Well, I sang in a couple of local operas: Carmen, Don Giovanni. La Traviata....
Granted, It’s not opera, but I think he listened to his coaches. And I loved his scenes.
Actually, if you go by the dictionary definition of opera, I believe Les Mis would qualify.
Unlike musicals, Les Mis has almost no spoken dialogue.
I’ve seen Les Mis on Broadway and I was expecting the caliber of singing I heard there. Most measured up, except for Crowe.
Knowing Crowe was not a singer, per se, I kind of expected him to take a Rex Harrison (Prof. Higgins) approach. That would have been interesting.
Check this out if you haven’t already seen it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMmF9el0S7k