Arizona Opera Cast Members & Creatives

Soprano Melissa Solomon, praised by Opera Canada as “delightful” and “vivacious,” is exciting audiences as a rare and diverse performing actress. Solomon appears regularly with the Scottsdale Philharmonic as their soprano Artist in Residence, and has been a member of the Arizona Opera Chorus for over ten seasons.

Solomon recently covered the role of Maria (The Sound of Music, Arizona Opera), and performed as Echo (Ariadne auf Naxos, Arizona Opera). Additional roles include: Johanna (Sweeney Todd, Arizona Musical Theatre Orchestra), Despina cover (Così fan tutte, Arizona Opera), Maria (The Sound of Music, Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre), Cleopatra (Giulio Cesare, Halifax Summer Opera, Nova Scotia, Canada, and Lyric Opera Theatre, Tempe, AZ). Equally experienced in oratorio, Solomon has performed as soloist for Mozart's Requiem and Haydn’s Creation with the Mt. Desert Summer Chorale in Bar Harbor, Maine, Bach’s St. John Passion and Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater with MusicaNova Orchestra in Scottsdale, AZ, as well as Handel’s Messiah, Mozart C-minor Mass, and Fauré’s Requiem with various organizations in the Phoenix metropolitan area.

Additional roles in musical theatre include Marian Paroo in The Music Man and Lily in The Secret Garden. Solomon has been a lead vocalist with a jazz band, and was a singer for many years with the non-profit Songs by Heart, where she connected with memory care patients in meaningful ways through the power of song. Solomon has performed numerous solo concerts in performing centers, churches, and homes throughout Arizona and is a graduate of Arizona State University.