For Nahle, who dreams of attending Berklee College of Music, at least, this couldn’t be more special. Her story stands out as the antithesis of fear-mongering political discourse that warns of an “immigrant invasion” and casts broadsides at newcomers.
Nare walked across the U.S.-Mexico border to the United States and began playing “The Star-Spangled Banner,” a historic American tradition, before professional sports games.
“I still can’t believe it’s happening,” Nare, a part-time waitress at Peca, a Latin American restaurant in Brighton, said in an interview before starting work the day before the match. After learning she’d been selected just a week ago, she’d been practicing the anthem multiple times a day and working with a vocal coach. It was her first time singing in front of such a large crowd, and she was determined to give the best performance possible.
The story of how she seized this extraordinary opportunity is, in short, a story of luck, preparation, and talent. Nare left her hometown, the Venezuelan city of La Victoria, as a teenager due to a general lack of opportunity and a sociopolitical and public health crisis. “We skipped dinner and had yuca and ‘arepas de mais pilado.’ [ground corn arepas] I ate it every day because there was nothing else to eat,” she told me.
About six years ago, Nare says, like many others his age, he joined the nationwide street protests against the dictatorial regime of President Nicolas Maduro. After graduating from high school, Nare and his sister, Narvis, fled the country fearing a government crackdown on the Tupamaros, a pro-government Marxist militia that harassed protesters and citizens. After spending time in Peru and Mexico, Villarroel and her sister crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona in December 2021.
“We walked all day in the desert,” Nare said of the longest walk of his life. “We were really lucky.”
Through a friend of a friend, Neir and Narvis met an immigrant family in North Andover, who hosted them until they could get on their feet. They eventually applied for and were granted Temporary Protected Status, which allows them to work and live legally in the United States.
But it wasn’t until she started working at Peca restaurant about two years ago that Nare put her lifelong passion for music on hold. She was in survival mode, she says. “She was very skinny when she came to the interview,” Peca’s owner, Katiuska Valiente, told me.
Nahle was accepted to Berklee last year and awarded a partial scholarship, but she said she postponed enrolling for a year because she couldn’t afford the remaining tuition. She is waiting to hear from the Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation scholarship program and has set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for tuition.
“She has so much potential,” Valiente told me. When Valiente noticed Nahle’s beautiful voice, he thought she should sing at Fenway and encouraged her to audition. Nahle sent her audio files and videos of her singing a cappella.
A team spokesman said he couldn’t reveal specifics about the process for selecting the lucky singer for this season’s roughly 80 home games, including how many people will audition over the course of the season or what the team will look for when vetting candidates. “Anyone interested in singing the national anthem at Fenway should submit an MP3 file or video along with their contact information to music@redsox.com for consideration,” the spokesman said.
On Saturday, Nahle wore jeans and a Red Sox jersey he borrowed from a friend. He said he was a little nervous, but also excited and confident. Nahle had done a soundcheck beforehand, which helped him get used to the park echo that comes with singing in a large stadium or arena.
The performance lasted 90 seconds, and the Fenway crowd praised Nare, cheering and applauding as soon as she reached the “And the Rockets Red Glow” part. Many fans stopped to congratulate her as she left the field and compliment her on her beautiful voice. “Someone told me I had a jazz voice and that I should study it at Berklee,” Nare told me. She hopes to study musical theater.
The anthem is about resilience and perseverance, qualities that Nare embodies, like many other immigrants who came to the United States fleeing oppression and violence in hopes of showcasing their talents in a new country.
Marcela Garcia is a Globe columnist. Contact her at marcela.garcia@globe.com. Follow her: Marcella Elisa You can also find her on Instagram @marcela_elisa.
