Opera Clarey made her debut with the American Opera Center singing the role of Pamina in
Mozart's
Magic Flute. She worked professionally as a
chorister in New York City for a time, singing for shows like
Carmina Burana and the
Alvin Ailey Dance Company's
Revelations. Clarey then moved to
Binghamton, New York and joined the
Tri-Cities Opera Company. This is where Clarey first sang the character of "Carmen, a Gypsy Girl" in
Georges Bizet's opera
Carmen. Clarey is featured on a recording of the Glyndenbourne cast of
Porgy and Bess, with
Simon Rattle conducting the
London Philharmonic. This 1989 release was nominated for a
Grammy Award and is considered one of the best classically oriented recordings of the opera. Clarey also performed with the
Royal Opera House in
London, the
Opéra-Comique (
Paris), the
Deutsche Oper Berlin, the
Bayerische Staatsoper (Bavarian State Opera,
Munich), the
Teatro Municipale (Reggio Emilia), the
Teatro Real (
Madrid), the
Theatro Municipal (Rio de Janeiro), the
Teatro Nacional de Sao Carlos, the
Toronto Opera and the
CAPAB Opera (
Cape Town). She has performed for numerous opera festivals including the
Wexford Festival Opera, the
Aix-en-Provence Festival and the
Bregenz Festival. After quitting singing for a bit, she moved to
Chicago and discovered
cabaret. She began performing in the cabaret style, saying, "Opera is more technically difficult for a singer, but cabaret is up close and personal. There’s nowhere to hide! ... It really feels like home". ==References==