Patricia Payne - Cast

Patricia Katherine Payne ONZM (born 8 March 1942) is an operatic mezzo-soprano and contralto from New Zealand. A member of London's Royal Opera House, she made an international career, performing leading roles of both Wagner and Italian repertory at major opera houses of the world. After decades of singing, she became a visual artist. Born in Dunedin, Payne was educated at Otago Girls' High School. After winning the National Operatic Aria Competition in 1966, she continued her studies in London. She was a student at the London Opera Centre from 1967 to 1968, and also studied with Roy Henderson, Hans Hotter and Vera Rózsa. After mainly working in oratorios from 1969, she made her stage debut at the Royal Opera House in 1974 as Schwertleite in Wagner's Die Walküre, and became a member of the ensemble. She appeared there as Erda in his Das Rheingold and Siegfried, and the First Norn in his Götterdämmerung, among others. She was Geneviève in Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande, Ulrica in Verdi's Un ballo in maschera, and Mrs Sedley in Britten's Peter Grimes. In 1976 she was a "huge success" as Filpyevna in the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, production of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin.