The tall, strapping baritone singer took center stage, belting out the role of Snug in \u201cA Midsummer Night\u2019s Dream\u201d with emotion, humor and beauty. His costume was huge, a giant lion’s head. His voice soared, thrilling the crowd.\u00a0What no one knew wasn\u2019t meant to be a secret: it\u2019s something opera performer Thomas Glass has had as a part of him since he was a small boy. Inside that costume, just like every costume he wears, the wardrobe department had sewn a special pocket to fit Glass\u2019 insulin pump. Because Glass, a rising star at just 26 years old, has Type 1 diabetes.<\/p>\n
Now, Glass is signed with IMG Artists New York Vocal, one of the most prestigious agencies in entertainment. The news means Glass is moving closer to his dream of performing on the best stages in the world, a dream that came despite diabetes. To him, diabetes is just part of who he is.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve had it since I was five, so I\u2019m just used to it,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t know life without it, so I\u2019m lucky I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luck has nothing to do with the ascension Glass is experiencing in the world of opera. Once a hard-core jock football player, Glass discovered music was his passion as a young teen when, surrounded by the choral culture of Lutheran Minnesota, he started to sing in school. That led him to St. Thomas College where he majored in music and fell in love with opera. After a full ride and stipend to get his Master\u2019s in Opera at Rice University, he joined the prestigious Minnesota Opera Resident Artist Program. A \u201ctier 2\u201d venue, it\u2019s an honor to perform with them, Glass said. Next up, is a two-year spot in Houston\u2019s Opera. After that, he hopes to move on to Germany. \u201cThe volume of work they put on is so much more than in the United States,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Does diabetes play a role in his performances? How could it not? On any given day, Glass said, he is \u201csinging in another language while emoting the character and singing this 400 year old [composition] and oh, acting too. In a field where I have to be thinking about blocking, singing, language, acting, and all at the same time, it\u2019s so important to be on.\u201d<\/p>\n
That means he needs to be on target with his diabetes management and clear of mind, for the sake of his performance and that of the entire show.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to kind of treat it like you would a football game or any other sport,\u201d he said. \u201cYou have to center your whole day around it. Even the rehearsals, you have to be sure you are on and ready \u2013 and prepared.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can perform when I\u2019m high,\u201d Glass said. \u201cIt\u2019s not great; but if I have to, I can do it. But low is when it gets wonky.\u201d That\u2019s where \u201cbe prepared\u201d truly comes in. He knows to have rapid acting glucose that\u2019s easy to swallow close by at all times, which can call for creativity.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne time I was Jesus in \u201cGodspell\u201d and I had Skittles hidden in a set piece right on stage,\u201d he said. \u201cNo one in the audience knew. But they were there for me if I needed them.\u201d He also says pump therapy helps. Should he be trending below where he wants to be before an intense performance, he can suspend his pump delivery for a time.<\/p>\n
And then there are the times he just has to punt. Like the summer of 2015. \u201cI was performing in a large, baroque costume with layers and layers. It was just so thick. And ten minutes into the show, I felt it pull my infusion site out. There was nothing I could do except just keep going until intermission,\u201d he said. \u201cYou know, diabetes adds another layer to everything. The more I can do to just be proactive, the better.\u201d<\/p>\n
Glass looks forward to performing \u00a0even more around the world, being represented now by IMG. As he moves closer toward what may have seemed like a dream, he has advice to those with diabetes: Don’t try to shake it off when you can’t.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere\u2019s an example,\u201d he said. \u201cI had a new infusion set in and I felt high. I corrected, and got higher. I had to let the scheduler know I had to cancel the rest of the day because of it. I was so worried \u2013 you know: the whole \u2018don’t let diabetes get in the way.\u2019 But in this moment, it had to get in the way. And what I learned was this: It’s the same as if someone, say, got food poisoning. Things happen, we react as we must. No one judges people for that, and no one judged me for this. Everyone was totally fine. Good lesson.\u201d<\/p>\n
It also seems some lessons he learned in diabetes life having led him to his gig with IMG. When he got a chance to be seen by an agent, when he got a chance to talk to a representative,and when he got a chance to audition in New York, he harkened back to his childhood days of JDRF walks and what his mother taught him. \u201cAlways send a written thank you note,\u201d she said. \u201cTo every person who helps in any way.\u201d That he did this time too, and he believes it helped get him noticed.<\/p>\n
To Glass, it all seems simple, even when it is not. Just as the easy way he melds diabetes into his challenging performance career, he sees his dreams as simple, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just so happy I have a job doing this,\u201d he said. \u201c I just want to be able to support a family with music. The heights I reach don’t matter to me. I\u2019m much more interested in simply singing music that matters.\u201d And diabetes? It shouldn\u2019t inhibit me. I\u2019ve never met a person out here who wasn\u2019t willing to help me figure this out.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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