performer. director. writer. administrator.
Claire DiVizio
performer
Praised by the Ann Arbor News for their "marvelous voice," soprano Claire DiVizio has a reputation throughout the Midwest for vocal and dramatic versatility. In past seasons, Claire has appeared onstage with Chicago Opera Theater, Chicago Fringe Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, St. Petersburg Opera (FL), Cincinnati Chamber Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, Mid-Ohio Opera, Crested Butte Music Festival, Janus Concert Series, Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company of Chicago, and Transgressive Theatre-Opera. Since 2016, they have held a coveted position in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Chorus..
Claire's experience and skill as a performer are wide-ranging. Their particular specialities are in late Romantic Italian and Verismo opera, comedies (including extensive knowledge of Gilbert & Sullivan), and 20th-century and contemporary music. Claire's most committed musical passion is working with living composers. Claire has created seven solo roles in new operas, performed in the ensemble of two additional operatic premieres, and premiered more than twenty concert works for voice. In recent years they have premiered works by Dan Shore, Jasmine Thomasian, Christopher Cerrone, Philip White, Ermir Bejo, Lincoln Hanks, Ezra Donner, Yvonne Freckmann, Chris Kincaid, José Julio Díaz Infante, Andrey Komanetksy, and Yshani Perinpanayagam.
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Claire is also an active arts administrator. In 2011, they founded Thompson Street Opera Company, which is dedicated to producing new operas by living composers. The company resided in Louisville KY for four years, presenting a summer festival which was featured in multiple news outlets including the Courier Journal, BroadwayWorld, WFPL, and Arts-Louisville. In 2016, the company relocated to Chicago IL, where they continue to perform. The company's achievements since 2016 have included ten sold-out performances, four commissioned works, partnerships with Adler University, Pride Films & Plays, and the Intuit Center for the Arts, and critically acclaimed Chicago premieres of works such as Wainwright & Plant's I will fly like a bird, Manfredonia & Feltkamp's Ghost Variations, and De Los Santos & Borzoni's When Adonis Calls. Please click on the "Administrator" tab for a snapshot of Claire's work with Thompson Street Opera Company.
Claire holds a Master of Music degree from the University of Louisville, where they were supported by a full merit scholarship and teaching fellowship. Claire is also a graduate of the University of Michigan, and holds both a Bachelor of Music with High Honors in Voice Performance and a Bachelor of Arts with Distinction in English Literature.
