Opera singer Pretty Yende had to cancel a performance this past weekend due to a family emergency. Picture: pretty_yende_official/Instagram
“Dearest Friends, to my deepest regret, I have to withdraw from my recital at the Glanum Festival tomorrow due to serious family circumstances,” shared Pretty Yende on Instagram.
Yende was billed to perform in The Chaîne des Alpilles, southern France. This was the eighth edition of the Glanum festival.
“I am very grateful to the festival for their comprehension and I do hope they will have me there soon. Sending you all my love and really wish for you, in this very moment, to hold your loved one and tell them that you love them and cherish every moment with them.”
“Spread love because we are love. And when it is all said and done, that is all we truly have. God is Love.”
Yende was due to do her recital at the Glanum Festival on Saturday. “Dear audience, dear friends of the Glanum Festival,” said organisers of Glanum Festival on their social media.
“Nevertheless, we wanted to offer you an exceptional musical experience. The whole team has mobilised to plan an exceptional evening for you.”
There was so much excitement when the festival announced Yende as one of their headliners of this year’s instalment of the festival.
NOW READ: WATCH: President Cyril Ramaphosa rubbing shoulders with Mzansi’s creatives in Paris
“Saturday, 22 July 2023, we will have the immense honour of hosting Pretty Yende, who was invited to perform at King Charles III’s Coronation Ceremony,” announced the festival in May.
“After her triumphs at the Bastille Opera and on all stages in the world, the huge South African soprano will perform at Glanum with the ensemble Passionato, under the direction of Mathieu Herzog, for a 100% bel canto programme.”
ALSO READ: Tony Bennett, last of classic American crooners, dead at 96
It is unclear what the family emergency is which has kept Yende away from stage. On her Instagram stories the opera singer shared reels of worship songs and one with a screenshot of what seems like a video call with an older lady.
The screen shot is accompanied by an emoji of a broken heart at the bottom. It’s unclear if the lady in the screenshot is Yende’s mother, Rose Thandi Yende.
But this wasn’t the first time she’s been forced to call off a show.
In a now deleted post, the opera singer shared on her Instagram last month that she went through her most challenging performance and had to rush home to South Africa for a family emergency.
Yende showed gratitude to fans who have kept her in their prayers, when she shared a post a few days after she wrote the now deleted post.
“My deepest gratitude goes to each and every one of you for being so supportive during these past few most challenging days, for all your thoughtful and heartfelt messages. You have no idea what your love means to me.”
NOW READ: ‘The Masked Singer South Africa’: How the detectives unmasked Zozibini Tunzi
Download our app and read this and other great stories on the move. Available for Android and iOS.
