Hannah Holmes

American mezzo-soprano Hannah Holmes is a versatile crossover artist and comedienne. Through regular performances with the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players, the Victor Herbert Renaissance Project, and six seasons in residence at the Ohio Light Opera, she has developed a specialty in operetta and Golden Age musical theater. Equally at home in the world of choral singing, she has performed with many highly regarded ensembles including the New York Virtuoso Singers, Bard Festival Chorale, Spoleto Festival USA Choir, and Clarion Choir.

In the 2022/2023 season, Hannah joined the opera chorus for Bard Summerscape’s critically acclaimed production of Henri VIII, performed works ranging from Bach cantatas to the cutting-edge contemporary choral music of Tania Leon with the New York Virtuoso Singers, and appeared in concert with the Bard Festival Chorale. Hannah also starred as Roxane in Victor Herbert’s operetta adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac with the Victor Herbert Renaissance Project, and toured across the U.S. with NYGASP productions of the Pirates of Penzance (Edith), the Mikado and H.M.S. Pinafore, as well as in-town performances of the Gondoliers and H.M.S. Pinafore, in which she performed the role of Cousin Hebe with less than two hour’s notice. An avid professional Christmas caroler, she also made her “on-ice” debut as a skating and singing Santa’s Elf.

In 2021/2022, Hannah performed with the inaugural Spoleto Festival Choir USA, both in concert and as the opera chorus for Yuval Sharon’s innovative production of La Boheme; sang the Rachmaninoff Vespers at the Bard Music Festival, and appeared with the New York Virtuoso Singers in a concert of Bach cantatas. She also appeared with the Victor Herbert Renaissance Project as Birdie in The Only Girl, and as a last minute Covid replacement in the major role of Madame Cecile in Mademoiselle Modiste. With NYGASP, she performed in NYC productions of the Mikado and H.M.S. Pinafore. 

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Highlights from other seasons include 34 productions over 6 summers with the Ohio Light Opera, with roles including Molly Gray in Gershwin’s Girl Crazy, May DeVere in Porter’s Fifty Million Frenchmen, Lois Lane/Bianca in Porter’s Kiss Me, Kate, and Ruth in Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance. She was also featured as a dancer in a number of the productions, including Die Fledermaus, The King & I (Little Eva), Babes in Arms (Maizie LaMar/dream ballet performer). Hannah can also be heard on the Albany Records recording of OLO’s production of Victor Herbert’s Dream City and the Magic Knight, as Gladys Peck.

Other appearances include solo performances with the Friends of Mozart Eastman Alumni concert, the Southeast Iowa Symphony Pops! concert, and the InterArts Festival for student composition at Juilliard. An avid tap dancer, Hannah performs outreach programs in the greater New York area with the Foot and Fiddle Dance Company. 

Hannah received her Master’s of Music in Vocal Performance & Literature at the Eastman School of Music, where she studied with renowned mezzo-soprano Katherine Ciesinski. At Eastman, she performed the role of Florence Pike in Albert Herring and covered the role of Mother Marie in Dialogues of the Carmelites. She was featured as a soloist with the Repertory Singers, the Women’s Ensemble, the Voices professional chorus, the baroque ensemble Collegium Musicum, and the Bach Cantata series.

Hannah received her Bachelor in Music from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Favorite roles at UNL included The Old Lady (Candide), the Third Lady (Der Zauberflöte), and Cherubino (Le Nozze di Figaro). She also was a frequent soloist with and member of the UNL Vocal Jazz ensemble. 

An Iowa native, Hannah resides in New York City with her husband, bass-baritone Paul Holmes. She continues her studies with Claudia Catania.

(Updated Summer 2023)