Critically acclaimed Canadian opera singer and national CBC Radio host Marion Newman is returning to the University of Victoria to join the award-winning teaching faculty at the School of Music.

Newman — whose traditional name is Nege’ga — is of Kwagiulth and Stó:lō First Nations descent with English, Irish and Scottish heritage. The 2022 UVic Distinguished Alumni Award recipient (BMUS ’93) will officially join the School of Music as an assistant professor on July 1, 2024.

“I’m really looking forward to this,” says Newman. “It’s always a lovely circular journey when alumni return and become part of the faculty.” Currently based in Toronto, the busy mezzo-soprano will continue hosting CBC’s Saturday Afternoon at the Opera from Victoria.

In addition to the UVic announcement, the news was picked up by a number of local media outlets who subsequently ran stories, including the Times Colonist, Victoria News, Sooke News Mirror and the Vancouver is Awesome blog. (We think Marion is awesome too!)

No stranger to local audiences, Newman just appeared in City Opera Vancouver’s Songs from the Uproar: The Lives and Deaths of Isabelle Eberhardt and is currently workshopping a new opera by Ian Cusson and Royce Vavre,commissioned by Against the Grain Theatre and Edmonton Opera, based on Thomas King’s 2020 comedic novel Indians on Vacation. (“It is such a delight to play somebody who’s so full of sunshine and reality and so . . . normal,” she laughs.)

She was also lauded for her performances in Pacific Opera Victoria’s Missing, which gave voice — in English and Gitksan — to stories of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

“Singing in Indigenous languages is something I’ve been doing for a number of years now,” she says. “It’s always exciting to immerse yourself in that way as a character to sing words . . . you start to understand what the general sound of the language is and how it grew out of the place and the people.”

Marion Newman in Pacific Opera’s Missing (photo: Dean Kalyan)

Learning and living by example

Already recognized as one of Canada’s leading singer-training programs, UVic’s School of Music is a perfect fit for Newman, who will join the internationally acclaimed likes of professors and opera performers Benjamin Butterfield and Anne Grimm, as well as a team of outstanding faculty covering program areas ranging from performance, composition and musicology to music technology, music education and music theory.

“We are thrilled to welcome Marion!” says School of Music director Alexis Luko. “Given her perspective, local connections and international reach, she’s positioned to have a profound impact on artistic and cultural life in Victoria, and will further UVic’s reputation as a destination for mindful and engaged artists.”

Newman’s new teaching position is also a good fit with her role as host of Saturday Afternoon at the Opera, and her passion for championing Canadian opera.

“It’s always been my wish to showcase how many amazing Canadians we have working in opera,” she says. “I know it’s exciting for students to hear from people who are working in their chosen field right now, because their information is very current and very inspirational. Learning and living by example is a fantastic thing — you can speak directly to what the challenges and changes are within the industry.”

Making connections

Newman has strong memories of her own time as a UVic Music student. “I had a wonderful piano teacher there in Dr. Robin Wood,” she recalls. “He was one of the most human humans, and really helped shape me in terms of what it means to remain connected and humble and work hard in ways that bring joy.”

As well as being the co-founder of the diversity-focused Amplified Opera organization, Newman also teaches at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and is on faculty for Manitoba Opera’s Digital Emerging Artist Program. She also serves on the Opera America Artistic Services Council, the Artist Advisory to the board of City Opera Vancouver, the board of the US-based Plimpton Foundation, which raises awareness and funds for an Indigenous Songbook and bursaries for Indigenous classical artists, as well as various other committees.

She’s also looking forward to working more closely with her brother, artist Carey Newman – Hayalthkin’geme, who is the Impact Chair in Indigenous Art Practices with UVic’s Faculty of Fine Arts.

“As people who are often tasked by others to explain decolonization or Indigenization, it’s going to be wonderful to be able to have those conversations with him in person — it’s a heavy load and no one person has all the answers,” she says.

“I’ve been doing that work within the music sphere for a number of years now, so I’m really looking forward to being a part of what’s going on at the university and getting to be part of those conversations. And we have a couple of shows that we would love to create together.”

Photo: Tony Hauser

Helping to move each other forward

Newman’s hiring aligns with UVic’s Indigenous plan, Xʷkʷənəŋ istəl | W̱ȻENEṈISTEL | Helping to move each other forward, where Indigenous ways of knowing, being and learning are embedded into the university’s programs, systems and organizational structure.

“Part of what’s exciting about coming to UVic is that wish to actually do what’s needed,” she says. “There are a lot of other places who think they’re ready to have that conversation, but they’re not really ready for the consequences of those conversations.”

Newman is also clearly excited about calling the West Coast home again. “I’ve been living in Toronto for 24 years now and while I love it, I know it’s time to breathe that salty sea air again every day,” she says. “I’m still in touch with my family daily, but to be able to go to family dinners more than just three or four times a year is exactly what I want right now.”