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About
Soprano Sondra Radvanovsky is a globally celebrated artist. The depth and exquisite color of her voice are matched by her dramatic acting ability and versatility across a remarkable range of repertoire, from the title roles in Rusalka and Lucrezia Borgia, toRoxanne in Cyrano de Bergerac and the title role in Manon Lescaut. She is widely regarded as one of the premiere Verdi sopranos alive today, as well as one of the premiere interpreters of bel canto.
This season Radvanovsky strengthens her claim to be—as critics have called her—the Norma of her generation. She opens the Metropolitan Opera's season with a new production of the Bellini masterpiece. Last season she opened the Canadian Opera Company's season as Norma and went on to play the role at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. This season-opening production at the Met reunites her with Sir David McVicar, who directed her as Donizetti's “three queens,” the leading soprano parts in his Tudor dramas, two seasons ago. In 2015-16, in a feat never before undertaken by any singer in Met history, Radvanovsky sang the title roles in Anna Bolena and Maria Stuarda and the role of Queen Elizabeth in Roberto Devereux. The triple crown showcased her acting abilities and her vocal finesse in vastly different parts. The New York Times described her conquest of Queen Elizabeth as “an emotionally vulnerable and vocally daring performance, a milestone in the career of an essential artist.”
In 2017-18 Radvanovsky returns to some of her beloved Verdi parts, as Amelia in Un Ballo in Maschera and Leonora in Il Trovatore, both at the Paris Opera. At the Liceu Opera Barcelona, she makes two role debuts: as Paolina in Donizetti's Poliuto and as Maddalena in Giordano's Andrea Chénier, opposite Jonas Kaufman. Other season highlights include recitals at Opera Philadelphia and the Grand Théâtre de Québec and Anna Bolena at the Canadian Opera Company.
She has performed in every major opera house in the world, including the Royal Opera House, Teatro alla Scala, Opernhaus Zürich, and numerous others. Her signature interpretations of Verdi's heroines include the title roles in Aïda and Luisa Miller, Elvira in Ernani, Elena in I Vespri Siciliani, Elisabeth de Valois in Don Carlo, Amelia in Simon Boccanegra, and Lina in Stiffelio, among others.
She trained at the Metropolitan Opera in the late 1990s in the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. After performances in smaller roles there, Radvanovsky caught the attention of critics as Antonia in Les Contes d'Hoffmann and was singled out as a soprano to watch. On the concert platform, she has sung with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Verbier Festival Orchestra, both with James Levine; with the Chicago Symphony and David Zinman; with the San Francisco Symphony and James Conlon, and with the Bayerische Staatsoper and Zubin Mehta.
Radvanovsky's debut recording, Verdi Arias, was released in April 2010 on the Delos label. The album quickly became a critical hit and made several season-best lists, including those of NPR and The New Yorker. In 2011 Delos released a CD of Verdi opera scenes with Radvanovsky and her frequent artistic partner Dmitri Hvorostovsky to coincide with the pair’s return to the Met stage in Il Trovatore. The disc was recorded with the Philharmonia of Russia and Constantine Orbelian.
Radvanovsky is no stranger to the screen. She stars in a Naxos DVD of Cyrano de Bergerac alongside Plácido Domingo, and in Il Trovatore, Un Ballo in Maschera, andRoberto Devereux for the wildly popular “Met: Live in HD” series. She has also been an enthusiastic host for the “Live in HD” transmissions of La Fanciulla del West, Otello, and Francesca da Rimini.
Born just outside Chicago, Radvanovsky now makes her home with her husband near Toronto and has dual citizenship.
