Claude Heater (October 25, 1927 – May 28, 2020) was an American opera singer. He is also known for portraying the role of Jesus Christ (uncredited in the titles) in the 1959 classic film Ben-Hur.
Biography
Born in Oakland, California, Heater grew up in a family who were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). When Heater was nineteen years old, he served as a missionary of the LDS Church in the Eastern
United States. He began his career on
Broadway theatre as a
baritone in New York City in 1950. In 1952, he decided to focus on opera and left to study as a baritone in
Italy. This led to a tour of
Spain with an Italian opera company and eventually with
in Europe ending his baritone career after three years at the Vienna State Opera and the San Francisco Opera in
California from 1953 to 1961. He returned to Europe in 1956 to sing in
Basel,
Switzerland, with Montserrat Caballé in
Tosca,
Pagliacci and
Tiefland, along with
Un ballo in maschera,
La bohème, and
Lohengrin. He went from Basel to
Berlin to alternate with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau in
Un ballo in maschera and
Don Carlos and with
Hermann Prey in other roles. His debut was as Escamillo in
Carmen.
Heater retrained his voice as a tenor, and from 1963 had great success in the Dramatic/Wagnerian tenor repertoire at major theatres internationally.
Heater died on May 28, 2020, in San Francisco, California, aged 92
Filmography
-
Ben Hur (1959) - Jesus Christ (film debut, uncredited)
-
Tristan und Isolde (1970) - Tristan (final film)
External links
