Coming from country Western Australia, Chelsea Burns never imagined opera to be a part of her life. She grew up playing sport with her father and singing in choirs and musicals with her mother and sister. A transformative event for her was the day she saw a touring production of Opera Australia’s Carmen. She was blown away by the music, the voices, the spectacle and the experience. 

Pursuing a degree in Classical Music had her falling in love with opera, the music’s story-telling and the complex characters, a passion that was singled out and fostered by her acting teacher. This is one of the reasons that she so admires the artistry of Maria Callas, a true singing actress. 

Chelsea has been lucky enough to sing and cover some amazing roles, her favourites; Puccini’s Tosca and Dvorak’s Rusalka. In 2024, Chelsea was able to draw on her extensive dance training as she also performed as the Second Wood Nymph in a heavily choreographed production of Rusalka. 

In 2023, Chelsea won the Sundell American Institute of Musical Studies award, presented by the Opera Foundation for young Australians, which allowed her to study in Austria for two months. 

Whenever Chelsea is not singing, you will usually find her at the gym or reading. She loves the mental escape of both and knows that the physical demands of artists today can only be helped by being fit. 

About the program

A woman's devastating final phone call with her lover who is leaving her.  

La voix humaine is a powerful one-woman opera that explores themes of love, rejection, and despair. Jean Cocteau’s text reveals her anguished monologue as she grapples with suicide, revealing raw psychological pain and loneliness in a tragically intimate portrait.  

Opera Australia’s revamped Young Artist Program is leading the way in training for the next generation of opera professionals. La voix humaine (The Human Voice) showcases the vocal and dramatic prowess of soprano Chelsea Burns in a compelling one-act twentieth century opera. This intimate production is directed by Benjamin Shostakowski with Music Direction by Head of Young Artists Francis Greep.   

Sung in French with surtitles.