Opera , in 1988–1989, [1] and Mrs Segstrom in A Little Night Music with The Royal National Theatre in 1995–96). [1] [3] She also had principal roles with Scottish Opera (Lucy in Threepenny Opera in 1990) [4] and Welsh National Opera (The Mother, the Dew Fairy and the Witch in Hansel and Gretel in 1990–1991). [5]

She has also performed in cabaret acts alone and as part of Any Tessitura, a group comprising McLaren, David Bexon and Marion McCullogh and accompanist Tony Stenson, [6] [7] [8] Iwan Llewelyn-Jones [9] [10] or Kelvin Thompson. [11] McLaren has appeared at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with a tribute to American librettist and lyricist Dorothy Fields titled Hey Big Spender, [12] which she later performed in London. [13] [14] She was a founding member of Impropera, an opera improv group. [15] [16]

Selected stage performances

YearOpera, Musical, etcComposerTheatreRoleDirector / Company
1981 Tom Jones Edward German Holmfirth Civic Hall, West YorkshireSophiaHolmfirth Choral Society [17]
1986 Pagliacci Ruggero Leoncavallo Darlington, County DurhamNeddaOpera Nova [18]
1987 Le astuzie femminili Domenico Cimarosa Osterley Park Manor, west LondonBellinaOpera Italiana [19]
1988 The Phantom of the Opera Andrew Lloyd Webber Her Majesty's Theatre, London Carlotta [1] [20]
1990 Threepenny Opera Bertolt Brecht Tramway Theatre, Glasgow; Macrobert Arts Centre, Stirling; Eden Court Theatre, Inverness; Grand Theatre, Blackpool, and other UK locationsLucy Brown Scottish Opera [4] [21] [22] [23]
1990-1991 Hansel and Gretel Engelbert Humperdinck 24 venues in Wales and England, including the Sherman Theatre, Cardiff; Taliesin, Swansea; Maesteg Town Hall; Theatr Clwyd, Mold; Coliseum Theatre (Aberdare); Lyric Theatre (Hammersmith) Witch, Mother and Dew Fairy Welsh National Opera [24] [5] [25] [26] [27] [28]
1992A Varied Evening of Musical Entertainment Blackfriars Theatre, Boston, Lincolnshire; Duchess Theatre, Long Eaton; Robin Hood Theatre, Averham Any Tessitura [6] [7] [8]
1993 Tomfoolery Canal Cafe Theatre, LondonSarah Jennings, Peter Crockford [29]
1994An Evening of Songs from Films and Musicals of the 70s and 80s Blackfriars Theatre, Boston, Lincolnshire; Robin Hood Theatre, Averham Any Tessitura [11]
1994Tomfoolery Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham [30]
1994Shameless!Macrobert Arts Centre, Stirling; Byre Theatre, St Andrews The Good WifeOpera Circus [31]
1994 Trouble in Tahiti Leonard Bernstein Purcell Room, Southbank Centre, LondonDinahJCM Productions, Peter Crockford [32]
1995Love Songs for St. Valentine's Day; Songs from the ShowsBlackfriars Theatre, Boston, Lincolnshire; Duchess Theatre, Long EatonAny Tessitura [9] [10]
1995Trouble in TahitiLeonard Bernstein The Theatre Chipping Norton DinahJigsaw Music Theatre [33]
1995-1996 A Little Night Music Stephen Sondheim Olivier, National Theatre Royal National Theatre [3]
1996Cabaret with Morag McLaren Hebden Bridge Little Theatre, West Yorkshire [34]
1998, 1999I Never Do Anything Twice Wadhurst; Vinehall Theatre, Robertsbridge, East SussexSolo performer [35]
1999Impropera Loughborough Town Hall Opera Circus [16]
1999-2002Hey Big Spender (A tribute to Dorothy Fields)Dorothy Fields Hills Street Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe Festival (1999); Pizza on the Park, Knightsbridge (2000); Purcell Room, Southbank Centre, London (2002)Solo performer [14] [13] [12]
2005Lola Blau: Morag McLaren Georg Kreisler New End Theatre, HampsteadLola BlauMark Tinkler, Bruce O'Neil [36]
2006, 2008Impropera Jermyn Street Theatre, London; Leicester Square Theatre, London [37] [38]

Directing and coaching

McLaren was the founder and principal trustee of The Cooper Hall Foundation charity, which promoted music performances, education and the development of creative projects at Cooper Hall near Frome, Somerset. [39] There, between 2013 and 2015, she directed the operas The Turn of the Screw , Hansel and Gretel, and Cosi Fan Tutte for Frome Festival, in collaboration with Bath Philharmonia, with a workshop focus. [40] She was appointed Patron of Frome Festival in 2013. [41]

McLaren also directed Dido and Aeneas at London College of Music.[ when? ][ citation needed ] With mezzo-soprano Theresa Goble, she co-founded Vox Integra in 2012, which offered vocal coaching. [42]

She is one of 20 opera singers featured in the 2018 book Opera Lives by Linda Kitchen. [43]

Personal life

She is married to a director of a US investment bank, [1] and has two adult children. Her son Gregor Riddell [1] is a professional cellist and composer, and her daughter Kirsty Riddell [1] is an artist. [44]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Douglas, Allan (15 November 1989). "Prime Time". Edinburgh Evening News. p. 6. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  2. ↑ Cruise, Malcolm (13 November 1981). "Choir's productive season". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. p. 30. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Theatre Week". The Stage. 21 September 1995. p. 43. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  4. 1 2 Beat, Janet (16 May 1990). "No weak links in well-knit team". The Scotsman. p. 15. Retrieved 20 January 2025. Lucy was sung by Morag McLaren, who showed that she has a good feel for comedy.
  5. 1 2 Sicluna, A J (8 January 1991). "Small-scale – but it's a big success". South Wales Echo. p. 6. Retrieved 20 January 2025. Morag McLaren was in the triple role of the Mother, the Dew Fairy and the Witch and was never better than in the menacing last part where she deservedly earned spontaneous applause.
  6. 1 2 "Magic moments from shows". Lincolnshire Standard and Boston Guardian. 1 October 1992. p. 41. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  7. 1 2 "From West End to West Gate". Long Eaton Advertiser. 11 September 1992. p. 15. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  8. 1 2 P.A. (8 October 1992). "Melody lingers on". Lincolnshire Standard and Boston Guardian. p. 46. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  9. 1 2 PA (23 February 1995). "There's love in the air". Lincolnshire Standard and Boston Guardian. p. 20. Retrieved 20 January 2025. Morag is a born comedienne, and her rendering of Cole Porter's comedy number The Physician and Gershwin's Blah, Blah, Blah song were excellent, as was The Little Things You Do Together, Sondheim's acutely observed piece about the perfect relationship, which Morag sang with David.
  10. 1 2 "David returns for show". Long Eaton Advertiser. 24 February 1995. p. 4. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  11. 1 2 "A magical evening of stage favourites". Lincolnshire Standard and Boston Guardian. 27 January 1994. p. 16. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  12. 1 2 McDonald, Lucy (7 August 1999). "Diva Fever". The Express. Glasgow, Scotland. p. 39. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  13. 1 2 "Cabaret". Evening Standard. London, England. 22 June 2000. p. 126. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Concerts. Royal Festival Hall". The Daily Telegraph. 14 September 2002. p. 70. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  15. ↑ "Morag McLaren". Cooper Hall. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  16. 1 2 "Whose line was it?". Loughborough Mail. 25 February 1999. p. 26. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  17. ↑ Cruise, Malcolm (16 November 1981). "Concert Platform: Holmfirth Choral Society". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. p. 30. Retrieved 19 January 2025. Marvellous voices, these, full with assurance and maturity. Especially beautiful was Miss McLaren's "Hey Derry Down," though her brilliance in the famous "Waltz Song" rightly earned an encore.
  18. ↑ Brewer, Stuart (18 December 1986). "Darlington. Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci". The Stage. p. 23. Retrieved 19 January 2025. Morag McLaren made a strong impression as Nedda.
  19. ↑ Barker, Frank Granville (8 October 1987). "Opera Italiana. Le astuzie femminili". The Stage. p. 14. Morag McLaren as the lady herself sang sweetly and with poise in the first act, though without much sense of character; but in the second, livelier act she suddenly revealed a strong sense of fun.
  20. ↑ "Production News". The Stage. 6 October 1988. p. 16. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  21. ↑ Fairweather, Steve (18 May 1990). "Doc Watson's festival remedy". Stirling Observer. p. 11. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  22. ↑ "Tuppence-worth on Threepenny Opera". Inverness Courier. 29 May 1990. p. 8. Retrieved 20 January 2025. [Janis Kelly's]] "Jealousy Duet".with Morag McLaren's Lucy was one of the highlights of a show that made its greatest impact vocally.
  23. ↑ Smith, Kathryn (7 June 1990). "Reviews. Threepenny Opera". West Lancashire Evening Gazette. p. 14. Retrieved 20 January 2025. The voices and performances were deliciously gritty and vulgar - especially ... Morag McLaren as Lucy.
  24. ↑ "Theatre Week". The Stage. 13 December 1990. p. 12. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  25. ↑ Bawden, Rex (4 February 1991). "Missing out on the magic ..." Liverpool Daily Post. p. 11. Retrieved 20 January 2025. It is something of a humdrum show until the appearance of the Witch, personably played by Morag McLaren, who has already doubled as the Mother and Dew Fairy. No wizened haridan [sic], but an immaculately coutured figure in red and black, with top hat and outsize cape, her vivid theatrical presence attracted the evening's one spontaneous round of applause.
  26. ↑ Grove, Jane (29 March 1991). "Enjoyable, accessible opera. Hansel and Gretel at the Lyric, Hammersmith, until March 30". Middlesex County Times. p. 19. Retrieved 20 January 2025. Morag McLaren gives a wonderful high camp performance as the Witch, voluptuously attired in black and red hunting costume, reminiscent of Offenbach's Diana.
  27. ↑ "Coming Up". South Wales Echo. 8 February 1991. p. 7. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  28. ↑ "A bewitching fairytale opera". South Wales Echo. 9 November 1990. p. 7. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  29. ↑ "Theatre Week". The Stage. 6 May 1993. p. 10. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  30. ↑ "Only fooling ..." Cheltenham News. 7 July 1994. p. 13. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  31. ↑ Garden, Neville (30 October 1994). "Oh, what a circus, oh what a grand opera!". Scotland on Sunday. p. 46. Retrieved 20 January 2025. the Scottish soprano Morag McLaren showed great vocal and physical agility as the Good Wife,
  32. ↑ "Production News". The Stage. 10 November 1994. p. 42. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  33. ↑ "Theatre". Banbury Guardian. 29 June 1995. p. 26. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  34. ↑ "Hebden Bridge Arts Festival: Glorious second week of music". Hebden Bridge Times. 21 June 1996. p. 11. Retrieved 20 January 2025. Morag McLaren [] performed a dazzling one-woman show ... She brought the house down with her rendition of the famous "Miaow Song," singing the two parts as a West End/Broadway star and a high opera singer. It really was amazing to see the contrasting shapes adapted by her face and body for the two roles.
  35. ↑ "She never does anything twice". Uckfield Courier. 4 December 1998. p. 40. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  36. ↑ Millington, Barry (11 January 2005). "Darker side of Lola the show girl". Evening Standard. p. 226. Retrieved 22 January 2025. The strongest part of the show is the closing song ... Morag McLaren engages most convincingly here when unleashed passion increases the voltage.
  37. ↑ Jeal, Erica (22 December 2006). "Review: Impropera". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  38. ↑ Logan, Brian (24 December 2008). "Review: Impropera". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  39. ↑ "Meet the team". Cooper Hall. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  40. ↑ "Opera". Cooper Hall. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  41. ↑ "Frome Festival welcomes Morag McLaren as Patron". Frome Times. 19 November 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  42. ↑ "Our Vocal Coaches". Vox Integra. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  43. ↑ Kitchen, Linda (2018). Opera Lives. Spiramus Press. ISBN   9781910151563 . Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  44. ↑ Rudden, Liam (19 September 2002). "New style hits the right note". Evening News. Edinburgh (UK): Johnston Press New Media.
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