Michelle Walton

Michelle studied at the Royal Northern College of Music and at the National Opera Studio winning the prestigious Maggie Teyte Prize.

She made her critically acclaimed soprano debut as Fiorilla in Rossini’s Il Turco in Italia for the Buxton Festival. She made her English National Opera debut singing the role of Countess Almaviva in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, following which she sang the title role in John Copley’s production of Lehar’s The Merry Widow and Mimi in Jonathan Miller’s production of La Boheme. Michelle covered the title role of Madam Butterfly in Anthony Minghella’s production also for E.N.O. She recently sang the role of Anna in Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda for Opera North and Liu in Puccini’s Turandot for Welsh National Opera for whom she will sing Mimi in Annabel Arden’s La Boheme this autumn.

Other roles include Pannochka in Rimsky-Korsakov’s Maiskaya Noch (Garsington Opera), Giulietta in Verdi’s Un giorno di regno (Buxton Festival), Zerlina in Mozart’s Don Giovanni (Garsington Opera), Ramiro in Mozart’s La finta giardiniera (Garsington Opera) and Ascanius in Berlioz’s Les Troyens (Edinburgh International Festival).

As a mezzo-soprano she was a company principal at Scottish Opera and also worked for Glyndebourne, Buxton Festival, Garsington Opera, Opera Holland Park, English Touring Opera, Raymond Gubbay, Lille and Opéra Comique Paris in roles such as Rosina, Cherubino, Dorabella, Annio and Hermia.

In concert she has performed with the Birmingham Royal Ballet, the Orchestra of St John’s Smith Square, the Sorbonne Paris, the Britten Sinfonia, the Hallé Orchestra, the Northern Sinfonia, the Orchestra of Opera North, the Tibor Varga Sion Festival Switzerland, the Manchester Camerata, the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra and the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera.