KIRSTIN SHARPIN 

Kirstin Sharpin is rapidly becoming a name to watch among the new generation of Wagnerians, following critically lauded performances as Isolde Tristan und Isolde (Oper Wuppertal, Theater Nordhausen) and Senta Der Fliegende Holländer (Longborough Festival Opera). Kirstin stepped into the central role of Ada in Wagner’s Die Feen on the day of the performance, opening Oper Leipzig’s ‘Wagner 22’ festival to considerable acclaim, and has embarked on building first complete Brünnhilde, singing Die Walküre and Siegfried in semi-staged performances in Edinburgh in 2022 and 2023. Other recent engagements include Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, for whom she also sang the title role in Fidelio (with Giordano Bellincampi, opposite Simon O'Neill) in 2021. Kirstin has also sung Fidelio/Leonore for Melbourne Opera and covered the role for the Glyndebourne Festival Tour. Kirstin sang the role’s first iteration - Leonore (1805) - for the Buxton Festival and added Smetana’s Libuše to her repertoire in the work’s British staged premiere. The winner of the 8th International WagnerStimmen Wettbewerb in Karlsruhe and an International Opera Awards Bursary recipient, Kirstin read English and Italian at the University of Auckland (New Zealand) before graduating from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland as Master of Opera with Distinction. Further study followed at the Cardiff International Academy of Voice, as an Independent Opera Fellow and Samling Artist. Previous engagements have included Mutter/Gertrud Hänsel und Gretel (Garsington Opera at West Green), the title roles in German Romantic rarities Die Feen and Euryanthe, as well as Mariana Das Liebesverbot for London’s Chelsea Opera Group, and Helmwige (St Endellion Festival) and Gerhilde Die Walküre (Saffron Hall Opera). In 2020, Kirstin sang the central role of Anna in Dimitri Scarlato’s prizewinning ‘lockdown opera’ A Life Reset, streamed on OperaVision. Earlier roles included Samaritana Francesca da Rimini (Opera Holland Park), Elettra Idomeneo, Donna Anna Don Giovanni, Vitellia La Clemenza di Tito, and Angelica Suor Angelica. A broad concert repertoire has included appearances with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and the Thüringer Symphoniker, Tove Gurrelieder, as well as both soprano parts in Mahler’s Eighth Symphony, Verdi’s Requiem, and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, and key song cycles such as Vier Letzte Lieder, Shéhérazade, Wesendonck Lieder and Nuits d’été Now resident in Berlin, Kirstin’s plans for the remainder of the 2023/24 season include additional performances of Tristan und Isolde at Oper Wuppertal, and a Strauss concert featuring arias Salome and Ariadne auf Naxos alongside the Vier Letze Lieder with the Thüringer Symphoniker. 2024/25 will see Kirstin return to Isolde Tristan und Isolde for Theater Regensburg, and further explorations of the three Brünnhildes, with additional plans to be confirmed.