Julia Dawson
Soprano
Acclaimed by Opera News as “radiant and hypnotic” and described by The New York Times as “a force of nature,” Canadian soprano Julia Dawson is a winner of the George London Award and the Anny-Schlemm Prize from Oper Frankfurt. She recently completed a recital tour in China with pianist Justine Eckhaut and made her role debut as Servilia in La clemenza di Tito at Pacific Opera Victoria, also marking her debut with that opera house.
Dawson made her European debut as a member of the opera studio and later as a soloist ensemble member of Oper Frankfurt, where she performed from 2015 to 2019. Her roles in Frankfurt include Angelina in La Cenerentola, Goffredo in a new production of Handel’s Rinaldo conducted by Ted Huffman, and the Kitchen Boy in Rusalka, among others.
Her additional engagements include Pulcinella with the Munich Philharmonic and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France under Barbara Hannigan; Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity; Zibaldona in Alma Deutscher’s Cinderella with Opera San José; Erminia in Scarlatti Project and Emilia in Vivaldi’s Catone in Utica with Opera Lafayette; Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor with Vocal Concert Dresden; and Poème de l’amour et de la mer with the Frankfurt Opera and Museum Orchestra.
She has appeared in recital for the BERLied Festival für Kunstlied, Vocal Arts DC, the New York Festival of Song at Caramoor, and Musica Plus for Hessischer Rundfunk in Frankfurt.
An adventurous interpreter of contemporary music, Dawson has collaborated on multidisciplinary projects with Iranian-Canadian composer Iman Habibi and American stage director Mary Birnbaum. These projects have been recognized by the O22 Festival of Opera Philadelphia, the International Fine Arts Film Festival, and the Canada Shorts Festival. She was also nominated for the Opus Klassik Awards as Singer of the Year for Girl in the Snow, a recording of works by American composer Scott Ordway.
Dawson trained at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, the Music Academy of the West, Santa Fe Opera, Aspen Opera Theater Center, and the Glimmerglass Festival. She holds degrees from Rice University and the Oberlin Conservatory.
