Photo courtesy of Edward McCranie
Lyric coloratura soprano, Díana Thompson-Brewer, is lauded for her “aplomb and sparkling '' vocal pyrotechnics and her nuanced character portrayals. Díana made her professional operatic debut in the role of Adele in Strauss II's Die Fledermaus and has since amassed an array of soprano roles that range from the pinnacle of coloratura sopranos - Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor - to the fiercest queen of all opera - Queen of the Night in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte. Other operatic credits include Magda in Puccini's La rondine, Zerbinetta from Richard Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos, Susanna in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, Musetta in Puccini's La bohème, Mlle Silberklang in Mozart's Die Schauspieldirektor, Clara in Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, Sister Genevieve in Puccini's Suor Angelica, Beth & Amy in Mark Adamo's Little Women, Millie in Libby Larsen's Picnic, Belinda in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Vi in Gershwin's Blue Monday, Mrs. McDowell in Hailstork's Rise for Freedom, and Eden in the world premiere of Galaxies in Her Eyes.
Díana has performed with L'Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, Opera Carolina, North Carolina Opera, Greensboro Opera, Mobile Opera, Augusta Opera, Opera Wilmington, Miami Lyric Opera, GLOW, and other regional companies and festivals. In addition to opera, Díana has been a soprano soloist in Haydn’s The Creation, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s Cantata 4, Haydn’s Mass in Time of War, Vivaldi’s Magnificat, and Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy and also made her Musical Theatre debut as Sarah in Flaherty’s iconic musical Ragtime.
The 2023-2024 season, Díana will travel with her recital "A Woman's Love and Life" performing the song cycle of the same title by Robert Schumann as well as a new work composed for her titled at first sight with composer Christopher Cooley on piano. Following this tour, she will make her orchestral debut of Barber's Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with both the Aiken Symphony Orchestra and the University of South Carolina's Symphony Orchestra. Following these performances, Díana will reprise the role of Magda in Puccini's opera La rondine with Opera on the James in Lynchburg, VA. Thompson-Brewer will complete her season serving as Soprano Soloist in a performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with the Florence Symphony Orchestra. (Check SCHEDULE page for updates to this schedule.)
Díana holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Georgia (Presidential Fellow), a Master of Music degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and a Bachelor of Music degree from Augusta State University, all in Vocal Performance.