Rocket Woman Sarah Brightman To Blast Off

Some people thought Muse frontman Matt Bellamy was full of baloney when he talked about wanting to perform in outer space, but Sarah Brightman’s announcement about an orbital spaceflight to the International Space Station via a Soyuz rocket isn’t a laughing matter.

Brightman talked about her travel plans during a press conference in Moscow today. The soprano is headed on the journey as part of a three-person crew in partnership with Space Adventures, Ltd., the world’s leading private space experience company.

Once on the International Space Station, the plan is for Brightman to orbit the earth 16 times a day and to become the first professional musician to perform in space.

The date for the spaceflight and Brightman’s estimated 10-day tenure on the space station will be determined by the Russian Federal Space Agengy and the International Space Station in the coming months.

Photo: SarahBrightman.com

And while Brightman’s website says the experience will “fulfill a life long dream” for the singer, the journey means so much more that that.

As the UNESCO Artist for Peace Ambassador, Brightman will promote peace and sustainable development for the earth’s future. The experience will also be an opportunity for Brightman to help advance education and empower the role of girls and women in science and technology. 

“I don’t think of myself as a dreamer. Rather, I am a dream chaser,” Brightman said, referencing her upcoming album, Dreamchaser. “I hope that I can encourage others to take inspiration from my journey both to chase down their own dreams and to help fulfill the important UNESCO mandate to promote peace and sustainable development on earth and from space. I am determined that this journey can reach out to be a force for good, a catalyst for some of the dreams and aims of others than resonate with me.”

After completing her 2013 world tour, Brightmen will spend six months in Russia in training for her flight to the International Space Station.

The “Dreamchaser World Tour” will hit up five continents in support of Dreamchaser, due out Jan. 22. The first leg of the trek begins Jan. 29 in Hamilton, Ontario with North American dates booked through the end of March.  

For more information visit SarahBrightman.com.