BIO
Janet Todd is an Australian Soprano based in Los Angeles, and a graduate of the Manhattan School of Music. During her time in the US she has performed with companies across the country, including Los Angeles Opera, Opera Santa Barbara, Opera Columbus, Pacific Opera Project, and New York Opera Projects. Recent performance highlights include 'Setsuko’ in Jack Perla’s An American Dream with Opera Santa Barbara, ‘Ippolita’ in the US premier of Vivaldi’s Ercole Sul Termodonte, ‘Mimi’ in La Boheme, ‘Yum Yum’ in The Mikado, and the role of ‘Cio-Cio San’ in Pacific Opera Project's bilingual production of Madama Butterfly, performed in Japanese and English. She reprised the role of Madama Butterfly with Opera Columbus.
Janet recently made her solo debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl with esteemed film composer, Joe Hisaishi. She was also the soloist for Hisaishi’s Studio Ghibli Concert with the National Symphony Orchestra at Wolf Trap and the American Symphony Orchestra at Madison Square Garden.
Janet has been involved in many concert, new music and chamber works across the country, including world premiers of song cycles by US composer Marjorie Merryman, and Roger Nierenberg. She was the soprano soloist for both Mozart’s C Minor Mass, and Mahler’s Symphony of a Thousand in a collaboration with the Manhattan School of Music and the New York Oratorio Society.
In her home town of Melbourne, Australia, Janet made her debut with Victorian Opera in 2011 as 'Pamina' in The Magic Flute, 'Liesgen' in Bach’s Coffee Cantata (for which she was nominated for an Australian Green Room Award for best principal female artist), 'Sophie' in Der Rosenkavalier for their 2012 Gala Concert and 'The Prince' in Cinderella pantomime (Gill) . With Opera Australia Janet performed 'Pamina' in The Magic Flute in their 2014 Opera on the Beach spectacular, and for Opera Australia’s Oz Opera she has performed the roles of both 'Donna Elvira' (2013) and 'Zerlina' (2012) in Don Giovanni. She was soprano soloist in The Australian Ballet’s double bill Elegy singing Faure’s Requiem, as well as their Vanguard tripe bill program singing Pergolese’s Stabat Mater. For Pinchgut Opera, Sydney, she performed the role of 'Miss Hawk' in Salieri’s The Chimney Sweep, and 'Zelmira' in Haydn’s Armida. Janet sung the title role in Handel’s Esther with Canberra's Handel in the Theatre, and 'Iole' in their production of Handel’s Hercules. In the world of music theater, Janet performed Marsinah in Kismet with The Production Company, State Theatre. She has also appeared as a soprano soloist with The Sydney Philharmonia, Perth Symphonic Chorus/Baroque Orchestra, and many other organisations throughout Australia.
Awards and prizes include Opera Foundation Australia AIMS Award as well as the AIMS Sundell Study award (2010), runner up in The Herald Sun Aria (2009), she was the recipient of a Dame Nellie Melba Opera Trust Scholarship (2010, 2011 and 2012), won an Ian Potter Cultural Institute Award (2014) and was awarded the Dame Heather Begg Award (2014).
Janet is also a current member of the Los Angeles Opera chorus, and the Los Angeles Master Chorale.