Katarina Leoson

The Swedish alto Katarina Leoson is engaged as a soloist in the ensemble of the Royal Swedish Opera where she this season sings Maddalena in Rigoletto, Mrs Lind in the world premiere of the opera Drifted (Strandad) by Karin Rehnqvist, Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Polina in Queen of Spades and she begins next season as Klytaemnestra in Elektra. The previous season included La Zia Principessa in Suor Angelica.

Katarina Leoson made her Metropolitan Opera debut in 2015 as Maddalena in Rigoletto and she returned to the Met in 2017 for of Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro. Katarina has also been a guest at the Frankfurt Oper with the role of Lucia Vingradito in La gazza ladra and she has appeared as Cornelia in Giulio Cesare at the Finnish National Opera.

Katarina has appeared at the Royal Danish Opera as Mrs Pike in Britten’s Albert Herring, as Olga in Eugene Onegin at the Norrland Opera, at the Drottningholm Court Theater as Marchesi in Mikós Maros’ Kastrater and at the Brooklyn Academy of Music as Carmen on tour with Folkoperan.

At the Royal Swedish Opera Katarina Leoson has previously performed roles like Elizabetha in Victoria Borisova-Ollas’ Dracula, Deaconess in Szymanowski’s King Roger, the title role in Carmen, Fricka in Die Walküre, Tisbe in La Cenerentola, Amastre in Handel’s Serse, Maddalena and the title role of Gluck’s Orphée. She has sung Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, Geneviève in Pelléas et Mélisande, Dritte Dame in Die Zauberflöte, Second secretary to Mao in John Adams’ Nixon in China, Ulrica in Un ballo in maschera, Erda in Das Rheingold and Olga in Eugene Onegin.

On the concert platform Katarina Leoson’s repertoire includes works by Bach, Handel, Mahler, Brahms and others. Katarina has sung Schwertleite in concert performances of Die Walküre with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Daniel Harding. Katarina has also sung Stravinsky’s Les Noces, both at the Royal Swedish Opera and with the Malmö Symphony Orchestra led by Robert Trevino.

Katarina Leoson studied at the University College of Opera in Stockholm, where she graduated in 1998. She made her debut at the Royal Swedish Opera in 1996 as Dritte Dame in Die Zauberflöte.

November 2022