Ashley Emerson

Vocalists — Soprano

Manager: Angela Maria Blasi
Management Territory: Worldwide

"The large cast is first-rate. It’s headed by soprano Ashley Emerson, perfectly cast in the title role. She’s an adorable Alice who whips off coloratura and cartwheels with equal aplomb and displays a fine sense of humor.” —Sarah Byran Miller, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 2012, Alice in U.S. Premiere of Alice in Wonderland with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis

"...the evening belonged to Emerson, and the consistency of her musical energy, immaculate technique and physical grace made the role of Marie seem much easier than it is...(her sound) is concentrated and sweet, especially when soaring into its upper reaches. Emerson is a real professional, and her artistry includes plenty of panache for the extroverted numbers...as well as lovely line for more intimate moments." —Opera News, Judith Malafronte, Marie in The Daughter of the Regiment with PORTopera

"As Marie, Ashley Emerson uses her lovely soprano to make creative use of Donizetti's melodies and have fun with the freedom they allow. She understands when to grab center stage with a finely crafted vocal run, but she knows to stay in character and context while pulling it off." —Riverfront Times, Lew Prince, June 2011-Marie in The Daughter of the Regiment with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis

About

Fast rising soprano Ashley Emerson has been described as a “vocal and dramatic delight.” She is quickly establishing herself as a versatile artist with a wide range of repertoire from bel canto to contemporary.

For the 2012-2013 season she joins the Metropolitan Opera for performances of Alice in Rossi-ni’s Le Comte Ory followed by Elvira in L’italiana in Algeri with Atlanta Opera and the Maid in Powder her Face by Thomas Adès with Opera Company of Philadelphia.

Last season, Ms. Emerson made her debut with the Atlanta Opera as Violet . . . Beauregard in The Golden Ticket, conducted by its composer Peter Ash, followed by her debut with Pittsburgh Opera as Blondchen in Die Entführung aus dem Serail. She returned to the Metropolitan Opera for productions of Don Giovanni, The Enchanted Island, and Hansel and Gretel. In the summer of 2012, Ms. Emerson appeared as Alice in the American premiere of Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and added the role of Adina in L’elisir d’amore with Opera North (U.S.A.).

In recent seasons Ms. Emerson has appeared as Papagena in The Magic Flute with the Metro-politan Opera, Flora in The Turn of the Screw with Los Angeles Opera under James Conlon, Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Opera Grand Rapids, and Marie in The Daughter of the Regiment with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, and PORTopera, Maine. She has also performed Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro, and Young Lover in Il Tabarro with the Metropolitan Opera. For her Seattle Opera debut, she created the role of Young Amelia in the world premiere of Da-ron Hagen’s Amelia, directed by Stephen Wadsworth. Concert engagements include an appear-ance with the Missouri Chamber Music Festival in a program of Schubert (Der Hirt auf dem Fel-sen) and Debussy, the White Mountain Musical Arts: Bach Festival, the Mozart Requiem in a joint project with the Choral Art Society of Maine and Portland Ballet; as well as Blondchen in Die Entführung aus dem Serail with Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood Music Festival.

Ms. Emerson was a Gerdine Young Artist with the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, where she cov-ered Florestine in The Ghosts of Versailles. In concert, Ms. Emerson was a featured soloist with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra singing arias from Mozart’s Zaide, where she was described as “sweet, defiant, and sensual, Emerson has the deep, gutsy sense of urgency that lends any opera singer an air of dramatic authenticity (Bangor Daily News).”
A recent graduate of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, Ms. Emerson appeared at the Met in new productions of La Rondine and Macbeth, and made her professional stage debut there in Le nozze di Figaro. She was also featured in the “Met in the Parks” summer concert series in 2009 and recently appeared as Despina at the Verbier Festival.

Ms. Emerson won First Prize in the Junior Division at the 2006 Palm Beach Opera Competition. In the summer of 2006, Ms. Emerson participated in the Maine Emerging Artist Program with PORTopera, singing Auretta in Mozart’s L’oca del Cairo. Ms. Emerson completed her under-graduate studies at the University of Southern Maine, where her roles included Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Adele in Die Fledermaus, and Isabelle/Madeline in The Face on the Barroom Floor.