Name: Matthew Maisano aka the incredible Drag Queen Balena Canto

Voice Type: Baritone

Correlating Career(s): Librarian by day, Drag Queen by night!

Recent Performances: Ensemble (The Love of Three Oranges) with Opera Philadelphia, Multiple Performances as Balena Canto in Philadelphia, Senex (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) with Natchez Festival of Music, Multiple engagements with Drag Queen Story Time.

What Matthew/Balena Does Differently:

• Networks fearlessly- about 80% of the gigs he gets are through people he knows.
• Embodies Kindness and Encouragement
• Confidently presents his most authentic self!

And there’s that one time Matthew/Balena Canto went viral:

What we’ve learned from Matthew/Balena: We’ve both known Matt for a few years and can personally speak to how much he works on being a good colleague as much as he works on his singing. We’re also inspired by how he uses his community connections to make his own opportunities, all while hunting opera’s white whale (if you’ll forgive the pun): a YAP contract. But above all, Matt has shown us how being true to yourself brings a lot of happiness, even amidst the challenge of building a career.

Follow Matthew and Balena on Facebook and Instagram and Twitter

📸: (from left to right) Matthew Maisano/Balena Canto, Matthew Maisano/Balena Canto, Rachel Meirson/Russian Opera Workshop