For recent college graduates, finding work is not an easy task, especially for those in the music business. But Michael Kuhn, Syracuse University alumnus with a bachelor’s degree in music, considers himself lucky; he has been employed since graduating in 2010. The Daily Orange spoke with Kuhn, who stars as Tobias Ragg in the Syracuse Opera’s production of “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.”

The Daily Orange: How was it working with the rest of the cast of “Sweeney Todd”?

Michael Kuhn: It’s fantastic. The great thing about being an opera singer is that you meet people from all over the country and it’s a very small world, so a lot of us have done shows with friends that we all have mutual friends with, and we can talk about this show or this person, but it’s also great to meet tons of new people and see how they bring their art to life. It’s been an absolute delight to work with them. I’ve come away with tons of new friends. It’s going to be tough to say goodbye. 

How do you think your degree and experience at SU prepared you for the transition into the real world of theatre?

Kuhn: When I was at SU, I didn’t really want to perform. It was kind of a hobby, but I still took voice lessons and I did some performing on campus, and eventually, when I decided to go to grad school, I had a lot of people kind of pushing me to do it and supporting me. While I didn’t really want to perform while I was an undergrad, the help I got along the way really encouraged me to go for it, like my voice teacher and my music teachers in VPA. They all kind of prepared me to be ready to kind of actually do it, even though I thought it was something that I didn’t really want to do or I didn’t think I could do it.

Do you have any advice to give students looking to follow in your footsteps?

Kuhn: Go for it. Give it a solid effort. If you’re going to try to go for something like singing, it’s extremely competitive and you kind of have to have thick skin because you do kind of get turned down a lot. A lot of doors get closed, but if you really devote all of your effort and your energy into trying, you’ll get the right answer. If it’s for you, you’ll find out, but even if it’s not for you, you’ll find out as well. You have to give it a chance.

Do you see yourself pursuing opera for a long time?

Kuhn: I hope so, I mean, like I said, it’s incredibly competitive, surprisingly, because it is kind of a small community, but it is very, very competitive. I’ve been really lucky getting a lot of work out of school so I hope it continues. If I can still sing and I keep getting hired, then I’m going to continue.

Published on February 11, 2013 at 11:59 pm

Contact Kristin: klross01@syr.edu | @kriskross22