The return of Sarah Brightman

Sarah Brightman, one of the world's most successful sopranos, is concerned about Australian wildlife. “I love being here,” he says. “I love Melbourne. But I'm terrified of the Hunter. It's in my DNA or primal, but they're so scary.”

Brightman, who has sold 30 million records, surpassed 1 billion streams of her music and recently toured the world performing arena concerts, is in Australia for a new production by her former husband Andrew Lloyd Webber . Sunset Blvd for Opera Australia.

Perhaps best known for originating and inspiring the title role of Christine Daaé in the hit musical the phantom of the opera written by Lloyd Webber and for their 1996 duet Time to say goodbye With Andrea Bocelli, Brightman has spent 34 years away from musical theatre.

Brightman as Norma Desmond Sunset Blvd.Credit: Ben King

She has returned to play Norma Desmond, the forgotten star of the silent film era, who, as talkies evolve and the years pass, creates a world in which she ignores the fact that she fades into obscurity . Immortalized by Gloria Swanson in the 1950 Billy Wilder film on which the musical is based, the role of Norma appealed to Brightman for its complexity and resonance with modern times.

“I've had my own career going. I've done a lot of recording, all these wonderful concerts around the world. It's been an interesting and creative time to have my own career,” he says. “But this role feels, first of all, age-appropriate, which is important to me. Also, the role is about an international star, she was a movie star at the time and I have had a kind of international fame.”

She says she understands the “trials and tribulations” of a woman who has to navigate this area. “The power it takes to get up and do things, the courage it takes, the lows and the highs. I felt I could understand a role like this because I've lived some of them.”

When Brightman spoke to Lloyd Webber about doing Sunset Blvd, told her that much of the music was written for her voice. “When we were together as a couple, he was writing continuously at the time, and probably a lot of these pieces. He was writing ghost … there were probably several pieces that I had in mind with my voice in it.

From Sunset Blvdhe says, “it's an amazing role.”

“Norma was living through a time of change in her world where technology was advancing, and unfortunately she moved on without it,” says Brightman. “This is very true for many music artists today and in the post-download era and other aspects of music production.

“There's an exoticism to the crumbling world that Norma tries to maintain, but it's a bygone era. It's an incredibly sad story. And she's very human and I think a lot of people could really relate to her.”

After three decades away from musical theatre, Brightman relishes the challenge of the role and stepping on the boards every week.

“You always learn something by being challenged, especially as an artist,” he says. “Otherwise, your life as an artist can become too easy and you start repeating yourself and then the joy goes away.”

Few artists, however, have dared to train for life in outer space. In 2015, Brightman planned to leave on a three-person Russian Soyuz spacecraft for a 10-day self-funded space tourism mission to the International Space Station.

She spent months, and an estimated $52 million, training to be a cosmonaut, immersing herself in physics, robotics, microgravity, psychological testing and intense survival skills.

Set to be the second British woman in space, and planning to sing aboard the ISS, she also endured extreme G-forces in a rapidly spinning centrifuge and spent 72 hours in a subzero Russian forest on pruning rations of a quest to build. a shelter from a parachute and branches.

But three months before the launch, he announced he would stop flying for “personal family reasons”.

Space, she says, has intrigued her since she was a child, especially when Apollo 11 landed on the moon in 1969.

“I've always been fascinated by light, the sky, the sun, the moon, all the folklore you read as a child,” she says. “But when the first man walked on the moon, seeing that happen on a black-and-white TV screen when I was eight years old, it really changed things for me. When I saw that, my understanding as a child was, ” God, everything is possible here.”

Almost 50 years later, decades after her award-winning and chart-topping soprano career began when she joined Arlene Phillips' Hot Gossip dance troupe at age 16, singing. I lost my heart to a Starship Trooper in a shiny leotard: the same philosophy compelled her to become a cosmonaut.

“I dropped out of school and math at 14,” he says. “And suddenly I realized I could do all these things. First of all, you can't do it with your head, and suddenly you're using parts of your brain that we don't normally need on Earth. A whole part of your brain which is open suddenly starts up.

“I've never, ever been challenged like this, and I started to understand how strong I was. It's been an amazing thing to do, a magical thing, and I feel very lucky.”

Brightman's last musical theater season was aspects of love, which performed for seasons in London and New York in 1990. After decades of world tours, album releases and film work (including romantic comedy). First Night with Richard E. Grant), and performances at the 1992 and 2008 Olympics, appearing in a musical has sparked memories and creativity.

Brightman on the set of Sunset Blvd with co-star Tim Draxl.Credit: Justin McManus

“I knew it would be hard to go back,” he says. “But it's something I know and understand. It's really only with the muscle memory of an old person that it comes back. You just have to navigate through it … it's been pretty interesting in rehearsals.”

The beauty of being in Australia, he says, is that everyone is “very, very nice”.

“There is a beautiful theater scene here, everyone is very well trained and they do everything very well. And it's just a lovely country to be in,” he says. “There's a lot of tension, obviously, with these things, because you have to be on top of everything with lines and singing all the time. But if your environment is good, that it's here, it's a pleasure to be there.”

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After Sunset BlvdBrightman isn't sure he'll do another musical, but sees the poetry of capping his musical theater career with a Lloyd Webber play.

“In a way, it's a personal journey for me,” he says. “Having worked with Andrew catswith the phantom of the opera, Song and Dance, Requiemall of those things, I felt like it came full circle.”

Now, as she impersonates Norma Desmond every night on stage, her only obstacle remains the furry, long-legged arachnids. “I want to learn everything about them,” he says. “But we have all the windows closed.”

Sunset Blvd, now playing at The Princess Theatre; Sydney Opera House from 28 August. sunsetmusical.com.au