Biography
Known for her rich timbre and compelling theatricality, soprano Carolina Castells is a versatile performer adept in both classic and contemporary operas. This season, her engagements include Mimì in La Bohème with Amore Opera, the title role in Tosca with Loft Opera, and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with the Idaho State Civic Symphony.
An accomplished performer of contemporary American operas, Ms. Castells has appeared as Emily Webb in the world premiere production of Ned Rorem’s Our Town at Indiana University, Sarah Good in Robert Ward’s The Crucible with Sarasota Opera, and the title role of Floyd’s Susannah at the Brevard Music Center. She also made her off-Broadway debut as Sadie in Carlisle Floyd’s Slow Dusk with the Little Opera Theatre of New York. Other engagements include Anna in Verdi’s Nabucco with Opera Naples and Micaëla in Peter Brook’s La Tragédie de Carmen with Florida Opera Theater.
Past seasons have included engagements with the Brevard Music Center, Des Moines Metro Opera, Florida Opera Theater, the International Vocal Arts Institute, Little Opera Theatre of New York, Opera Naples, Sarasota Opera, and the St. Petersburg Opera Company.
On the concert stage, she has appeared with Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra (Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Brahms’ Deutsches Requiem, and de Falla’s El sombrero de tres picos), Opera Naples (Mendelssohn’s Elijah), the Masterworks Chorale (Deutsches Requiem), Seraphic Fire (Handel’s Messiah and soprano soloist in the world premiere of Shawn Crouch’s The Road from Hiroshima, A Requiem), the New World Symphony, and Symphony of the Americas. Additional concert performances include Verdi’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis, and the title role of the Rossini oratorio Le nozze di Teti e di Peleo, as well as an appearance with Marilyn Horne’s The Song Continues… series at Carnegie Hall.
She is the a 2008 Grand Finalist of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, a 2009 finalist of the Irma M. Cooper Opera Columbus International Vocal Competition, 2011 recipient of the Shoshana Foundation’s Richard F. Gold Career grant, a 2014 semi-finalist for the Marcello Giordani Foundation International Voice Competition, and a 2015 Finalist for the Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition.
Ms. Castells is a graduate of Indiana University, where she performed Antonia in Les contes d’Hoffmann, the title role of Massenet’s Cendrillon, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, and Magda in La rondine.
