Monwabisi’s time at the Studio is supported by donors to the Sustaining Success Appeal
Monwabisi was born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. As a young boy he used to listen to choirs singing and soon started imitating their voices.
Monwabisi participated in the South African Choral Music Association competition in Johannesburg and obtained 1st prize. He then joined Opera Africa in the chorus of I Capuleti et Montecchi on tour. In 2008 Monwabisi was accepted in Tshwane University of Technology (Vocal Technique Department) under the voice teacher Pierre du Toit where he studied until 2010.
Between 2013 and 2016 he joined Cape Town Opera as a Young Artist singing various roles such as 4th Jew in Salome, Crab man in Porgy and Bess, and Kromow in Die lustige Witwe. As part of Cape Town Opera he has worked in Europe performing in African Angels. Since 2015 he has been freelancing in South Africa which has taken him to Frankfurt and Barcelona.
In November of 2019 he made his UK debut as Rodolfo in Puccini’s La bohème for Hampstead Garden Opera in a fully staged new production by award winning director Daisy Evans. During lockdown 2020 he was awarded a tenor prize in the “Voices of South Africa” singing competition singing from his house in Port Elizabeth on a smart phone! Monwabisi is a 2021/22 Young Artist at the National Opera Studio. He is financially supported by donors to the Opera Studio, the Drake Calleja Trust and the HGO singers bursary.
Updated January 2022. This biography should not be reproduced without asking permission from the National Opera Studio.