Sweeney Todd fanboi Bryn Terfel had to take a lot of flak these past five months for his September 2007 surprise cancellation, where he suddenly announced a high-profile pullout from singing Wotan (in Siegfried) for the ROH Wagner Ring Cycle to begin only one month later.
He sat down this weekend and spoke to The Times, mainly about his youngest son (of three), Deio Sion, the catalyst for his recent stage disappearances, as it was the boy’s broken finger that became Terfel’s replacement role. He passed the time in their family home in North Wales playing Mr. Mom and has no regrets, especially regarding The Royal Opera House, who were miffed.
"Of course there was an opera house that was very disappointed that one of their British singers was cancelling a run of six operas, but I tell you there would have been a six-year-old who would have been much more disappointed. And there were two older boys who needed a father while mum was in hospital. I made the right choice.”
Onto the future, demands Terfel, tersely injecting towards the end of the interview, “I'm not dwelling on it now. Move on. It's done now. It's history. Have a sandwich.” (or, like, six -- ed). He is set to make his comeback this Monday at the Wales Millennium Centre performing his trademark Verdi's Falstaff, the bass-baritone's bread & butter. That he puts on his sandwiches. This could be the new milkshake meme for the opera world. I have your sandwich.
