From opera singer to Labour candidate – MAXINE GORDON goes behind the scenes with York soprano Rebecca Newman as she prepares for her third York Proms

REBECCA Fewtrell has two names linked to two very different worlds.

As Mrs Fewtrell she is wife to Jonathan, mum to 23-month-old Logan, and a would-be politician – she stood unsuccessfully for the Labour party in the May city council elections in the ward where she lives, Rawcliffe and Clifton Without.

As Rebecca Newman, she is the celebrated soprano, with a number-one classical album, who has toured with Russell Watson and sung with Alfie Boe and is bringing York Proms to Museum Gardens on Sunday for the third successive year.

At first glance, her two worlds seem to clash. How does she square her passion for left-wing politics with the conservatism and pomp and circumstance of the English proms?

No problem, answers Devon-raised Rebecca, who believes patriotism belongs to all of us.

"The British led the way with democracy and rights for women. The pomp and circumstance of the Proms is quite conservative. But what the UK stands for and makes us great is how we look after one another.

"We saw it at the London Olympics when the NHS was an essential part of the opening ceremony. State eduction and people coming together are what has made this country great and so peaceful. It takes more than songs and flags to be patriotic."

Peel back the glossy veneer of Rebecca's stage dress and persona and you will find a person who cares deeply about inequalities at home and abroad.

If she hadn't become a professional opera singer, her dream was to work for the World Bank or an NGO in the developing world.

"I am interested in development and the economy and I wanted to go into developmental economics and poverty reduction around the world."

She certainly has the credentials for such a career. She has a degree in politics, philosophy and economics from the University of York.

But while studying for her degree, Rebecca took up street performing – she was a talented soprano who learned to sing opera as a teenager. In fact, her first dream was to become a professional singer, and she left school after her A Levels to pursue that career.

But the doubts began to creep in and she didn't think she would make it as a singer. "I couldn't do the West End because I'm not a dancer and I wasn't a pop singer. I didn't think I could be an opera singer because it felt so remote and I felt like I was a long way behind and couldn't catch up."

And yet in 2014 she made history as the first artist without a record label to secure a number-one-selling album in the classical charts.

That story of how the nigh impossible became possible tells you a lot about Rebecca. It took talent for sure, but also determination, hard work and a drive to turn her hand to anything to succeed.

After recording her album in Prague with the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, Rebecca's challenge was to market and sell the album without the resources or support of a major record label.

"I researched and learned how to do my own barcodes and how sales get reported so they get picked up by the auditors that make the charts. If I hadn't been registered I could have sold one million copies and not got into the charts."

Becoming a chart-topper was a "great day" she says, adding: "it was one for the underdog. I had beaten three major-label artists to the number one spot."

It was during her time at York University that she renewed her faith and confidence in her singing. Besides busking, she took bookings as a wedding singer.

"During the summer I was street performing four or five times a week and performing as a wedding singer at weekends, sometimes doing two a day."

The dream was back on, and she focused on using her music for a purpose. "I wanted to use music to do good and I raised lots of money for charity. I also did volunteering – with York children's charity, The Island, and for a singing group. I wasn't changing the world, but changing the world around me."

The album's success was a springboard for her career and she toured with Russell Watson and performed live with Alfie Boe.

Three years ago, she decided to bring the proms to York – just as she realised she was pregnant with her first child.

Again, Rebecca went into overdrive to make it a success. "I built the website and the online shop and did the graphic design, the accounts and marketing. I am a jack of all trades."

The York Proms has an enviable setting among the ruins of St Mary's Abbey in Museum Gardens, and it was a success from the start with a capacity crowd of 2,000 and a fireworks finale. Rebecca is hoping for an equally great night on Sunday and tickets are available online at yorkproms.com (no tickets can be bought at the gate).

The event raises money for York Museums Trust and local charities, including for 2019, York Inspirational Kids and The Wilberforce Trust.

Rebecca would like to build on the success of the York Proms. "I'd like to have a York Proms Choir doing events throughout the year as well as charity events and flash mobs. I'd love to write a song for York and get it performed all around the city. I'd take it to schools so that York could have it's own Baby Shark."

With Rebecca's drive and determination, chances are she will pull that off too.

York Proms 2019 – the essentials

The fun starts around 5.15pm on Sunday when entertainment begins on the community stage from the Bev Jones Music Company, Lucy's Pop Choir and Owl Adventures.

A new orchestra has been specially formed for the York Proms, the Yorkshire Festival Orchestra. It will be under the direction of Ben Crick, former BBC Music Fellow who works internationally with big names such as Lesley Garrett and Emma Kirkby. The musicians are top orchestral players who have performed with prestigious orchestras such as the Halle Orchestra.

Guests for the evening include Jennifer Coleman, a soprano with Opera Vlaanderen in Belgium, and Nicholas Watts, a tenor with Opera North who lives in York. Both trained at the Royal College of Music.

Food and drink: people can bring their own picnics or take advantage of a range of catering outlets on site selling wood-fired pizza, cakes and ice-cream – and there will be a bar.

Ticket prices: Adult (£36); child (£11); family (£85 - two adults, up to four children); disabled plus carer (£36) from yorkproms.com