I've been a soprano since I started doing choir in seventh grade. Even before I started singing in a choir, I would sing ridiculously high notes in all the cast recordings I would get for Christmas and my birthday.
There are a lot of benefits in being a soprano, such as getting the melody most of the time in choir pieces. I also appreciate all the alto friends of ours that balance us out and call us out on our shit when we don't notice it. But there are also struggles that my fellow sopranos often face, whether it's in choir or musical theatre.
1. All the pieces with ridiculously high notes.
If you're a soprano and you miss warm-ups, you're gonna have a bad time.
2. Sometimes being jealous of the mezzo-sopranos, altos, and baritones when they get harmonies.
Especially since I'm a really quick learner, I would like to get some harmonies at least sometimes.
3. There's usually more of us than there are altos.
And it often throws off the balance of the choir, which embarrasses us even more.
4. Being considered "basic" by the rest of the choir.
We're basically the Pumpkin Spice Lattes of the choir.
5. Being jealous of the altos getting to sing the emotional power ballads.
My belt may not be the most amazing, but I know one day I'll get there.
6. There's hardly any leading ladies in the contemporary musical theatre that are sopranos.
Pretty much every musical calls for belters these days and I keep hoping one day I will get my chance to shine again.
7. The characters and songs that do call for sopranos are often universally hated by the musical theatre community.
I love Eponine as much as the next person, but I never really understood the hate surrounding Cosette. Likewise, songs like "Green Finch and Linnet Bird" (one of my personal favorites) are often not people's favorite musical theatre songs, mainly because those kinds of songs can be difficult and can sound pretty bad if they're not sung correctly.