Eleanor Calbes

Eleanor Calbes (February 20, 1940 – April 19, 2016) was a Filipino-Canadian soprano born in Aparri, Cagayan, in the Philippines. She completed a diploma in education in 1961 and received a scholarship to study at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. She later became a Canadian citizen.

Calbes launched her opera career with the Bayanihan Philippine National Folk Dance Company before joining the Canadian Opera Company, with which she performed from 1963 to 1967. Her career took her to stages across the United States, Germany, and the Philippines, in addition to Canada. She played the role of Liat in the 1965 Off-Broadway revival of South Pacific at New York City Center, and returned to the same role in the 1967 Off-Broadway revival at New York State Theatre. In 1968, she appeared Off-Broadway as Tuptim in a revival of The King and I at New York City Center. Calbes made her Broadway debut in 1970, playing Lotus Blossom in Lovely Ladies, Kind Gentlemen. She continued performing globally until retiring in September 2012.

Beyond performing, Calbes began directing musicals in 1983 with a production of The King and I. In 1985, she founded Mississauga City Centre Opera and also opened dance and singing studios in Mississauga.

Among the honors she received, Calbes was named best musician of the year for Mississauga in 1996 and was inducted into the Mississauga Music Walk of Fame in 2013. The following year, she received the Laurie Pallett Patron of the Arts award at the 2014 Mississauga Arts Awards.

In her personal life, Calbes was married twice. With author David A.B. Wickes, she had a daughter, actress and producer Lara Wickes. Following her divorce from Wickes, she married Canadian opera singer John Davidson Thomson. Calbes died at the age of 76 from cancer on April 19, 2016.