Motherhood (Instructions Not Included)
A cabaret-style romp through the highs, lows, and everywhere-in-betweens of motherhood
A message from Rachel
In my off-stage life, I’m best known for my role as “mom” … with mixed reviews. I’ve garnered high praise for my children’s-book-reading and lullaby-singing, particularly my renditions of “Baby Beluga” and “You Are My Sunshine.” My vegetarian cooking experiments, however, have been met with harsh criticisms by my two boys, the most severe of which was, “UGH! Not this thing again!!”
Professionally, I sing! Whether church music directing, opera singing, or recital presenting, music is my life. I was proud to win the 2022 Mixtape Recital Series Competition in Washington, DC with this very same program. It has been such a joy to share this eclectic concert experience, along with my own personal stories about my own motherhood journey, with so many people!
In my opera singing life, I enjoy portraying angsty teenagers, like Monica (The Medium), Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), and Gilda (Rigoletto). Despite these characters’ questionable life choices and motivations, their deeply expressive music challenges us to examine our relationships to other people in a new light. I also love singing the roles of characters who go “mad” (with “mad” being in quotation marks because, look, these people aren’t actually crazy – they’ve just been lied to, gaslit, and abused, and they’ve had enough. But then again, that’s a whole other discussion… and possible show. I digress…)
Upon further examination, the pattern of roles that thrill me is all too clear: Like Marie Kondo, I love mess. I find perfection in the imperfection. What better way to highlight the perfect chaos and calmness in the eye of the storm than to celebrate moms?
Rachel Sitomer shares her reflections with
J. Ernest Green, Artistic Director of Live Arts Maryland
An intimate, personal experience
My most intense life experiences have centered around being a mom. And what do we singers do when we have intense life experiences? We sing about them!
Motherhood is such a personal experience – but by sharing the personal, we connect with the universal, even the divine. Through this beautiful and poignant music as well as through the sharing of my own stories, I offer a unique take on the trials and triumphs of being a mom and professional artist in today’s society. Just like motherhood, this concert is at times deeply touching, at others laugh-out-loud hilarious, and always full of unexpected moments.
But this is not just a cabaret for moms. There is something for everyone here. For better or for worse, everyone has a mom; if they’re not in your life, maybe there is someone who serves as a mother figure to you, or maybe you are a mother or mother figure to someone else. Together, we delve into the innately human urge to care for others, along with the difficulties and triumphs that come along with loving another person in the context of nurturing them.
Rachel with her son, Benjamin
A message from Rachel
In my off-stage life, I’m best known for my role as “mom” … with mixed reviews. I’ve garnered high praise for my children’s-book-reading and lullaby-singing, particularly my renditions of “Baby Beluga” and “You Are My Sunshine.” My vegetarian cooking experiments, however, have been met with harsh criticisms by my two boys, the most severe of which was, “UGH! Not this thing again!!”
Professionally, I sing! Whether church music directing, opera singing, or recital presenting, music is my life. I was proud to win the 2022 Mixtape Recital Series Competition in Washington, DC with this very same program. It has been such a joy to share this eclectic concert experience, along with my own personal stories about my own motherhood journey, with so many people!
In my opera singing life, I enjoy portraying angsty teenagers, like Monica (The Medium), Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), and Gilda (Rigoletto). Despite these characters’ questionable life choices and motivations, their deeply expressive music challenges us to examine our relationships to other people in a new light. I also love singing the roles of characters who go “mad” (with “mad” being in quotation marks because, look, these people aren’t actually crazy – they’ve just been lied to, gaslit, and abused, and they’ve had enough. But then again, that’s a whole other discussion… and possible show. I digress…)
Upon further examination, the pattern of roles that thrill me is all too clear: Like Marie Kondo, I love mess. I find perfection in the imperfection. What better way to highlight the perfect chaos and calmness in the eye of the storm than to celebrate moms?
Rachel Sitomer shares her reflections with
J. Ernest Green, Artistic Director of Live Arts Maryland
An intimate, personal experience
Rachel with her son, Benjamin
My most intense life experiences have centered around being a mom. And what do we singers do when we have intense life experiences? We sing about them!
Motherhood is such a personal experience – but by sharing the personal, we connect with the universal, even the divine. Through this beautiful and poignant music as well as through the sharing of my own stories, I offer a unique take on the trials and triumphs of being a mom and professional artist in today’s society. Just like motherhood, this concert is at times deeply touching, at others laugh-out-loud hilarious, and always full of unexpected moments.
But this is not just a cabaret for moms. There is something for everyone here. For better or for worse, everyone has a mom; if they’re not in your life, maybe there is someone who serves as a mother figure to you, or maybe you are a mother or mother figure to someone else. Together, we delve into the innately human urge to care for others, along with the difficulties and triumphs that come along with loving another person in the context of nurturing them.
Recital Information
- Winner of the 2022 Mixtape Recital Series Competition (Washington, DC)
- First performance: May, 2022 – Prism, Annapolis, presented by Mixtape Recital Series
- Including pieces by Bach / Gounod, Lauren Spavelko / Chloe Yelena Miller, Jake Heggie / Frederica von Stada, and others
- Premieres works by Sean Pflueger, composer and Laura Fuentes, librettist
- CONTENT WARNING: Contains mentions of grief and miscarriage
Recital Information
- Winner of the 2022 Mixtape Recital Series Competition (Washington, DC)
- First performance: May, 2022 – Prism, Annapolis, presented by Mixtape Recital Series
- Including pieces by Bach / Gounod, Lauren Spavelko / Chloe Yelena Miller, Jake Heggie / Frederica von Stada, and others
- Premieres works by Sean Pflueger, composer and Laura Fuentes, librettist
- CONTENT WARNING: Contains mentions of grief and miscarriage
Praise for Motherhood (Instructions Not Included)
“Rachel Sitomer premiered ‘What’s for Dinner?’ singing beautifully with impressive clarity of diction. She balanced the vocal and acting demands of the cycle perfectly. The audience was laughing along with her great comic delivery. She proved that she is more than a singer with a beautiful line and tone; she’s got comedic chops, too.”
“Motherhood (Instructions Not Included) is a delight for all, not just those with children of their own. Rachel expertly balances wit and humor with superb artistry as she portrays love, loss, and hope through song. The diverse concert repertoire, combined with the inclusion of personal anecdotes and artwork from her sons, perfectly meld together the multifaceted experience that is motherhood in an approachable and poignant way.”
“Rachel Sitomer brought this new music of huge importance as a vindication for all mothers everywhere. Her beautiful lyric soprano voice alternated between dazzling high notes and stunning legato singing. I loved every moment of it!”
“As funny as it is poignant, Rachel’s performance had me laughing, crying, and feeling everything in between.”
When You Transformed My Poems into Music
You know how when you sleep too late
& you wake up to
light
brightening every crevice, bedsheet fold,
& you,
even with the blinds still down?
That is what it was like to listen
as your voice,
your notes,
filled the space between
the white walls. Between
my ribs,
the strings of light
vibrated.
Interested in presenting Motherhood (Instructions Not Included)?
Now accepting bookings!
I would be thrilled to share this performance with your community. Please contact me using the form below and I will be in touch with additional information.
Interested in presenting Motherhood (Instructions Not Included)?
Now accepting bookings!
I would be thrilled to share this performance with your community. Please contact me using the form below and I will be in touch with additional information.