Rising Kiwi star Elizabeth Marvelly says the Royal Wanganui Opera House is her favourite place to sing in New Zealand.
She's sung there twice before, and can't wait to do so again on April 20, as part of her Home tour with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.
Ms Marvelly is a "crossover"
artist. She sings a mixture of light classical and pop, in the style of United Kingdom tenor Paul Potts and talent quest finalist Susan Boyle.
In the Home tour she'll sing Summertime, Ave Maria and Don't Dream It's Over as well as Maori classics like E Papa and Tarakihi - which paints a sound picture of a cicada about to launch into flight.
Ms Marvelly and Paul Potts are fresh from their To Christchurch With Love concert on Saturday night, which attracted 1100 people and raised over $115,000 for the earthquake relief effort.
"I was really quite stunned by it. I was just incredibly blown away by the people, and so glad that we could help," she said.
Brought up in Rotorua, she started taking singing lessons at the age of 12 and got on a plane to the northern hemisphere to begin her singing career straight after her last seventh form exam.
Now 21, she's been back in New Zealand for a year after three years roaming the world and singing, often as a guest artist with Paul Potts. She has sung the national anthem at All Black games, and done shows in Asia and Dubai.
The life of a professional singer is unpredictable.
"You never really know what's around the corner. You have to suspend expectation and see what comes next. It took a lot of getting used to but I feel very very lucky that I get to do for work what I love."
