Mary Plazas

Soprano

Mary Plazas, soprano, made her operatic debut in 1992 with English National Opera as the Heavenly Voice Don Carlos, and from 1995 spent three years with ENO as a company principal. Roles have included Mimì, Leila, Adina, Nannetta, Micaëla, Marzelline Fidelio, and the title role in The Cunning Little Vixen (ENO), Susanna Le Nozze di Figaro, Tebaldo Don Carlos and Elisetta Il Matrimonio Segreto (Opera North), Anne Trulove (Opera Factory), Echo Ariadne auf Naxos and Madame Silberklang Der Schauspieldirektor (Garsington Opera). In 1996 she made her debut at the BBC Promenade Concerts with the Royal Opera as the Heavenly Voice, and in 1997 performed with the Royal Opera at Covent Garden and the Metropolitan Opera, New York in Pfitzner’s Palestrina. Other roles include Poulenc’s La Voix Humaine in Aix-en-Provence (RNCM production), Despina (Mid-Wales Opera), Adele Die Fledermaus and Norina Don Pasquale (Clonter Opera), and the title role in Cesti’s Le Disgrazie d’Amore (Batingnano). She recently created the role of Tina in Jonathan Dove’s Flight for Glyndebourne Touring Opera, repeating the role for Glyndebourne Festival Opera, made her debut with New Israeli Opera as Anne Trulove, and sang the Duchess in Powder Her Face by Thomas Adès for Almeida Opera and at the Aldeburgh Festival.

She took part in Opera Factory’s production of Le Nozze di Figaro which was recorded for Channel 4 Television, and was the First Enchantress Dido and Aeneas, conducted by Richard Hickox on BBC TV, which was also recorded for Chandos Records. She has recorded Mercandante’s Emma d’Antiocchia for Opera Rara’s 100 years of Italian Opera, Pacini’s Maria Regina d’Inghilterra with the Philharmonia under David Parry also for Opera Rara, and L’Enfant et les Sortilèges with the London Symphony Orchestra under André Previn for Deutsche Grammophon. She recently recorded Marguerite Faust, Adina and Micaëla for Chandos Records.
Mary Plazas has given many recitals and concerts including solo recitals at the Wigmore Hall, Purcell Room, and the Karajan Centre in Vienna. She has also performed at the Cheltenham and Aldeburgh Festivals, and sung Merab in Handel’s Saul conducted by Richard Hickox at the Chester Festival. Concerts include Haydn’s Creation conducted by Sir David Willcocks at the Royal Albert Hall, Tippett’s A Child of our Time at the Royal Festival Hall and in St Petersburgh, and performances with the London Symphony Orchestra, Hallé Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, Hanover Band and Singapore Symphony Orchestra. She recently sang Mahler’s Symphony No 8 with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Giuseppe Sinopoli.