From: Detroit, Michigan. LA Opera: Pip in Moby-Dick (2015, debut). Upcoming: Julie in Omar (2022).
Lyric soprano Jacqueline Echols has been praised for her “dynamic range and vocal acrobatics” (Classical Voice) in theaters across the United States. In the summer of 2022, Echols reprised her acclaimed portrayal of Clara in Porgy and Bess in her debut with Des Moines Metro Opera, in addition to her debut with the Cleveland Orchestra for their annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Concert and her return to Cincinnati Opera for a special performance alongside Morris Robinson in Morris and Friends.
In the 2022/23 season, she returns to LA Opera as Julie in Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels’ Omar, debuts the role of Juliette in Roméo et Juliette with Opera San Antonio, and makes her long-awaited return to the Kennedy Center reprising the role of Musetta in La Bohème with Washington National Opera.
In the 2021/22 season, Echols was featured at the Metropolitan Opera both as Clara in Porgy and Bess and as Noemie in the Met’s family adaptation of Massenet’s Cendrillon. Additional performances at the Metropolitan Opera include Pousette in Manon and Musetta in La Bohème. She has been seen at the Kennedy Center under the auspices of Washington National Opera in the title role of La Traviata, the role of Sister Helen in Heggie’s Dead Man Walking, Micaela in Carmen, as well as Woglinde/Forest Bird in Der Ring des Nibelungen.
Additional performances include Clara in Porgy and Bess with the Atlanta Opera as well as the title role in La Traviata with Palm Beach Opera. A frequent performer of both standard and contemporary repertoire, Echols debuted the role of Helen in the world premiere performances of The Summer King at the Pittsburgh Opera in 2017 and reprised the role in her hometown of Detroit with Michigan Opera Theater in 2018. She has performed the role of Pip in Heggie’s Moby Dick with the Los Angeles, Dallas and Pittsburgh Operas.
On the concert stage, Echols has performed with the Ann Arbor Symphony for their 2017 season opening gala concert, and returned to the symphony for her first performances of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. She made her debut with the Memphis Symphony in performances of Handel’s Messiah.
