Yvonne Denise Kenny

Sydney-born soprano Yvonne Kenny AM (b. 1950) studied science at the University of Sydney before pursuing a career in opera. She made her debut in London in 1975 having trained at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and at La Scala, Milan. In her 20 years with Royal Opera House, Covent Garden she performed in numerous operas including The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, Don Giovanni and Turandot. She has sung with Opera Australia since 1982, and has performed with many international companies, making her name with her interpretations of roles by Handel and Mozart, and developing a repertoire spanning Monteverdi and Bach to Andre Previn. Kenny has been a professor at London's Guildhall School of Music & Drama since 2007.

Polly Borland photographed Kenny in her dressing room at the London Coliseum an hour before a dress rehearsal for Der Rosenkavalier, in which she played the lead role of a woman caught in a loveless marriage. 'It is one of my best roles and Polly wanted to photograph me in costume,' Kenny said. 'It was a strange feeling really. A dressing room is a very private place and you feel very vulnerable and exposed, because you're creating your character with make-up and wigs.

Purchased 2022
© Polly Borland