Elisa Sunshine

Celebrated for her “blend of vocal sparkle and theatrical charisma” by the San Francisco Chronicle, American soprano Elisa Sunshine returns to San Francisco Opera in the 2025-2026 season as Page and Gilda cover (Rigoletto) and Flower Maiden and Squire (Parsifal). She also makes exciting debuts with Seattle Opera, Portland Opera, San Diego Opera (Lucy, Fellow Travelers), and The Santa Fe Symphony (Handel’s Messiah). Ms. Sunshine looks eagerly ahead to her principal artist debut with The Santa Fe Opera as Despina (Così fan tutte) and her debut with the Santa Rosa Symphony in a program featuring Rachmaninoff’s Vocalise and Mahler 4 in the 2026-2027 season.

Highlights of recent seasons include collaborations with Lyric Opera of Chicago (covering Gilda, Rigoletto; Susanna, Le nozze di Figaro; Marie, La fille du régiment), 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 Annina in La Traviata and covered Sheila in the world premiere of The Righteous.

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.

For more see: www.elisasunshinesoprano.com/