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James, it should be noted, is a Professor of Voice in the Music Theatre Department of Sheridan College. She teaches voice to young musical theatre and pop artists. Eleven years ago, she came to Sheridan as a part-time instructor; she has been a full-time faculty member for the past seven. After hours, this dynamic woman directs community theatre, as well as, stu- dent performances at Theatre Sheridan (where she is currently working towards a Feb. 12th open- ing of Anything Goes). This is in addition to a private teaching prac- tice. She enjoys walking, reading, and yoga in all its manifestations. From time to time, she returns to the musical stage herself. Which, by the way, she is about to do. In May, the singing professor will begin rehearsals in Stratford for a reprise of her star-tum as Katisha in The Mikado. It was 10 years ago that this extravagant and colorful Gilbert and Sullivan musical first raised the roof at the Festival Theatre, and James is clearly delighted to be going back to work with her favorite director â€" the highly creative (and somewhat leg- endary) Brian MacDonald. No won- der she was walking on air and giv- “This is not a surprise, I guess," she explained merrily, “since my voice is my major asset, both as a teacher and as a performer.” hristina James has an exquisite telephone voice â€" elegant but warm, textured and lyrical. She could be Emma Peel if she hadn’t already confessed to being who she really was. Here's one lady who's ready to voice an opinion l-‘S-fl--- MAKE HEALTHINESS 581 ARGUS ROAD OAKVILLE m "fins: noun» DR. 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It seems almost gratuitous to add; she is happily married to an incredibly understanding man “who knows what I do and is very supâ€" ponive.” “Teaching and performing go hand-in-hand for me,” the professor revealed in a recent, wide-ranging interview. “One leads into the other; I could not imagine my life without both.” Fortunately, Sheridan College is committed to continued profession- al development, she said, which allows her to maintain this dual career. Declared the teacher, “A lot of the discoveries I make in my own individual performing are the things I can bring to my students first- hand.” (Putting the lie to Mr. Shaw’s much quoted passage: “He who can, does. He who cannot, “A lot of the discoveries I make in my own individual per- forming are the things I can bring to my students firsthand.” Holiday makeovers No stress atmosphere Flexible hours Open Sundays 2423 Marine Dr. (Bronte) 847-6452 DIET CLINIC She had a friend doing musicals, so she auditioned for an English pantomime and got a part. It was a beginning. For the next half-dozen years, she toured England with vari- ous companies, doing a variety of parts in musicals like My Fair Lady. Teaching was something the multi-talented James did quite instinctively even as a student back at the Royal North College of Music where she majored in voice and orchestral percussion. Though born in Scotland, she had been raised in the north of England. She put herself through College beating the orchestral drums, as it were, but singing was always her first passion. Offered a scholarship to carry on with her voice training, she did not hesitate to exercise it. Then at the tender age of 22, an aspiring opera mezzo, Christina suddenly found herself in limbo, her mentors tut-tutting, “There, there dear, your voice will not mature until you are 35.” “This was not what I wanted to hear,” she said caustically. She laughed. “That’s right. There are no small parts, dear, just small actors. The thing is... if you’re good in a small role then you get noticed.” She was married to her first hus- band by then, however, and he was summoned by the CBC to Toronto. It was the mid-sixties and James saw Canada as something of a cul- tural vacuum (not without some jus- tification). In terms of musical the- atre, there was some being per- formed at the Royal Alex in Toronto, and in Charlottetown, and teaches.") Would like to_ thank everyone who visited our store in the past year and helped to make our year a successful one. We will be restocking the store with new cabinets in February, and as a result, all in- store cabinets will be offered at Custom Cabinets 8: Accessories 259 LAKESflOKE RD. EAST - 338-5181 Our best references are in homes all over Oakville. of course, New York City. But if she’d wanted to be separated from her husband, the singer noted, she would have stayed in England. Instead, she placed her career on hold and had a daughter, performing the intensive role of ‘mum’ for a few years before venturing into community theatre where, accord- ing to the lady, she “got to do lots of interesting roles with good direc- tion." Meanwhile, her “major asset” did not languish. It was instrumenâ€" tal in helping her build up a thriving vocal teaching practice. She, her- self, was working with a voice teacher who encouraged her to audi- tion for the Canadian Opera Company. Christina James: the voice as an instrument “I sang with the Canadian Opera for a while, but realized this was not where I wanted to be," she allowed. Instead, she was drawn to the musi- cal theatre where her “acting sense” could be better employed. It was about this time that Rod Maxwell, a fellow she knew through community theatre, who also happened to be the Chairman of the Creative Arts Department at Sheridan College, invited her to join his team. By this time, she had met her second husband, David â€" a Welshman with three children - who also enjoyed singing. James is an unapologetic booster of Sheridan College. She loves it. (See 'Voice' page 10) In addition, any tables and chairs ordered during this week wil_1 be Please remember that we are a local custom cabinet maker with our factory located on Speers Road. If you don’t see exactly what you need in the store, chances are good that we can make it for you. January 18 until Saturday, January 25. Sale starts Monday,