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Occupation. Solo singer. Spouse (s) Ormon Fernandez (1971–1976; divorced; 1 child) Andrew William Smith (2001–2018; his death) Wilhelmenia Fernandez (sometimes billed as Wilhelmenia Wiggins Fernandez; January 5, 1949 – February 2, 2024) was an American soprano. She appeared in Diva, the 1981 film by French director Jean-Jacques Beineix ...
Feb 14, 2024 · Wilhelmenia Wiggins was born on Jan. 5, 1949, in Philadelphia, the elder of two children of Ernest and Vinelee (Clayton) Wiggins.
Feb 15, 2024 · Wilhelmenia Fernandez, acclaimed operatic soprano who toured the world and star of the 1981 cult classic Diva, died February 2 of cancer in Lexington, Kentucky, at the age of 75.
Feb 11, 2024 · Funeral services were held Friday for Fernandez Smith at a church in Lexington, Kentucky, where she had moved after residing for years in her native Philadelphia. She died of cancer Feb. 2 at her home in Lexington, daughter Sheena Maria Fernandez told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Feb 6, 2024 · “It was a zestful life,” said her daughter. “The kids, they were her babies, they gave her life and energy. She loved working with them and working through how to help them achieve the goals that were set for them.” She was preceded in death by her husband, Andrew William Smith, in 2018.
Feb 6, 2024 · Soprano Wilhelmenia Fernandez has died at the age of 75. Born in Philadelphia in 1949, Fernandez studied at the Philadelphia Academy of Vocal Arts and later at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City.
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She married Ormond Fernandez, a mail carrier, in 1971 and ultimately left Juilliard in 1973 without a degree to raise her infant daughter. Wilhelmenia Fernandez later recalled the challenges she faced as a Black performer trying to carve out a career in the Eurocentric world of opera.
