Sarah Dufresne
Raised in beautiful Niagara Falls, and currently based in the U.K., Canadian soprano Sarah Dufresne is known for her clarity of tone, rapid coloratura, and diverse repertoire. Praised for her vocal technique and ease on the stage, Sarah has performed with the Royal Opera House’s Jette Parker Artists Programme, debuting on the stage of Covent Garden. She’s appeared with the ROH in Die Zauberflöte (Papagena), Tannhäuser (Hirt), Don Carlo (Voce dal Cielo), Le nozze di Figaro (Barbarina), The Rape of Lucretia (Lucia), and Arminio (Tusnelda).
Sarah has had various concert performances with the l’Atelier lyrique, appearing with Chorus Niagara for Handel’s Messiah, as Anne for Ottawa Choral Society’s performance of Whitbourn’s Annelies, and covering various roles at l’Opéra de Montréal through her resident artist position. Sarah appeared on the main stage at Place des Arts as Nora in Opéra de Montréal’s season-opening production of Vaughn-William’s Riders to the Sea. In June of 2022, Sarah placed second in the Aria Division of the prestigious Concours Musical International de Montréal, garnering praise for her “tremendous dramatic presence,” and “astonishing clarity and vocal dexterity” [Opera Canada].
Other repertoire includes Tytania (Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Mrs. Fiorentino (Kurt Weill’s Street Scene), Galatea (Handel’s Acis and Galatea), and Servilia in (Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito). Recently, in collaboration with Against the Grain Theater and the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Sarah premiered the role of Rebecca Marshall in their production of Nicole Lizée’s No One’s Safe, a conceptual and immersive murder mystery opera.
Sarah has performed with various companies and orchestras across Canada, including Waterloo Chamber Players, Grand Philharmonic Choir of Kitchener Waterloo, Opera McGill, Halifax Summer Opera, and Orchestre Metropolitain under the baton of Nicolas Ellis. Sarah has also completed residencies at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Lachine International Vocal Academy, the Stratford Summer Music Program, and the Scuola Giovanni Grasso.
Her desire to express herself through the genre has propelled her development as a multidisciplinary artist. Sarah concurrently channels her passion for building a show from the ground up through directing, as well as performing on stage. Recent directorial projects included a new production of Leonard Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti and Rita by Donizetti. Sarah dreams of reimagining more operas in the future and giving them a modern twist!
Sarah was awarded the top prize of Stingray Music Rising Star in the 2019 l’Opéra de Montréal talent gala. That same year, Sarah was an award winner at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (Buffalo/Toronto District) and earned the prestigious Jacqueline Desmarais Grant for Young Canadian Opera Singers.
