About

French-American soprano, Théodora Cottarel has been recognized for her captivating dramatic performances and beauty of tone. Of her “electrifying performance” as Elle in La voix humaine, Schmopera wrote, “the way she maintained a beauty of tone […] while also finding great ways to color the characters’ neuroses was masterful.” Théodora Cottarel is a French-American soprano, and has been recognized for her “electrifying” (Schmopera) performances and her “beauty of tone” (Houston Press). In the 2023/24 season, Théodora has sung Marie in La fille du regiment with Opera Company of Middlebury, Violetta in La Traviata with Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Elisetta in Il matrimonio segreto by Cimarosa with Puget Sound Concert Opera (PSCO) and was the soprano soloist in the opera fusion production “Covers” with Florentine Opera, performing in various venues and festivals including Summerfest in Milwaukee. This season she also won second prize in the Seattle Opera Guild’s competition, granting her the Artistic Development Award. In the 2024/25 season Theodora is set to make her role debut of Elena in Gluck’s Paride ed Elena with PSCO, sing Elle in La voix humaine in New York, a solo concert for Bastille Day with Sun Valley Opera and Broadway and has performed in the concert “Rising Stars of Puget Sound” for the Seattle Opera Guild at Seattle Opera’s Tagney Jones Hall.

She has sung internationally in France, Italy, Belgium, and the United States working with companies like the Rome Philharmonic, Odyssey Opera and has performed at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées among others. She has worked with composers Isabelle Aboulker, Graciane Finzi, Tiziana de Carolis, Gabrielle Goliath, and Mark Adamo among others. Roles include: Donna Anna (Don Giovanni), Elle(La voix humaine), Madame Goldentrill (The Impresario), Matilde (Elisabetta, Regina d’Inghiterra), Cendrillon (Cendrillon), Micaëla (Carmen), Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), Gretel (Hansel and Gretel), Elvira (Don Giovanni), Servilia (La clemenza di Tito), Arminda (La finta giardinera), Despina (Così fan tutte) ,Suor Genovieffa (Suor Angelica), and The Angel (Jarireh, a persian opera). Concerts include: Britten’s Ceremony of Carols in the United States, Gabrielle Goliath’s Elegy in France with Do Disturb Festival, and in Mozart’s Missa Brevis in Do or Mozart’s Vesperae Solennes with the Rome Philharmonic.

Passionate about acting, Théodora has had the privilege of working with the late Elizabeth Kemp and was production assistant for the Actors Studio’s production of Waiting for Godot. She has also trained with director Claudine Hunault in France. Before the pandemic, she was scheduled to perform the role of The Wife in Garcia Lorca’s The Blood Wedding this year presented at the Boston Playwright’s Theater.

An avid chamber music performer, Théodora continually gives recitals in France, Italy and The United States, in various venues such as Le Festival Présences Féminines, MIT’s Killian Hall, and the Blaffer Museum in Houston. Passionate about performing work by women composers, Théodora has performed in the original recital Voies(x) de Femmes toured in eleven venues across France and Italy. An album of the program was released by the label Digressione Music (Digressione Music, DIGR105, 2020).