How Joel Amosa went from bank officer to Opera singer

A baritone starring in tonight's New Zealand Opera production says his Christian Sāmoan upbringing in Ōtara has played a vital role in preparing him for performing in classical theatre - an art more commonly associated with Europe.

NZ Opera's production of Verdi's Rigoletto kicks off at Auckland's Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre for three 7.30pm performances tonight, this Saturday and the 25th.

Joel Amosa, a proud Sāmoan raised in South Auckland, will play Cavaliere Marullo in the production's star-studded cast.

Amosa, who studied music at university, but veered into working for ASB Bank and as a CrossFit coach as a way to support his two "beautiful" daughters and wife Maia.

Speaking to William Terite on Pacific Mornings, Amosa said he has always had a connection to performance through his upbringing.

"My granddad was the church organist for [Pacific Islander Presbyterian Church] Ōtara, and my uncles were the pianists for the church as well," he said.

"We've always been singing at home with evening devotion or prayers, lots of hymns. So definitely it started there.

"And then through White Sundays being on stage with the church and the kids. Then I joined all the choirs and barbershop groups at school."

Verdi's story is a dramatic opera that centres on Rigoletto, a hunchbacked jester for the morally corrupt and womanising Duke of Mantua.

Rigoletto's wisecracks makes enemies of husbands and fathers to the amusement of the Duke, however, he eventually places himself in hot water as a humiliated parent curses him for his harsh quips.

Verdi’s Rigoletto will grace the stage in Auckland for three nights. Photo /New Zealand Opera

Amosa's grandparents, who migrated to New Zealand's Ōtara in the early 1950s, raised him alongside his mother with the mandatory rule of speaking Sāmoan daily.

He said that being bilingual in English and Sāmoan had given him the nuances behind language, building an ear for other languages popular in opera such as Italian, German and French.

"I definitely got much better oral and speaking skills of Sāmoan language than I do writing and reading.

"At the same time it's a language that's passed down through songs by many generations.

"Lots of folk songs, children's songs and hymns which trains the ear for language."

Despite the parallels between Pacific culture and opera, Amosa acknowledged it is a niche form of theatre for Pacific communities in Aotearoa.

Amosa, whose heritage traces to the villages Le'auva'a, Maagiagi and Vaiala - which he carries a chief title for, said he hopes to inspire others to get into the classical space.

"The music is centuries old, written from geniuses back from the 1600s and 1700s and we're still performing it today.

"So, it's niche now but back then it was like the movies - going to see your favourite show so it was very normal.

"I think for us in the lower side of the Pacific in New Zealand we're so far from the European culture where it's normal to go to the theatre.

"Being a part of this world it is niche in that respect but we're sort of normalising it now."

Tickets for the show are available through Ticket Master.

Please note: this production contains sexual violence, violence against women and mature themes, and is best suited for audiences 16+. This production also uses strobe lighting effects at times, which may potentially affect audience members who are sensitive to flashing lights or who suffer from conditions such as epilepsy.