She may sing
like an adult, but her wide-eyed way is all teen-ager
By
Sarah Howard
The Cincinnati Enquirer
What 14-year-old has
impressed the Queen of England, Pope John Paul II, the Prince of
Wales and Rosie O'Donnell? The angelic, operatic voice trapped in
the pint-sized body of Charlotte Church.
A native of Wales, Charlotte's acclaimed soprano voice has been
surprising audiences since she was 9. Her debut album at age 12, Voice
of an Angel (Sony Classical; $13.99), sold more than 2
million copies. Her second self-titled album, Charlotte Church
(Sony Classical; $19.99) has gone platinum. Charlotte also holds the
honor of being the youngest performer to reach No. 1 on the United
Kingdom's classical charts.
The youthful virtuoso will bring her talents to Ohio today when she
performs with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. It's a rare U.S.
appearance.
In anticipation of her nearly sold-out show, we recently spoke with
the young performer by phone.
Question: You've performed for presidents, princes, queens and the
pope, among other notables. Which performance was the most nerve
wracking?
Answer: Oh,
gosh. I was very nervous to sing at Prince Charles' 50th birthday
party because it was such a big deal. But I think the most nervous
I've been was when I sang for the pope.
I didn't know my song, and I completely forgot the words before I
went onstage. Luckily I remembered them when I got out there but I
messed up the ending quite a bit.
Q: You've talked with all of TV talk shows' biggest names: Jay Leno,
David Letterman, Oprah and Rosie O'Donnell. Whose show is the most
fun to be on?
A: Well, Rosie
O'Donnell's was quite a good time and Oprah was just lovely, but I'd
have to say that I liked being on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
the best. I've been on three times, and Jay is so nice and the show
is really relaxed. Yes, Jay Leno was the best.
Q: Your first album, Voice of an Angel, was fairly religious
in tone. Was that intentional?
A: No, not
really. Those songs — “Pie Jesu,” “Amazing Grace” — they
were just the songs I already knew, so that was what went on the
album.
Q: Are you a religious person?
A: Yes, quite.
I go to Mass whenever I can when I'm at home, and I carry my rosary
beads with me wherever I go — they were actually blessed by the
pope.
Q: What else do you do when you are home, which from the sound of
it, isn't all that often?
A: I like to go
shopping — a lot! There's a store over here called Topshop and
it's great. There's not much over 40 pounds (about $65) and you can
find things as low as 5 pounds. I don't ever buy designer things.
And I like having slumber parties with my friends. We sit around and
drink Fanta and Sprite and eat chocolates and watch movies and talk
. . . and eat chocolates. I like to RollerBlade, too.
Q: What do your friends think of your career? Jealous? Excited?
A: Oh, they're not jealous at all because I can get them backstage
to concerts and loads of free CDs and free tickets to things.
Sometimes they get to meet some of the famous people I meet. They
love it!
Q: What about school?
A: I go
whenever I can — to the Howells Girls School in Wales. But I have
a tutor with me when I travel. My parents travel with me, too, so I
do study.
Q: What celebrities would you like to meet?
A: Oh, there's
lots. I guess Alanis Morisette, Lauryn Hill, Madonna, and especially
Marc Anthony.
Q: What about Prince William? You've met his dad — wouldn't you
like to meet him?
A: No, not
especially.
Q: “Wills” just doesn't impress you much?
A: He's not
that big of a deal over here anymore. I think everyone in the U.S.
really adores him, but it's not as big here.
Q: Who does impress you?
A: Will Smith!
He was so much fun to meet! And I loved meeting Ricky Martin and
Elton John, too.
Q: Are you a reader?
A: Oh, yes. I
just finished Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George, and it
was just wonderful. It's over 1,000 pages long and has tiny, tiny
print and I sped through it. And I've started it over again and am
on page 250 already. And I also really loved The Power of One
by Bryce Courtenay.
Q: Do you think you'll continue doing the music thing when you
“grow up?”
A: Maybe, I'm
not sure. I want to go to university, and there are lots of things
I'd like to do. Now that I've read Cleopatra,I might want to
be a historian of some sort. I'm sure I'll continue singing, but who
knows.
