Celebrated for her “blend of vocal sparkle and theatrical charisma” by the San Francisco Chronicle, American soprano Elisa Sunshine brings the immediacy of the human experience to life through vocal acrobatics and theatrical dynamism. Known for her versatility as an actor and musician, the 2025-2026 season brings a return to San Francisco Opera in a double appearance (Page/Gilda cover, Rigoletto; Flower Maiden/Squire, Parsifal), both conducted by Music Director Eun Sun Kim, as well as her Seattle Opera, Portland Opera, and San Diego Opera debuts as Lucy in Greg Spears’ Fellow Travelers. She also makes her debut with The Santa Fe Symphony (Messiah), and looks eagerly ahead to future collaborations with The Santa Fe Opera, Sag Harbor Song Festival, the Santa Rosa Symphony, and Austin Opera.

 

 

Highlights of recent seasons include collaborations with Lyric Opera of Chicago (covering Gilda, Rigoletto; Susanna, Le nozze di Figaro; Marie, La fille du régiment), debuts with Boston Symphony Orchestra (Juliette, Die tote Stadt), Philharmonia Baroque (Messiah), the San Francisco Symphony (Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream), and The Atlanta Opera (Iris, Semele), for which she garnered critical acclaim as “the most delightful singer of the evening” for her “superb technique and Mozartean timbre. She will excel in leading roles” (OperaWire). Ms. Sunshine also debuted with The Santa Fe Opera as an Apprentice Artist as Annina in La Traviata and covered Sheila in the world premiere of The Righteous.

 

 

Previous collaborations with San Francisco Opera include Die Frau ohne Schatten, conducted by Sir Donald Runnicles; Annina, La Traviata; Soeur Anne de la Croix/Constance cover, Dialogues des Carmèlites; and Shepherd boy, Tosca. Additional cover credits include Despina, Così fan tutte; Zerlina, Don Giovanni; Amor, Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, and prepared assignments lost to the pandemic, including covering the title role in Handel’s Partenope; Gilda, Rigoletto; and Musetta, La bohème.

 

 

An avid lover of new works, Ms. Sunshine created the role of Selena in Merola Opera Program's world premiere of Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s If I Were You, where her "steady, vibrant soprano made the most of her every moment. Ms. Sunshine also mined every bit of drama out of Selena's revelatory final encounter with Diana" (Opera Today). With the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York City, she sang the role of Elizabeth Christine in Scott Wheeler’s workshop of The Sorrows of Frederick. Ms. Sunshine also created the role of Madame White Snake in a workshop of Scott Wheeler’s Naga, and later covered the role during its world premiere in collaboration with ArtsEmerson and Beth Morrison Projects.

 

 

Ms. Sunshine is an alumna of the San Francisco Opera’s Adler Fellowship Program, The Santa Fe Opera’s Apprentice Program for Singers, and Merola Opera Program. She is a prizewinner in The Dallas Opera National Vocal Competition and a finalist in the Queen Sonja Singing Competition.