‘Nothing makes me happier than singing for people. A lady gave me free singing lessons when I was 15 and introduced me to Opera, and I’ve been devoted to singing ever since. I attended The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama for 6 years, got chosen by Sir Thomas Allen for a series of masterclasses with The Samling Foundation, and then went onto work for Opera companies around Europe for 10 years, as well as singing on the concert platform. I started at Glyndebourne Festival Opera (wonderful place to work), moved over to Amsterdam and sang for Dutch National Opera, various other smaller companies in Holland, in Het Concertgebouw, in Het Theater Carre, and appeared on Dutch Television. Life then took me to Belgium to work for The Flemish Opera and later for Opera Monte Carlo.
Whilst I was living in Belgium I started my own initiative calling myself ‘The Down to Earth Diva’ which eventually became ‘Opera for the People’. I appeared on Belgian TV and radio, sang at many events including at a champagne house in Reims, and in a castle in Germany. My focus is on bringing happiness to people and I love combining my Northern English roots, and making Opera and music accessible to people in a friendly way. I devised a Song Menu (see below), and I let people choose what they would like me to sing for them. It’s full of popular Opera Classics, Classical Songs, songs from musicals, and my Pavarotti pop section.
I’ve also lived in New York where I put my own show on called ‘A Soprano and a Suitcase’, and my latest project is a tribute to Julie Andrews called ‘A Spoonful of Julie’, which was co-written with Stuart Barham, the former musical director of Cats with Elaine Paige. It’s full of songs and medleys from all your favourite Julie things and if you love Julie as much as I do, book tickets to see one of my shows (dates and venues are in my events section). My life is about singing for people wherever I go and I love what I do. I write a blog at www.asopranoasuitcaseandarucksack.com full of my stories as I go along. Please get in touch if you would like me to come and sing for you. No request is too small. Either contact my manager Keri Sparkes or get in touch with me personally at nicolamillsthesinger@hotmail.co.uk or 07838360195. I’m living my dream, following my heart and seeing where life takes me.....’
| Friday 27th September, 7.30pm | The Civic, Huddersfield Road, Holmfirth, HD93AS | Buy Tickets Or call 01484 682 643 |
| Friday 6th September, 7.30pm | North Duffield Village Hall, Back Lane, Selby, YO85RJ | Tickets £10 available from Josie 07946 624919 |
| Saturday 7th September, 7.00pm | St. Paul’s, 7 Newgate, Mirfield | Tickets £10. Contact Tim Grace: 07775672662 |
| Saturday 28th September, 7.30pm | Skipton Town Hall, High St, Skipton BD23 1AH | Tickets £15. Box Office: 01756 706 397 or Skipton Town Hall |
| Friday 11th October, 7.30pm | The Milton Rooms, Market Place, Malton, YO177LX | Tickets from 01845522415 or email financesec.nyefwi@btconnect.com |
| Sunday 13th October, 1.30pm | Masham Town Hall, Little Market Place, Masham | Buy Tickets |
| Friday 25th October, 7.00pm | Brighouse Library, Halifax Rd, Brighouse HD6 2AF | Tickets £10 on the door. |
| Saturday 2nd November, 7.30pm | The Chantry Chapel, Chantry Bridge, Wakefield, WF11PL | Buy Tickets |
| Friday 8th November, 7.30pm | St. Alkmund’s Church, Church St, Whitchurch, Shropshire, SY131LB | For tickets contact Alex on 07866 072091 |
| Saturday 9th November, 7.30pm | Orthodox Church of Holy Apostles, Leyland | Buy Tickets |
| Friday 15th November, 7.30pm | Husthwaite Village Hall, York YO61 4PY | Adults £12, accompanied children FREE Tickets: Contact Sheila on 07836721775 or email sheila_mowatt@btinternet.com |
| Saturday 15th March, 7.30pm | The Milton Rooms, Market Place, Malton, North Yorkshire YO177LX | Buy Tickets |
| Saturday 12th July, 7.30pm | Kirk Theatre, Hungate, Pickering, YO187DL | Buy Tickets |
Some previews of my Julie Andrews show...
Here's a sneaky preview of what I can do....
...and this is my story and some of the songs that have been a part of it...
A few highlights from my time in New York...
Take a look at my Song Menu and custom design your own event if you'd like (you choose the songs and I'll sing them).
Come scoglio (Fiordiligi being a teenager) Mozart
Quando m'en vo (Musettas' flirty number from 'La Boheme. Lock up your husbands!!!) Puccini
Vissi d'arte (Tosca's famous second act aria) Puccini
Si, mi chiamano Mimi ('My name is Mimi'. Are you also a hopeless romantic like me?) Puccini
Casta Diva (Maria Callas made this famous and it's one of my faves too) Bellini
Voi che sapete (Cherubino, a teenager in love) Mozart
Belle nuit, o nuit d'amour (From Tales of Hoffmann and also very famous) Offenbach
0 mio babbino caro (The most famous Soprano aria ever) Puccini
Brindisi (Time to celebrate with a glass of wine from Verdi's 'La Traviata')
Je Veux Vivre (I'm the belle of the ball song by Gounod')
Summertime (Gershwin's famous Porgy and Bess number)
Porgi Amor (The Countess is not happy) Mozart
Song to the Moon (Rusalka's gorgeous aria) Dvorak
Lascia ch'io pianga (it's tissue time for this one) Handel
Un bel di vedremo (Madama Butterfly dreaming of Mr. Pinkerton’s return) Puccini
Ch'il bel sogno (the taste of a sweet kiss, long remembered) La Rondine Puccini
Una voce poco fa (Rosina's famous Cavatina from The Barber of Seville) Rossini
The Jewel Song (Marguerite is a lady she doesn't recognise with all the jewels on) Gounod
Donde Lieta (Mimi asking for her stuff back after a fight with Rodolfo) Puccini
L'altra notte (Margherita going nuts in her prison cell) Mefistofele
Mercé dilette (This girl is feeling the joy, about to get married) Verdi
Qui la voce (Let me melt in one of my ultimate favourite arias) Puccini
Ach, ich fühl's (Pamina is not a happy girl right now) Mozart
Ave Maria (Bach or Schubert or Caccini, so choose the one you like the most)
Panis Angelicus (Takes me right back to the choir I sang in when I was 13)
Funiculi Funicula (I can't sing this without thinking of my name Nicola)
0 Sole Mio (if you fancy being serenaded or want a cornetto)
Pie Jesu (Andrew Lloyd Webbers Requiem one)
Abide with me (Nothing like singing a good soppy hymn)
Time to Say Goodbye (Time to do my Sarah Brightman Andrew Lloyd Webber singing thing)
The Merry Widow Waltz (don't be shy if you feel like dancing)
Let the Bright Seraphim (Handel is the tops with this cheery number)
Somewhere Over the Rainbow (There's no place like home)
I Could Have Danced All Night (The lady was certainly fair in this film)
Edelweiss (My sing along musical since the age of 5, and my favourite)
Singin' in the Rain (Get your umbrellas out)
I Got Rhythm (and a whole lot more)
I Have Confidence (Julie Andrews rocks ...)
The Sound of Music Medley (A bit of some of my Julie Andrews faves)
Nella Fantasia (II Divo do a good version of this, also known as Gabriel's Oboe)
A Spoonful of Sugar (it certainly does make the world go round)
S'wonderful (let's go back to Fred and Ginger) Gershwin
Do,Re,Mi (Let's start at the very beginning, it's a very good place to start) The Sound of Music
Don't cry for me Argentina (Evita's famous Madonna number) Lloyd Webber
I have dreamed (very soppy and romantic) Rodgers and Hammerstein
The Sound of Music (The hills are alive) Rodgers and Hammerstein
Feed the Birds (Walt Disney's favourite song from Mary Poppins) Richard M. Sherman
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (listen to me saying it backwards too) Richard M. Sherman
Getting to know you (The King and I) Rodgers and Hammerstein
What a Wonderful World (Louis' famous number)
Imagine (The legend of Lennon)
Angels (Robbie Williams sounds good as opera too)
Amazing Grace (a gospel classic)
Danny Boy (Irish through and through)
Yesterday (The Beatles done opera style)
Your Song (Elton John is my favourite)
Run (The Down to Earth Diva does Leona Lewis, does Snow Patrol)
Only You (a bit of Yazoo if you can remember this one)
Barcelona (Oh, how I've longed to sing this one for years. Monserrat here I come)
All You Need is Love (Sing along if you want)
The Scientist (Never thought I’d sing a bit of Coldplay)
It Don’t Mean a Thing (have you got the swing of Duke Ellington?)
Unchained Melody (I'm all Patrick Swayze with this one and not Robson and Jerome) The Righteous Brothers
All By Myself (Still looking for my Mr. Darcy too) Phil Collins
Bridge Over Troubled Water (Not a cheery one, but a classic none the less) Simon and Garfunkel
I Will Always Love You (Whitney, Whitney, what went wrong?) Dolly Parton
