ABOUT ALISON
Alison Kessler is passionate about music and theater. Her experience includes performing in genres spanning from opera and art song to musical theater and cabaret.
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A 22-year-old soprano and native of New Rochelle, New York, Alison graduated in May from The Juilliard School, where she is now pursuing her Master's degree under the tutelage of William Burden. Previously, she studied at the Juilliard Pre-College Voice Program for two years with Lorraine Nubar. Alison now serves as Ms. Nubar's Teaching Assistant.
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Alison is excited for new opportunities coming her way this season! At Juilliard, she is covering the role of Gretel in Humperdinck's Hänsel und Gretel and singing a principal soprano role in Before and After - a devised piece which includes Barber's "Knoxville: Summer of 1915", Schubert's "Death and the Maiden", and the premier of "No Trouble: A Response to Purcell's Lament" by Melinda Wagner and Stephanie Fleischmann. A theater kid at heart, Alison is also thrilled to be making her 54 Below debut in a concert titled "Back to Bar/Bat Mitzvah".
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In Fall 2024, Alison made her role debut at Juilliard as La Contessa in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro. Other role debuts in the 2024/2025 season include The Governess (cover) in Britten’s Turn of the Screw and Sœur Félicité in Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites. In December 2024, Alison was chosen to perform alongside Brian Zeger in Juilliard SongFest, which Zeger coached and curated. In Spring 2024, Alison had the privilege of 'belting her face off' in a Cabaret directed by Jeanne Slater and John Arida. In 2023, she performed two song cycles by Poulenc,"Métamorphoses" and "Trois Poèmes de Louise de Vilmorin", in a Liederabend curated by Pierre Vallet. She also performed selections from Ben Moore's "So Free am I" in a recital curated by the composer.
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When school is out of session, Alison has had the opportunity to perform on stages in the United States and Europe. During Summer 2025, she was a Studio Artist at Opera Maine. She performed in Paul's Case by Spears as Drawing Teacher, Opera Singer, and Maid, and in the chorus as a featured soloist in Sondheim's Sweeney Todd. Other past summer opportunities include Classic Lyric Arts (CLA) in Lougratte, France in summer 2024 and the Chautauqua Opera Conservatory in summer 2023. Alison also studied French language at at the Alliance Française in Nice and worked as the teaching assistant for Ms. Nubar at L'Academie International d'Ete de Nice.
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Alison is a Connecticut District winner of the 2024-25 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition.​ Among her other accolades, Alison was a 2021 YoungArts National Competition Winner in Classical Voice. She also was a winner in the Schmidt Vocal Arts Undergraduate Competition (2022) and the winner of the Schmidt High School Vocal Competition - New York Cohort (2021).
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When not singing or performing, Alison enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, seeing Broadway shows, and going for walks around NYC!
