Susanne
Burgess
Soprano
“Soprano, Susanne Burgess stands out with a powerful voice and a brilliant timbre. Her platinum Cleopatra leaves elegant phrases on a trembling note as if begging for compassion...like a bird perched on the branch of her full voice, plump yet whispered - a voice prepared to echo hauntingly in piano...”
-Olyrix
"Susanne Burgess was youthful and energetic, and sang especially well... She demonstrated a resonant top register, soaring well above the orchestration... Burgess sang with ease, tossing off ornamented lines as well as a flawless cadenza reaching high Es.”
-Town Topics
“Helena was felicitously impersonated by Susanne Burgess, her buoyant, fetching soprano informing her utter devotion even as it belies the heartache of her rejection. Her amorous wishes are melodiously dispatched, and she suffers her slights with arching legato and solidly limned tirades.”
-Opera Today
"...all lyric splendor, with a rich, even legato. Burgess blossomed into her warm timbre, while she sang and radiated a genuine affection that uplifted the audience... with a unique combination of precision and wonder. She highlighted best energy that Leoncavallo intended and was a delight to see perform"
- Parterre Box
"...the flatout best in show comes from Susanne Burgess. A star on the rise, the British-American soprano has a slate of productions in front of her. Those productions will be well-served. Her comedic timing was spot on. Her voice is a force and her range is as wide as whatever ocean the warm-hearted pirates sail across."
- ArtsATL
"The absolute highlight of the show... mastering high-flying coloratura while swinging from the rafters... stopping the show with earnest plush lyric tone."
- The Atlanta Constitution
Susanne Burgess demonstrated wonderful vocal prowess, taking the character to sonorous and extravagant heights...Her rendition was rich and full of sassy body language, with Burgess humorously and sensually breaking the fourth wall"
-Opera Wire
"...moving...a talent that promises to be incredibly important... With such beauty and poise seldom seen on the best of stages... Susanne Burgess is clearly a precious gift for every audience and we look forward to seeing more of her."
- Voce di Meche
Biography
Susanne Burgess is a British-American soprano praised for a uniquely present and warm vocal color, penchant for legato, dramatic fioratura, and engaging emotional expression on stage.
Susanne has become a familiar face at The Metropolitan Opera, appearing next season as Frasquita in Carrie Cracknell's vibrant new production of Carmen, and in recent seasons as Dienerin 1 in Strauss's Die Frau ohne Schatten, conducted by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and Countess Ceprano in Rigoletto. This summer she will debut with Opera Theater of St Louis as Norina in Don Pasquale before returning to the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence in a series of concerts. In 2025, Susanne makes exciting role debuts as the titular character in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor at Gulfshore Opera, and as Anna Sørensen in Kevin Putz's Silent Night at Florida Grand Opera. In 2026 she takes on the tour-de-force Four Heroines in Les Contes d'Hoffmann at Florentine Opera and travels to Opera Philadelphia to premiere Gregory Spears' newest piece Sleepers Awake. Last season, she returned to the Atlanta Opera to reprise her critically-acclaimed role as Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Earlier that year at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center as Musetta in La bohème, she debuted the role of Magda in La rondine to critical acclaim at Southern Illinois Music Festival. After spending the summer of 2022 at Des Moines Metro Opera to debut the role of Helena in Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Susanne traveled to Liceu Opera Barcelona to perform in the final round of the illustrious Tenor Viñas Competition and delivered a stunning turn as the leading role of Mabel in Gilbert & Sullivan's classic Pirates of Penzance. Shortly thereafter, Susanne made a role debut as Gilda in Rigoletto with Boheme Opera NJ.
An accomplished performer on the Competition circuit, Susanne was awarded First Prize & the Audience Choice Award at both the Shreveport Opera Singer of the Year Competition and the Opera Birmingham Vocal Competition, First Prize at the National Opera Association’s Argento Competition, Second Prize at Opera Mississippi John Alexander Competition, and Winner of the GA district in both 2021 and 2022 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. She was also the recipient of a Career Grant from The Gerda Lisner Foundation in New York City.
In early 2020, Susanne performed the role of Violetta Valéry in La Traviata, starring in 8 performances as part of the Winter USA Tour with Teatro Lirico d’Europa. Susanne was scheduled to make her role debut as Gilda in a new production of Rigoletto at Opera North and Woglinde in Das Rheingold at The Atlanta Opera before the COVID19 pandemic sadly postponed these performances. Among efforts to preserve art and opera during the pandemic, she took part in the Summer Season at Opera Theater St. Louis presenting arias and ensembles in a virtual festival which culminated in a masterclass series with internationally renowned sopranos, Patricia Racette and Nova Thomas.
In 2019 Susanne made her debut with New York City Opera as Hannah in the World Premiere of Dear Erich by Ted Rosenthal. She returned to the company in the role of Musetta in Puccini’s La Bohème. Later that year, she joined Teatro Grattacielo in NYC as Mimí in Leoncavallo’s La Bohème and La Principessa in Respighi’s La bella dormente nel bosco.
No stranger to Concert and Oratoria work, Susanne made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2017 with the New England Symphony singing the Pie Jesu from Fauré Requiem and Soprano solos in John Trotta’s The Seven Last Words of Christ. She returned to Carnegie Hall the following year to perform the Soprano solos in Jubilate Deo and Requiem for the Living by Dan Forrest.
Earlier that year, Susanne made her international debut as Anna in Le Villi and Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi with the Festival of the Aegean at the Megaron Mousikis in Athens and Syros Greece after joining Des Moines Metro Opera as Berta in The Barber of Seville and covering Tina in their production of Flight by Johnathan Dove.
Performance Schedule
Thorn Rose
Opera Philadelphia
Sleepers Awake (World Premiere)
April 2026
Concert Artist
Festival d'Aix-en-Provence
Chorégies d'Orange
July 17 2025
Dienerin 1
The Metropolitan Opera
Die Frau ohne Schatten
Nov 29, Dec 4, 7, 10, 14, 19, 2024
Helena
The Atlanta Opera
A Midsummer Night's Dream
March 2024
Four
Heroines
Floretine Opera
Les Contes d'Hoffman
March 2026
Norina
Opera Theater of St Louis
Don Pasquale
June 8, 12, 14, 21, 25, 27 2025
Contessa Ceprano
The Metropolitan Opera
Rigoletto
Sept 30, Oct 4, 8, 12, 17, 20, 23, 26
Nov 1, 4, 8, 2024
Frasquita
The Metropolitan Opera
Carmen
Jan 2026
Lucia Ashton
Gulfshore Opera
Lucia di Lammermoor
April 29 - May 2, 2025
Concert Artist
Festival d'Aix-en-Provence
Académie
June 15-July 10, 2024
Media
Mad Scene
Lucia di Lammermoor
Je suis encor
Manon
Injurious Hermia
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Non mi dir
Don Giovanni
Galleries
PROMOTIONAL
PROMOTIONAL
Susanne_Sopran
Contact / Management
General
Management
+1-212-419-2986
Jeffrey Larson
Artist Manager
jeffrey.larson@L2Artists.com
Chris Carbin
Assosciate Artist Manager
christopher.carbin@L2Artists.com
Brittany Duncan
European Representative
brittany.duncan@L2Artists.com
