Who is Margaret Plummer?
I am an Opera Singer from Sydney’s Northern Beaches, now living in Vienna with my husband David and our two sons Edwin and Dexter. We also have a funny little rescue dog from Romania called Jellyfish (or Lady Jellington as she has come to be called).
What would you do differently from what you do now?
My second passion has always been pregnancy, birth and babies. I think that if I hadn’t become a musician, I definitely would be a midwife. During covid lockdown when it seemed like the theatres might not open again for a while, I did my training as a Hypnobirth Teacher and have shared the Hypnobirth content with over 20 families since 2020.
Who inspires you and why?
My husband inspires me in the way he has recreated himself professionally since our move to Europe in 2015. When we left we were both working as singers, once we arrived he retrained, did his Masters in International Business and is now a lecturer in Business Communication at two different universities in Austria and a highly sought after facilitator in the corporate sector. My children also inspire me, I love watching them grow into smart, funny, kind humans. It is a great privilege.
What would you do to make a difference in the world?
I would love to get really great musical education into underfunded schools. I think the joy of music making should be accessible to everyone. I would also like to see the improvement of birthing outcomes for First Nations women in Australia and more support for women to birth “On Country” where they aren’t forced to leave their communities to travel to larger cities for prenatal care.
Favourite holiday destination and why?
We have a house in the Austrian countryside in a little village called Waldegg which we love to spend time in, but as far as a proper holiday destination we love Kastellorizo. It is a tiny Greek island as far east as you can go before you hit Turkey. In 2019 our dear friends Thom and Paull got married there and it was nothing short of magical. We returned in 2021 and would love to head back again.
When friends come to town, what attraction would you take them to, and why?
Of course the opera! The Vienna State Opera is a beautiful building and there is always something on (in fact between the 3 opera houses and 2 concert halls and multiple music venues in Vienna, we are spoilt for choice!).
We always take our guests to the Kahlenberg lookout, it has a great view of the whole city including the Danube and then we make sure to get a schnitzel from Figlmüller who have been making it the traditional way since 1905, if you want to take leftovers home, they just hand you a rolled up piece of wax paper and a rubber band!
What are you currently reading?
Since the end of April I’ve been reading fantasy books almost obsessively! (I just finished my 58th book in 7 months!) I am loving the Shepherd King Duology (One Dark Window and Two Twisted Crowns) by Rachel Gillig.
What are you currently listening to?
I love nothing more than good pop music, and at the moment I can’t get enough of Sabrina Carpenter. She writes very clever and catchy songs which are great to work out to. I am also learning Adelaide in Arabella by Strauss, so I have been listening to the Solti recording from Munich.
Happiness is?
Time with my people. My husband and kids, my siblings and parents, my chosen family. Also any time spent in the ocean. Living in a land locked country means I miss the smell of salt in the air and one of the first things I do when I get to Sydney is go and get in the water!
What does the future hold for you?
Who really knows! I live with the knowledge that my employability as an opera singer could change at any moment and as such I take every performance opportunity as a gift. That being said I have some wonderful gigs coming up in the next years which I am really looking forward to.
Our plan is to stay in Vienna at least until the boys have finished school (that’s another 7 years) and then we will assess where it makes the most sense for us to be. As long as I am working as a singer, Europe will likely be our home. I would love to further deepen my learning in birth practices, and when/if I stop singing I am sure that is where my focus will turn.
Margaret stars as Prince Charming in Opera Australia’s production of Massenet’s Cinderella (Cendrillon) – which will be presented on New Year’s Eve (31 December) and then from 2 January 2025 in the Joan Sutherland Theatre – Sydney Opera House. For more information, visit: www.opera.org.au for details.
Image: Margaret Plummer – photo by Golden Hour Pictures