Delea Shand

Delea Shand is an opera singer, comedian and music educator.

She has written and performed three solo shows as the cabaret character, Madame Chandelier, who sings opera, tells jokes, and plays the accordion.

Madame Chandelier’s Opera Party for Kids premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Aug 2-15 at The Pleasance.

In 2022, she performed Madame Chandelier’s Opera House Party at the Edinburgh fringe, which was enjoyed by audiences and critics. ★★★★ The Observer, ★★★★ The Scotsman, ★★★★★ Musical Theatre Review.

In 2019 she was nominated for Best Newcomer at the Manchester Fringe, and her show, Madame Chandelier’s Rough Guide to the Opera, was nominated for Best Comedy Show. She had sold out run at the Edinburgh Fringe.

As a comedian, she’s performed at Soho Theatre, Phoenix Arts Club, Poodle Club, Bearcat comedy club, The Bill Murray comedy club, ACMS, The Glory, and the Royal Vauxhall Tavern, where she won the Oxjam Tavern’s Got Talent competition.

Delea has also performed at Sonata Piano Bar and Cabaret Lounge in Manchester.

With Bafta award winning conductor David Cole, and the Central Band of the Royal British Legion, Delea has performed at Canterbury Cathedral, Southwark Cathedral, and G Live in Guildford, as a soloist.

With support from Mothers Who Make and Arts Council England, Delea developed a series of “graphic scores” in collaboration with her children, which she performed at Toynbee Studios.

In 2014 she released There Was A Child Went Forth: Songs of Nils Vigeland, which is available on CD Baby, Amazon and iTunes. Recorded at Oktaven Audio, with Ryan Streber, the CD is a collection of 19 unpublished songs by Nils Vigeland.

When Delea lived in New York City, she performed with: Opera on Tap, Anti-Social Music, Tactus Ensemble, Manhattan School of Music’s Symphony Orchestra and Percussion Ensemble. She produced Opera on Tap’s contemporary music ensemble, New Brew. With Quince Contemporary Vocal Ensemble, she performed at the Issue Project Room as part of the Philip Glass: Music with Friends series. In Philadelphia, she made her debut with Orchestra 2001, at their John Cage Centennial concert series. She was a soloist with Opera America's Songbook Series, as well as concerts at Symphony Space (Thalia); and Webster Hall. She was a fellow at the Bang on a Can summer festival at MassMoCA.

Delea teaches for Merton Music Foundation. Previously, she was a teaching artist with the Metropolitan Opera Guild's Urban Voices Choral Initiative.

She holds a Master’s Degree in Contemporary Performance from the Manhattan School of Music, where she studied with Lucy Shelton. She also holds a Post Baccalaureate Diploma in Music from the University of Manitoba, where she studied with Tracy Dahl; a Post Graduate Diploma from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, London; and a Bachelor of Art, in English and Drama, from the University of Calgary. Having lived in Calgary, Winnipeg, and New York City, Delea now lives in London, England, with her husband Gus and their two children.