"It's been a year of knowing what I'm made of." That has been the theme for rising star Ailyn Perez, whose career has taken off quickly.

After an acclaimed debut last year, the Metropolitan Opera invited her back to sing the role of Musetta in "La Boheme." During her time in New York, she was also announced as the winner of the Beverly Sills Award, an award given to young American singers who are destined for an international career. She was also given the honor of presenting her colleague Elina Garanca with the Opera Awards and also sang at the 25th anniversary gala for Renee Fleming.

But this busy schedule in New York was just the end of a hectic season that also included the world premiere of a comic opera "Great Scott" in which Perez was able to collaborate with legendary mezzo Federica Von Stade and Joyce Didonato. She also sang an acclaimed production of Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro" and returned to Dallas Opera for a new production of Massenet's towering work "Manon."

Perez gets to take a break in August but this year has definitely been one that has kept her moving and that has made her grow as an artist. So with such a hectic schedule how does Perez keep time for herself and pace her career? This is something Perez could not sum up but she had a lot to say during an interview with Latin Post.

Tackle new roles and projects.

Perez made her role debut as Musetta this past April in Puccini's "La Boheme." This is a role she had never sung before and rehearsal period at the Met was minimal since it was a revival from the fall.

Perez is very familiar with the opera as she is one of the leading Mimis, the title role, in the world. However, even though the role of Musetta is in the same opera, the vocal part is very different from Mimi.

"It's really different. There is a tendency to undersing it but, you just have to sing out," she said. "I kind of approached her as someone who should be the ultimate lifer on stage. She has a sugar daddy. Accessory queen and comes in on a horse. What is more life than her?

"Contrast that with Mimi who is frail. Mimi wants life. She's poetic. That is how I differentiate the two. For Musetta, I even said, 'I should gain 10 pounds. I'm rich and full of life.'"

Perez will become one of the few singers at the Met to sing both the Musetta and Mimi as she will sing the title role this fall for the 2016-2017 Met season.

"I feel lucky that I got to sing Musetta at the Met, but I think that with Mimi, I feel like I can say 'This is Me," she noted.

Make adjustments to your style.

As Perez sang the run at the Met, she noted that even though she sang a Franco Zeffirelli production at La Scala di Milano, the Met's current Zeffirelli production is a bit different and is more detailed. This helped find her character but forced her to make adjustments.

"The actual set is bigger and what is interesting is that the Milan version has a more ground-level apartment," she said. "Here it is high up and you really feel the elevation. The details here are also far richer. It feels more alive."

The adjustments were not only physical but also vocal. Musetta has to sing over a chorus and that is never an easy task for any singer.

"For me, the chorus scene is the hardest to project," she noted about the greatest vocal challenge for Musetta. "Every night I did it differently. Once I did it as it was staged originally. Another night I changed it up. Ultimately I just realized I needed to sing out."

This was something learned not only for the role but also as a singer in general.

"I am so used to being active to get an idea or action across, like seducing, instead of just letting the music seduce. I really learned to let that go. You are responsible to do your best, but you don't know own the music. You serve it," she said.

Be responsible with your obligations.

For an opera singer it is crucial that the voice and body remain healthy as a performance is always taxing. Additionally, the career forces hours of travel and, in many circumstances, time changes.

The pressure is also high as audiences go to an opera sometimes for the artist and not for the work. It's always discouraging to hear a cancellation or an announcement of illness. Many singers are renown for this but Perez admires one artist, Renee Fleming, for her discipline and integrity. Perez met the famed soprano when she was 16 years old and was the first soprano she ever heard.

During the 25th anniversary gala she attended, General Manager Peter Gelb noted that Fleming had never asked for such an announcement in her 25 years. "It's impressive," Perez noted about Fleming's career.

This is something Perez hopes never to do.

"I think that it is silly to do it. It brings more attention to it, because it isn't even helpful. You still have to go out and sing. Do I need to have the audience excuse me?"

To this day Perez has yet to ask for an announcement and she hopes to never have to do one.

Be responsible with yourself and strengthen you strengths

However, she has had to make hard decisions and this past month as she was considering her upcoming season, she had to cancel her role debut as Tatiana in Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" at the Dallas Opera. For Perez this was a role she was dying to sing but after looking at it, she realized she could not do justice to the music at the time and would prefer to wait to do it when her voice and artistry are ready for it.

In many ways this is the pressure of an opera singer as they are often forced to plan five years ahead. Singers are often asked about what their future roles are, forcing them to think to the future. But Perez has decided that instead of thinking to the future, she will work to develop the warhorses that have brought her this far.

"I am happy with my French heroines and Mimi and Juliette. I want to add 'Thais' [by Massenet] at some point but I just want to keep growing in the roles I'm best at. I have so much to still learn and I want to let them bloom."

Winning the Beverly Sills definitely puts more pressure on her career and audiences are definitely now looking at her future. "It's daunting and scary. It's the responsibility of knowing that I have to keep up that level," she noted about winning the award.

With so much pressure as her career grows, Perez wants to make sure that she is responsible with her career.

"You can have people around you, but no one is living this. One friend said that it wasn't my responsibility to make everything work. Even though it feels like it. Be yourself, that's enough."

And how does she face expectations, as they get bigger and she is likely be treated as, as she puts it, "a superhero?" Perez has vowed to continue to stay grounded.

"Being an artist is like having a superpower," she said. "You are not defined by your superpower. Some people will criticize your use of it also. But you cannot let that define you. You have to be honest and okay with."

She also noted that she does not want her career to get out of her control, as it is easy to rise and quickly fall.

"In theater, you're also replaceable. You may rise, you may fall. You have to learn to live with that and define your life, not on all the changes," she noted.

Rest, Friends and Mentors

And part of staying grounded is finding space for rest friends and mentors.

After a run of Massenet's "Manon" at the Dallas Opera, Perez was scheduled for a recital that she felt she would have to cancel. However, instead of disappointing her fans, she took some time off in Santa Fe where she rested and took in the beautiful weather. This allowed her to better prepare for an intensive recital that ended in success.

Perez credits her conductors, her family and her mentors for helping her through her career and through her work.

"I didn't get here by myself. Even as a lead, without the orchestra, without the audience, without the people backstage, my family, mentors, I wouldn't be there. It's not all about me," she said.

And one other tool that has also kept her grounded is the use of social media. She has been able to connect with many friends and teachers and share her wonderful experiences behind the scenes.

"It calms me down. Makes me relax." For example, during a performance of "La Boheme" Perez was on Twitter and she found out a friend was in the theater and then reconnected and saw her at the end of the night in the dressing room.

"Just reconnecting with so many people gave me that vibe that pushed me to be the best."

The Future and Education

As she continues on the rise, Perez wants continue to do more recitals, as a way of maintaining her voice.

"I want to keep doing my recitals. I want to fill my calendar with recitals and orchestral works as a way to protect my instrument. That way I'm not just doing one art form and taxing myself in one direction. I'm thinking about playing the long game. "

She also wants to continue to foster education. Perez has always been a big advocate of education and she recently became part of the advisory board to Time in Kids, which helps students learn art through music.

She also hopes that American culture learns to embrace opera like they do in Europe with their educative television programs. She cites Antonio Pappano, the musical director of the Royal Opera House and his collaboration with the BBC.

"Antonio Pappano -- he is so brilliant, so insightful and we share the same initials!" she joked. "The BBC is so wonderful in getting out that content to audiences. We don't have something similar in this country. Maybe Live from Lincoln Center comes close, but we really don't have anything close to the BBC."

With all these projects Perez does hope for one thing. She wants to inspire others and hopes to continue her musical journey.

"I cannot control who I inspire, but the more I can stand up straight and get out there and deliver, that's enough."

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