Kathryn Tolley //
Mezzo Soprano
Title role of Rinaldo with Chicago Summer Opera (2018)
Described as a poised and engaging performer, Kathryn Tolley has graced many stages in the Greater Boston area and beyond. During the 2022/23 season, Kathryn had a role debut as Cherubino in NEMPAC Opera Project's production of Le nozze di Figaro, and was also a featured performer in Opera del West's A Night of Concert Arias. Other recent engagements include Berlioz’s La damnation de Faust with Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, L'elisir d'amore with Boston Opera Collaborative, and Rage Arias and Mad Scenes with Boston Singers Resource.
Last season, Kathryn originated the role of Calypso/Stephen's Mother's Ghost with Lowell House Opera in the world premiere of Nighttown, an operatic reimagining of James Joyce's Ulysses, with Music and Libretto by Benjamin Perry Wenzelberg. She also developed a solo concert program titled Sunset Garden Music, performed on site in the Sedgwick Gardens at Long Hill House in Beverly with Theater in the Open. Other engagements included Cavalleria Rusticana with Boston Lyric Opera, and La Traviata with MassOpera, performed at the historic Eustis Estate in Milton.
Previous opera roles include Dorabella (Così fan tutte) with Lowell House Opera, Metella (Silla) with Cambridge Chamber Ensemble, Jo March (Adamo's Little Women) with Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, Siebel (Faust) and Hansel (Hansel and Gretel), both with Opera51, La Suora Infermiera (virtual) with Social Distance Opera (Barn Opera), Bradamante (Alcina) with Opera del West, and the title role of Handel’s Rinaldo with Chicago Summer Opera.
In concert, Kathryn has performed Grieg's Sechs Lieder, Rossini's La Regata Veneziana, and Delage's Quatre poèmes hindous. She has appeared as the Alto and Soprano II soloists in Vivaldi's Gloria, an alto soloist in Purcell’s King Arthur, and was also featured as a choral soloist in the Ouroboros Trilogy Workshop Presentation of Scott Wheeler’s opera Naga for the Beth Morrison Project. She has appeared with North Shore Summer Concerts for their "Opera Favorites" evening, and has been heard with the Carlisle Chamber Orchestra, performing selections from Hansel and Gretel, as well as favorites from Disney's Frozen. As a member of the University of Massachusetts-Amherst Chamber Choir, she toured in Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic, and appeared as a soloist in Vivaldi’s Gloria, and Ravel’s Trois Chansons.
Kathryn is passionate about introducing young people to the arts and has dedicated many years to teaching in her hometown with the Theater in the Open Summer Arts Workshop. Her highly anticipated “Opera Day” has become a workshop staple over the years, involving interactive performances and theatrical storytelling through the music and stories of opera.
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Kathryn received her Masters degree in Voice Performance from Boston University, and her Bachelors degree in Voice Performance from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. She is currently based in Boston, MA.
Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte (Lowell House, 2019)