International Opera Star Mike Austin graduated from Emory & Henry College and started work at an area aluminum factory where his supervisors wanted to promote him to management. But Emory & Henry choir director Chick Davis helped him find a different path that has led him to stages in major cities all over the world. Austin talks about his early music experience in his home church in Wytheville to performing before an audience of 20,000 people. The interview was recorded in advance of a 3:00 p.m. Oct. 15, 2023 performance at the McGlothlin Center for the Arts on Emory & Henry's campus. Tickets available at www.ehc.edu/mca.

More about Mike Austin at https://anoc-opera.wixsite.com/essential-opera/michael-austin#:~:text=Michael%20Austin%2C%20Dramatic%20Tenor%20is%20one%20of%20the,Turiddu%20in%20Cavalleria%20Rusticana%20with%20the%20Staatstheater%20Stuttgart.