The Australian soprano Amy Manford celebrates Disney’s centenary with an album. With Mabel and Grazia she talks about her passion for singing and the challenge of also being a young entrepreneur.

The Australian soprano Amy Manford is famous for her interpretation of Christine Daaé in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical The Phantom of the Opera. Recently, she reprised this role at the Arts Centre in Melbourne, after a sold-out season at the Sydney Opera House, and she also performed with Andrea Bocelli as a guest in his latest Australian tour. But this fascinating and determined soprano is also the co-producer of a company, MM Creative Productions, with which she built the show celebrating Disney’s centenary, Disney 100: The Concert, which will be on tour in 2023. She has also just debuted with a mini-album titled A Dream Is A Wish, and Grazia met her to talk about it.

What was it like performing with Andrea Bocelli?

“It was a surreal experience. When I was studying at college, I always sang a karaoke duet version of Time to Say Goodbye / Con te partirò. I wish I could go back in time and tell my younger self that she would one day realize the dream of performing with a legend.”

Would you like to perform one day at Teatro alla Scala in Milan? And what is your favorite opera?

“Yes, it’s one of the most important venues in the world for singers. My favorite opera is Puccini’s La Bohème.”

You are both an artist and an entrepreneur. Do you think women have achieved gender equality in the workplace?

“This is a difficult question; it depends a lot on the job, but I think gender equality is still a distant achievement. For me, it has been an interesting experience to create my own production company, MM Creative Productions, together with my business partner Genevieve McCarthy. But almost every week we’re asked who is really behind the company and who is helping us run the business. I don’t know if these questions arise because of our young age, our appearance, or because we are women. But they reflect how female entrepreneurship is often perceived.”