soprano
MEGHAN KASANDERS | in the news
DIE WALKÜRE | virginia opera
“Tenor Richard Trey Smagur, as Siegmund, and soprano Meghan Kasanders, as his twin sister/lover Sieglinde, have outstanding sequences in the first act in which their singing not only expressed their passion but became integrated with the orchestral sound in the way that is a Wagner specialty.” DC THEATER ARTS
“Tenor Richard Trey Smagur and soprano Meghan Kasanders were well matched as Siegmund and Sieglinde; both are promising young artists and brought magic to that pairing.” OPERA GENE
JOURNEY TO VALHALLA | lyric opera of kansas city
""Where operatic sopranos are concerned, Meghan Kasanders is just as cute as they make 'em, and has a lovely powerful voice besides, so I was convinced as to why Robert Stahley's Siegmund was ready to defend her to the death with his mighty sword, Nothung."
S. FAIRBANK
THE CONSUL | opera saratoga
“The company took a risk on its Madga Sorel and won. Meghan Kasanders... has a wonderfully promising, rich dramatic soprano, an instrument that displays power and sheen at all dynamic levels... Kasanders won justified applause with a thrilling traversal of Menotti’s shattering Act II scena ‘To this we’ve come’...” OPERA NEWS
“Meghan Kasanders’s opulent soprano could fill a much bigger house, and her Magda Sorel gathered intensity throughout the evening, exploding in the bravura showpiece, “To this we’ve come.” WALL STREET JOURNAL
“The cast was uniformly terrific. The principals included… the sensational soprano Meghan Kasanders as his [John Sorel’s] wife, who stopped the show in the second act with a heart-wrenching aria.” THE DAILY GAZETTE
“As sung by the superlative soprano Meghan Kasanders, Magda is worthy of compassion, but she's not helpless or pathetic. A strong singer with a supple, piercing voice that is also gentle enough to soothe a suffering baby, Kasanders battles mightily, facing off with a menacing agent of the secret police and returning day after day to the consulate to plead fruitlessly to be able to explain her story personally to the unseen consul.” TIMES UNION
DON GIOVANNI | juilliard opera theater
"Meghan Kasanders's opulent timbre and reserves of power made her Donna Anna the undisputed diva of the evening. She let her voice fly to thrilling effect at the start of 'Or sai chi l'onore' and the Act 1 revenge duet with Ottavio, but she could still spin creamy lines in 'Non mi dir.'" OPERA NEWS
"Maritina Tampakopoulos and Meghan Kasanders, as Donnas Elvira and Anna avoid all "crazy-girl "sad-girl" cliches, nor only by sheer force of stage presence, wherein Kasanders' Donna Anna is unmatched by any of the cast..." PARTERRE BOX
"Confidently, Meghan Kasanders proved to be a master of her craft in every way as her voice resonated beautifully across the hall. And she especially pulled at the heart strings of listeners while singing 'Non mi dir'.
She has a unique vocal quality that houses an array of exquisite overtones and colors.
As Donna Anna, Kasanders did not fall into the two common traps of this role by shying away from her voice as a victim or over-singing in moments when promising revenge on Don Giovanni. Instead, Kasanders displayed a fresh take on all of her arias and showcased originality throughout. She stayed true to her own voice, which in turn evolved her character's voice." OPERA WIRE
LUONNOTAR | alice tully hall
"Soprano Meghan Kasanders gave a tour-de-force performance in Sibelius’ fairy-tale-cum-creation-myth, holding her own against solemn brass and swirling harps. Kasanders met Luonnotar’s immense vocal demands with a booming voice, bright and dazzling in the upper register, warm and cutting in the lower register.
Kasanders lent a welcome richness to Sibelius’ sighing strains, while her piercing cries of “ei” were much befitting the poem’s avian protagonist.
In this short piece, Sibelius gives us all the drama of a three-act opera, and Kasanders has the kind of mesmerizing stage presence to pull it off." PARTERRE BOX
"Kasanders' rich, wide ranging voice easily traversed this most difficult tone poem. As the orchestra supported the singer, Hannigan concentrated on them. In a wonderful dual gesture, singer and conductor raised one arm at the piece’s conclusion and held their palms frozen in the air at the same moment, waiting for the powerful emotion of the music to calm." BERKSHIRE FINE ARTS
"Kasanders had to oversee no less than the whole of creation in the text and her power was palpable. The piece dissipated with both soprano and Hannigan’s hands held aloft." BACHTRACK
GRAND FINALS CONCERT | metropolitan opera
The program began with Meghan Kasanders, a soprano who brought a gleaming sound and ample carrying power to "Dich, teure Halle" from Wagner's Tannhäuser... her authentically Wagnerian sound seemed more precious." THE NEW YORK TIMES
"Meghan Kasanders kicked off the program with a Herculean performance of Wagner's 'Dich, teure Halle,' which neatly showcased her full-bodied dramatic-soprano-in-the-making. Her cries of 'Sei mir gegrüsst" were caroled with warmth and generosity, welcoming us into the Met auditorium as if it were Wartburg itself.
Kasanders deftly navigated the twisting, winding phrases of 'Otkuda eti slozy'... never letting the chewy, declamatory Russian get in the way of the strident clarity of her sound." PARTERRE BOX
DON GIOVANNI | opera columbus
"The gut-wrenching confessions/vow of revenge between Donna Anna (Meghan Kasanders) and Don Ottavio (Victor Cardamone)... are some of the finest operatic acting I’ve ever seen, using the limitations of the staging to heighten the mood." COLUMBUS UNDERGROUND
HÄNSEL UND GRETEL | opera ithaca
“Mother is Meghan Kasanders (who doubles splendidly as the chef-witch)… When she [Marlen Nahhas, Gretel] pairs off with Kasanders’ ebullient witch, the two of them set the screen ablaze.” ITHACA.COM
ANNA BOLENA | baltimore concert opera
"The remarkably gifted soprano Meghan Kasanders, vocally sumptuous... — in the marathon title role...did much highly impressive singing and embodied Anna’s wounded dignity." GAY CITY NEWS
HÄNSEL UND GRETEL | union avenue opera
“Meghan Kasanders, as Gertrude (mother of the eponymous children), has Wagner and Strauss in her future: this is an important voice, big and opulent. She held the stage effortlessly.” ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH