“As Susanna, Alicia Berneche was perfection. Bright and full of vigor, Berneche is as good an actor as she is a singer, her performance nuanced and heartfelt, yet full of panache and zing during all those farcical interludes. When finally she had the chance to sing of her love for Figaro – to her hidden husband, no less – out came her glorious "Deh vieni, non tardar." Bring this soprano back soon, please”
Austin Chronicle

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Alicia Berneche has already attracted attention as a major proponent of new compositions, bringing to them a unique, beautifully produced sound, and an extraordinary acting talent. She has recently been making a splash in standard repertoire, using her exquisite musicality to bring them to life.

She has appeared on the stages of the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby, The Goodman Theatre, The Barbican, and BAM in the world premiere of Philip Glass’ Galileo Galilei, Portland Opera as Constance in Dialogues of the Carmelites and as Sophie in Werther, Opera Festival of New Jersey as Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro and as the coloratura soprano in Six Characters in Search of an Opera, Skylight Opera in the title role in Lucia di Lammermoor, Marianne in Tartuffe, and as Meg and Sissy in the world premiere of Ballymore, Norina in Don Pasquale for Kentucky Opera, Adina in L'Elisir d'Amore for Arizona Opera and Pine Mountain Music Festival, Despina in Cosi fan tutte for Opera Pacific and for Sarasota Opera, and Yum-Yum in The Mikado for the Virginia Opera and Skylight Opera. She also debuted with Opera Omaha as Polly Peachum in The Three Penny Opera, the Austin Lyric Opera as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, and was on the roster of the Metropolitan Opera.

Last season she starred in the rarely performed Bittersweet with Light Opera Works, requiring her to portray a woman from 17 to 70 years of age. Recent performances also include The Pirates of Penzance with Virginia Opera, Cosi fan tutte in a return performance with Sarasota Opera, Die Fledermaus with Orlando Opera and the Austin Lyric Opera, her first Mimi in La Bohème with Skylight Opera, and Phyllis in Iolanthe and Marion in The Music Man with Light Opera Works.

Ms. Berneche’s concert experience is equally varied and extensive. She has performed Jacob Druckman’s Counterpoise, Aaron Jay Kernis’ Goblin Market as a narrator, and Schoenberg’s Second Quartet in F Sharp Minor with the Chicago Chamber Musicians. She appears regularly with the Honolulu Symphony, her first performance in Mozart’s Mass in C Minor, then Carmina Burana by Orff, and appeared this season in Mozart’s Requiem. She also appeared with the Cube Ensemble in a program of Dominick Argento’s From the Diary of Virginia Woolf and a world premiere of Drew Hemenger with poems by Anne Sexton commissioned for Ms. Berneche. Other works performed include Szymanovski’s Tales of a Fairy-Tale Princess in Polish, Faure’s Requiem, Dvorak’s Te Deum, and Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915. She performed with the award-winning Orion Ensemble in Lamentations for the 21st Century by Robert Kritz. She has explored the realm of poetry by women who have committed suicide in a series of recitals called Death and the Maiden, which she has presented in many venues across the country.

Ms. Berneche has earned a number of awards, including second place in the Houston Grand Opera's Eleanor McCollum Awards, a finalist in the MacAllister auditions, third place in the Jenny Lind competition, winner of the Russell C. Wonderlic recital competition, finalist in the Young Concert Artists Competition, and regional finalist in the Metropolitan Opera auditions.

Ms. Berneche is a graduate of DePauw University and the Peabody Conservatory. She began her professional career as a resident artist with the Orlando Opera and the Lyric Opera Center for American Artists. She currently studies with world famous teacher and soprano Judith Haddon.