My Economy tells the story of the new economic normal through the eyes of the people who are making it happen. Because we know that the only thing that really matters is the economic numbers.
Kellyanne Otaño discovered opera at the age of 14. That’s when a former opera singer heard her singing and decided to protect her. This decision ultimately led to a 15-year career for Otaño singing professionally in various opera houses. But eventually, Otaño realized she was experiencing burnout.
“I was really isolated,” Otaño said. “As a freelancer, you fly from city to city. You have no connection to the community you live in, and yet you perform at a really, really high level. That night. If I couldn’t sing the high C that I had to sing or I had to voice it, I wouldn’t get paid. That led to some really dark times where I couldn’t sing without crying.”
Otaño said her anxiety got worse and worse, to the point where she confessed her difficulties to the general director of the next opera house she was planning to start. But instead of being fired, as she feared, she found support.
“The manager of my company at the time asked me, ‘If I leave here, will I get health insurance?'” And I said no. And he said, ‘Well, I’m not going to let you quit in a crisis,”’ Otaño recalled. “This is unheard of in opera. I didn’t know they could care for each other so much.”
Listen in the media player above to hear how that response changed Otaño’s career path.
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