Orphea

A young dark-haired female Witch wearing a crescent-moon tiara and a thoughtful expression holds her fingertips below her chin
Orphea

NYC native Orphea is an opera singer, bellydancer, cabaret performer, and songwriter who has been a Solitary practitioner of Witchcraft since the age of 7 (after successfully casting a love spell from "The Little Book of Spells" by Suzanne Siegel Zenkel for her older brother... this is also when she began reading palms on the playground for her fellow elementary school-goers).

Since then, she's been a passionate scholar and follower of the Path of the Wise, eventually, of course, coming across Lady Passion and *Diuvei's "The Goodly Spellbook". She couldn't have ever dreamed she'd ever study under the expertise of Coven Oldenwilde's High Priestess and High Priest, though she'd certainly always wished, and for that, she has the Gods to thank.

Not only is the Craft something that Orphea constantly pulls from for her dual performing arts/music teacher careers (she considers her dramatic and compositional inspiration a gift from the Gods and the "phantoms of the cabaret", as well as her stage presence training as DIRECTLY applicable to ritualcraft), but as her moral compass, and as guidance in choices she makes for treading lightly upon the earth and interacting with other people. It's easy (and absolutely valid) to think of Witchcraft as being SOLELY about the spells and magical powers, but Orphea considers the moral, philosophical, and spiritual values the Craft can teach as just as important.

Orphea likes to think of her magical name as encompassing her life passions (her Underworld and ghostly work, her integration of magic into her music and performance) as well as being a subtle nod to opera (Glück's "Orfeo ed Euridice"). Her magical specialties/interests include palmistry, tarot, herbalism, potions, and trying to make friends with as many of the local faeries as possible. She was Initiated into the Gardnerian line (and Coven Oldenwilde!) on December 31st, 2023, aligning her "rebirth" with the mundane New Year.