OnlyFromNZ
Paul Sinclair and Imogen Thirlwall
September 2, 2026
In this pod I catch up with Tauranga-born, Stuttgart-based lyric coloratura soprano Imogen Thirlwall, who works full-time as an opera singer in Germany at the Stuttgart State Opera.
After training in Wellington and building her early career through New Zealand Opera, Imogen moved to Europe in 2017 to chase the dream.
She has performed in 75 professional opera, operetta, and musical theatre productions in her career to date, including more than 180 performances during her time at Staatstheater Meiningen. She has been a permanent member of the chorus at Staatsoper Stuttgart since 2022, where she has performed in 22 opera productions and more than 165 performances over her past two seasons alone, alongside a summer season with the Festspielchor at Bayreuther Festspiele.
We talk about breaking into the German opera system, the central role of chorus work, managing auditions and rejection, singing through COVID and personal loss, and the daily care of a voice that unlike an instrument can’t be packed away at night.
Imogen also shares some fantastic tips for managing stage fright, creating stage presence, and delivers her perspective on what makes a singer both watchable and listenable.
And because for me no conversation with an opera singer would be complete without a Tintin reference – yes I’m an old Hergé tragic – I have to ask Imogen whether she’s ever seen anyone shatter glass with their voice, a la Bianca Castafiore. 😁
A huge thanks to Imogen for joining me on Kiwi Flees. This is a rich conversation about craft, ambition, self-belief, professional and personal growth, and the private dream that first pulls an artist offshore.
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