“I taught in elementary school for my entire career. For most of that time I taught music exclusively, and for 20 years I ran the Buchanan Park Opera Club, which produces operas with children from grades 1 to 6. You never have to convince children they can do opera; it’s the adults who need convincing. We didn’t change the plots – so Carmen dies, Mimi in La Bohème dies – although I remember we did reassure the kindergartners that the student playing Mimi was still alive after the performance.
“In 2020, during COVID, we produced an online version of Brundibár, a children’s opera that premiered in 1943 in the concentration camp Theresienstadt. We started in the classroom, but then everything shut down, so students recorded their own parts, separately, and sent them to me. They recorded on all sorts of devices – iPads, computers and such – making it quite a challenge to engineer everything together. I received the Governor General’s History Award for Excellence in Teaching for the project. I’m so proud of the students.
“Retirement was quite a transition for me. I was hardwired to produce operas every year. I had to redefine myself and find purpose in what I am doing now. I don’t want to just keep busy, like a toddler who needs to be distracted, and I’m not going to sit back and vegetate.
“I have a cottage in Haliburton, and the area is a bit of an opera hub. The Highlands Opera Studio is there, and I’ve done some educational opera chats for them. And I’ve reviewed some performances for Opera Canada magazine.
“I read that the local community radio station, Canoe FM, was looking for new shows. So I put together a pitch and a sample recording for an opera-focused show. The station accepted my idea. Opera Night in Canada is meant not only for opera fans, but also for people who are intimidated by opera or have never listened to it. For an hour, I delve into an opera or a related theme, playing excerpts and explaining what an opera is all about. And for about 20 minutes in the middle, I interview someone connected to the opera or the theme.
Dawn Martens at the 2023 Ruby Awards at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto. Martens was the 2010 Ruby Award winner, which is given for Canadian excellence in opera.
“The interviews are exciting. I’ve had stars who have received an Order of Canada, along with young people who are just starting their opera careers, musicians in the orchestra, even wig designers. Despite what many believe, opera people are not highfalutin – they just have an unusual job. And sometimes even world-famous singers are a little nervous and edgy at the start of an interview.
“Themed shows are fun to do because they don’t follow the script of an opera. In a show about spring, I interviewed a singer who’s also a keen gardener. For Halloween, I talked to a wig designer about horror and opera. For Remembrance Day, I looked at the theme of remembrance in opera. That was a very moving interview.
“As teachers, we emphasize to students that learning is lifelong, and doing radio is a learning opportunity for me. I’m getting better at using audio software, so the production value of the show has improved over the two years I’ve been doing it. I learned to use the software mostly by putting my nose in and just doing it – which is what we hope students will do.
“When I was starting out, practice teaching, a teacher emphasized to me that asking the kids questions is more effective than telling them the answers. That stuck with me, and the skills I developed in framing questions for students have helped me now as an interviewer.
Martens conducting.
A Women of Song performance at Melrose United Church.
Martens with Women of Song members Karen Snell, left, and Kathy Salata, right.
“I also direct two choirs, and I’m taking conducting lessons – so I’m not just waving my arms around. One of the choirs, the Duet Club of Hamilton, has an age range among the singers of about 60 years. I’m learning from them, especially the women with much more experience than me – they’d recognize bad conducting.
“The Duet Club is the longest-running women’s musical club of its kind in Canada – 135 years – and it’s very empowering for the singers. As women, when you get older you can feel invisible. I’ve felt it, and I remember my grandmother saying the same thing. I want to work with the choir members to say, ‘You are strong, powerful women. You have something to say, and you deserve an audience.’ It’s been wonderful, and in turn they empower me.
“Even though I’m now working with adults, many older than me, I still draw on my experience teaching elementary children. Sometimes I look back on teaching to reassure myself that, in the choir, ‘There are only 40 of you, all adults, and you’re not running around. It will be okay.’ As a teacher, I tried to always talk to students on their level and never talk down to them. It’s the same with adults, especially seniors. They bring wisdom to the work we’re trying to do.
“Retiring has been the biggest transition of my life. Like other teachers, from age four to retirement, my life has been defined by the school calendar. I’ll probably always feel the year starts in September. I’m not always good with transitions, and I did go through a bit of a grieving process at first. But I’m still learning, and now I have time to explore new things like painting and writing. When I talk to teachers on the precipice of retirement, they often fear that their whole identity will change. My advice to them is that there’s something beautiful out there for you, and you will find a way to reinvent yourself.”
Opera Night in Canada airs on Canoe FM from 6 to 7 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month. The show also streams online at canoefm.com.
