By: Nicole Falco
Thomas Riley was selected to perform as part of the children-s chorus in Puccini-s Tosca, which will run from Jan. 26 through March 13. Renowned tenor Luciano Pavarotti is expected to lend his vocal talents to the production in a limited number of the opera-s performances.
Riley will also perform in the children-s chorus in Tchaikovsky-s Queen of Spades, beginning Feb. 7 and running through March 3. Leading that cast will be another famous tenor, Placido Domingo.
Before Riley was selected to sing in one of the world-s best-known opera houses, he sang in the Wheeler Avenue School Concert Choir and the school-s junior chorus. He currently sings in Memorial-s chorus.
When Riley was in the fourth grade at Wheeler, his mother, Cheryl, asked Greg Hart, a music teacher and choir director at the school, to give her son an audition.
His mother came to me and said, ÔCan you listen to my son sing?- Hart recalled. ÔHe sings in the shower. He sings a lot around the house. Can you listen to him?-
Hart asked Riley to join the junior chorus. The following year, he advanced to the concert choir and Hart asked him to solo. I wouldn-t ask just anybody, he said. The person has to have a kind of stage presence about them. They can-t be too timid or too shy.
Hart describes Riley as a go-getter. During a performance when he was a sixth-grader, the microphone he was using went dead. He could have panicked, but instead he knew just how to handle himself. He quickly tried to get the microphone to work, but when it didn-t, he simply went on with his solo. Afterward, his mother remembers being told that her son-s voice could be heard even by those sitting in the balcony.
Everyone came up to me afterward and said they couldn-t believe he didn-t skip a beat or get his feathers ruffled, Cheryl said.
Riley had never dreamed of going from his school-s stage to the Metropolitan Opera, but he was encouraged by a retired classical music teacher who heard one of his sixth-grade solo performances. They-re always looking for boys, the teacher said.
Last January, Cheryl and her husband, Tom, decided to give the Met a call. Cheryl was hesitant at first, until they decided it was an opportunity they didn-t want their son to miss. Riley also understands that this is a chance that few get at his age.
Riley auditioned over the phone. After he sang Silent Night and Happy Birthday, he was accepted to study music at the Met. For the past year, he has taken classes twice a week at Lincoln Center. He wasn-t notified that he was accepted to be a part of the children-s chorus for Tosca until a couple of weeks ago. And, he didn-t hear about Queen of Spades until recently.
To me it-s just something fun, Riley said. I don-t picture it like a job. I don-t say, ÔOh, I-ve got to go into the city today.- I enjoy going to class and I enjoy doing the opera.
When Riley makes his debut on Monday, it will also be the first time he experiences a live opera. He has seen Tosca on tape, and his mother is a fan of classical music, but up until recently, Riley-s musical preferences were limited to rock.
Since he started rehearsals, Riley-s schedule has been hectic, which means his parents- schedules are hectic, too. Thomas has two sisters, Kimberly, 9, and Christie, 15. Between his rehearsals, dance lessons for Kimberly and play rehearsals for Christie, Tom and Cheryl are even busier than their children. Luckily, their work schedules Tom is a chief in the New York City Fire Department and Cheryl works part-time as a legal secretary allow them to be there for their children. Thomas has had to miss a couple of days of school to attend rehearsals, which Cheryl isn-t happy about, but once March arrives, his schedule will ease. In the spring, he plans to join Memorial-s lacrosse team.
This experience is well worth it, Cheryl said. This is not something that happens often to too many people.
Cheryl said she is confident in her son-s ability to handle his schedule. Thomas is an honor student. We-re very, very proud of him, she said. He is able to handle a lot.
Riley-s family is excited, especially his mother, since he will be performing with Placido Domingo. His friends are happy for him, as are his junior high school and elementary school communities.
Since graduating from Wheeler, Riley has continued studying music at Memorial Kelly Martin is his chorus teacher there and he still studies with Hart as well. He has earned All-County honors for chorus each year since the fifth grade. He also earned perfect scores on the New York State School Music Association exams two years in a row.
Riley credits Hart and his parents with his early success. [They] get all the credit I can give out.
He said he is more eager than nervous about performing on the famous Met stage. He-s already looking forward to next year, when, he said, he plans to audition for Carmen, which he-s heard is even more fun than Tosca.
