From: Darien, Illinois. LA Opera: Barbarina in The Marriage of Figaro (2010, debut) with subsequent roles including Musetta in La Bohème (2012, 2016), Pamina in The Magic Flute (2013) and Servilia in The Clemency of Titus (2019). She is an alumna of the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program (2010-2012) and a 2021 recipient of the Eva and Marc Stern Artist Award. Upcoming: Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro (2022).
Janai Brugger, the 2012 winner of Operalia and of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, made her television debut in 2020 when she sang a specially-written requiem composed by Laura Karpman for an episode of HBO’s renowned Lovecraft Country. She returned to Mahler’s Fourth Symphony with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and revived a favorite role, Pamina in The Magic Flute for performances at Palm Beach Opera’s first Outdoor Opera Festival. More recently she appeared as Michaela in Carmen at Cincinnati Opera and returned to Dutch National Opera for their acclaimed Missa in tempore Belli (Haydn) conducted by Lorenzo Viotti and directed by Barbora Horáková.
In both 2019 and 2021, she appeared at the Metropolitan Opera in the role of Clara in their celebrated new production of Porgy and Bess in which she’d previously appeared at Dutch National Opera. At Lyric Opera of Chicago she sang the role of Ilia in Idomeneo and at Cincinnati Opera she appeared as Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro. In her artistic home at LA Opera, she sang the role of Servilia in La Clemenza di Tito, a role she previously sang at Dutch National Opera. She recently travelled to the Royal Opera House Covent Garden for revival performances of Pamina in The Magic Flute and sang the role of Liù in Turandot at Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Engagements for the 2022/23 season include Glauce in Medea at the Metropolitan Opera, Liu in Turandot with Opera Colorado and the title role of Susannah with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
Learn more at JanaiBrugger.com.
