SEATTLE — Time has been hard to keep track of these days. But on one street in Ballad, all the neighbors know when it's 5 o'clock.
For over a month now, Stephen Wall, a classically trained tenor and Seattle Opera performer, turns his front yard into center stage.
"Someone asked me what did you expect? I didn't expect anything it was sort of this lark," said Wall. "Just go out there and either the cops will show up or people will be with it."
Audiences have been so with what he's doing, he's been dubbed, Ballard Opera Man.
"I think someone just said it, ‘we're going to Ballard Opera Man.’ And some of my opera colleagues were kidding me about it saying, sounds like there's a superhero costume in your future."
He belts out between 10 to 15 minutes every weekday. No matter how he's feeling.
"I have to confess. There have been some days where my voice has been tired,” admits Wall. "I get out there and that's not an issue. I feel like I've sung just about pretty darn close to my best every time because there's a rush. There's just this incredible rush."
His song selections change nightly. But there's one aria that always leaves the night on a high note.
"I always end with Nessun dorma. You can't do a Saint Patrick's Day concert without Danny Boy, so that's like this has become."
His performances are his gift to the community in these uncertain times. But
Stephen also hopes the audience will step up to the mic themselves when it comes to helping out others.
"Rather than just donate money to an agency and hope that it gets somewhere, go to the place where you see the need and serve."
Stephen Wall hopes to return to the stage sometime soon. But until that day comes he's more than happy serenading the streets of Ballard.
"I can't think of anything that's as serendipitous or unexpected in my life than this."
You can watch Stephen Wall's performances live on his Facebook page under Ballard Opera Man.
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