Tessa McQueen (left) as the Countess Ceprano and Pene Pati as Duke of Mantua at the New York Metropolitan Opera rehearsal for Rigoletto. Photo: New York Metropolitan Opera / Jennifer Taylor
Tenor Pene Pati, from beloved New Zealand trio Sol3 Mio, has just achieved one of the biggest milestones in the opera world.
This month, he made his debut at the New York Metropolitan Opera playing the lead role of the lecherous Duke in Verdi's libretto Rigoletto.
Pati says it was such a far-fetched dream to be able to debut at what he calls the "Olympics" of opera singing.
"We're so disconnected from it, from classical and opera as Polynesians, that I was like this ain't gonna happen," Pati tells Summer Times host Anna Thomas.
"Even if you told me this 10 years ago, I would be like what are you on about?
"As soon as I stood [on stage], I thought 'Oh my God, this is the type of thing that when we're studying, I was like, oh yeah, you've gotta sing at the Met, one day you're gonna do it, one day' … and to finally walk on stage and tick it off the list was a surreal feeling."
Pene Pati (right) as Duke of Mantua, Rihab Chaieb (top left) as Maddalena and Solomon Howard (centre) as Sparafucile at the New York Metropolitan Opera rehearsal for Rigoletto. Photo: New York Metropolitan Opera / Jennifer Taylor
But Pati is no stranger to performing on the world stage, making numerous debuts in recent years in San Francisco, Paris, Naples, Vienna, and Barcelona. It's also his fifth time performing Rigoletto - the last was five months ago at Berlin State Opera.
"I think the persistence to do it, you know, the amount of times you fail auditions, the amount of times it doesn't work, the amount of times something always leads you astray, you're kind of wondering how do you even get to that level and then when you finally hit it, I don't know, it's a weird feeling, it's a kind of satisfaction but at the same time you're proud you stuck to your guns."
He says he's got an "overwhelming sense of pride" to represent Samoa, the Pacific and Aotearoa New Zealand on the stage.
"When you do your final bell, when you go out for your curtain call, they want you to stay in your costume, but they allowed me to go out with an ula and I wore my pounamu on stage for that bell at the Met, because I was just like I feel like I'm bringing everyone along with me.
"And how hard it is just to break this scene out of New Zealand, trying to leave the country, trying to find the funds, you know, immerse yourself in languages that we don't even have in New Zealand like French and German and then Italian, and then to finally reach that level really I was overwhelmed with emotions.
"I tried to close my eyes during the curtain call and just think, 'man, I'm sure Aotearoa New Zealand and Samoa, I'm sure they're proud, they're back at home doing a standing ovation right now and that's all that matters'."
Pati says he keeps his voice in shape by going to a recording studio frequently.
"I think the hardest part is just trying to stay well the entire time. You feel really bad because you're tyring to avoid everybody on the Metro, you're trying to avoid everybody on the street who's coughing your way but unfortunately that's the life isn't it?
"And if you get sick, which I was … I had to cancel one of the shows because it's just the way it is. You end up having those days where you're like, man, I can't even sing a note right now, I'm going to have to give it to someone else."
Pene Pati as Duke of Mantua at the New York Metropolitan Opera rehearsal for Rigoletto on 3 January, 2025. Photo: New York Metropolitan Opera / Jennifer Taylor
He says he misses home so much that if NZ was closer, he'd fly back between gigs.
"There's nothing like being home. When you've seen and travelled the world singing, there's something different about being home in New Zealand, I don't know, just the vibe, the people, they understand your humour, they understand you, that's what being home is about."
But he's so busy, he's fully booked out until mid-2029, with upcoming opera performances in London, Munich, Chicago and San Francisco.
"I feel like we started [the year] too high, it's like where do we go now?"
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