About this Artist

A former winner in 2012 of Placido Domingo’s prestigious Operalia competition and of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, American soprano, Janai Brugger, begins the 2015-16 season as Michaela Carmen at Washington National Opera, and sings the role again later in the season at Lyric Opera of Kansas City. She is the proud recipient of the 2016 Marian Anderson Award.

Identified by Opera News as one of their top 25 “brilliant young artists” (October 2015 issue), Janai joins the Metropolitan Opera for their Rising Stars concert series and makes several US concert appearances during the season, along with various recital performances. She makes her debut as Norina Don Pasquale at Palm Beach Opera, and returns to Los Angeles Opera to revive the role of Musetta La Boheme which she sings under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel.

Recent highlights include the role of Pamina Die Zauberflote in which she made her UK debut at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden to great acclaim, and formely sang at Los Angeles Opera in a new production by Barrie Kosky; Liu Turandot at the Metropolitan Opera of New York where she also sang the role of Helena The Enchanted Island.

In previous seasons, the artist made her debut as Michaela Carmen with Opera Colorado; she sang High Priestess Aida at the Hollywood Bowl with Los Angeles Philharmonic, Juliette Roméo et Juliette at Palm Beach Opera, and, as a member of the Domingo-Thornton Young Artist Program, her Los Angeles Opera appearances include Barbarina Le Nozze di Figaro under the baton of Placido Domingo, Page Rigoletto with James Conlon, and Musetta La Bohème with Patrick Summers. Cover assignments as a young artist include the roles of Mrs Neruda Il Postino, and the Governess The Turn of the Screw.

Miss Brugger appears frequently in concert and in recital; she sang at the Peter Dvorsky Festival in the Czech Republic; with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra during the May Festival under the baton of James Conlon; at Ravinia Festival with Chicago Symphony Orchestra as First Lady Die Zauberflöte under the baton of James Conlon; at Grant Park Festival’s Fourth of July open air concert before 10,000 people, with the Philadelphia Orchestra in their 2013 gala concert performance.

Additionally, she appeared in New York’s Festival of Song, and with David Daniels for performances of The Messiah in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

A native of Chicago, the artist obtained a Master’s degree from the University of Michigan, where she studied with the late Shirley Verrett. She won her Bachelor’s degree from DePaul University where she studied with Elsa Charlston. In 2010, Miss Brugger participated in The Merola Opera Program at San Francisco Opera, and went onto become a young artist at Los Angeles Opera for two seasons.

Future engagements include return engagements at the Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.