Tenor Rolando VillazÛn almost became a priest, but the churchís loss is operaís gain, says Neil Fisher
[Times Online, 11 March 2006]
I love you! I defy you! Youíre a bastard!î Rolando VillazÛn may have spent the last hour of a long day in a Russian lesson, but thereís no denting his enthusiasm for his latest role on stage. The bushy eyebrows twitch with infectious energy, and even his richly coloured speaking voice seems to reach operatic heights when he starts to describe the emotional highs and lows of his latest role: the tragic poet Lensky in Tchaikovksyís Eugene Onegin. ìHis life in the opera,î beams VillazÛn, ìis just the way life should be.î