Anna Dowsley

Mezzo Soprano Anna Dowsley performs on operatic and concert stages around Australia and Europe, establishing herself as one of many exciting Australian artists to emerge in recent years.

Over the past season, her operatic engagements have included Cherubino (Le Nozze di Figaro, Opera Frankurt), Bobylikha (The Snow Maiden, Tiroler Festspiele Erl) and Dorabella (Così fan tutte, Opera Queensland). At the beginning of 2024, Anna toured nationally with Musica Viva, performing the Bolcom Cabaret songs with pianist Michael Curtain.

In the 2022/23 season, Anna performed Adalgisa (Norma) with Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa, made her Opera Frankfurt debut performing Olga (Eugene Onegin), recorded with L’Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo (Palazzetto Bru Zane label) and performed in concert with Concerto Budapest. She also performed with the Australian Chamber Orchestra as a guest soloist on their 2022 Bach national tour.

In 2021, Anna performed the title role of Carmen (Staatstheater Nürnberg, Germany) and Zerlina in Don Giovanni (Teatro Petruzzelli, Italy). She made her United Kingdom debut in 2017 performing Meg Page alongside Sir Bryn Terfel as Falstaff (Royal Liverpool Philharmonic).

Her career began with Opera Australia, where her many roles included: Dorabella (Così fan tutte), Rosina (The Barber of Seville), Cherubino, Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Siebel (Faust), Smeton (Anna Bolena), Flora (La traviata), Tebaldo (Don Carlos) and Zaida (Il turco in Italia). With Sydney Chamber Opera, Anna performed the title role in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia and she toured with New Zealand Opera’s 2017 The Mikado production (Pitti Sing). Anna performed the title role in Pinchgut Opera’s 2022 production of Orontea and starred in their 2020 full-length opera film A Delicate Fire.

On the concert platform, Anna has performed with the Sydney, Tasmanian, Adelaide and Queensland Symphony Orchestras; Pinchgut Opera; Van Diemen’s Band; Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and Royal Melbourne Philharmonic, with repertoire including Beethoven’s Mass in C and Symphony No. 9; Verdi’s Requiem; Mozart’s Requiem and Great Mass; JS Bach’s Magnificat, Mass in B minor and Easter Oratorio.

In 2019, Anna received third prize in the Toulouse International Singing Competition and was the recipient of the Australian Opera Award, funded by the Youth Music Foundation of Australia. In her final years of study at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, she was awarded the 2014 Lady Fairfax New York Scholarship (Opera Foundation Australia) and the Marianne Mathy Scholarship (Australian Singing Competition).

In the upcoming year, Anna performs the role of Sister Helen (Dead Man Walking) with Landestheater Detmold in Germany, sings her first Dido (Dido and Aeneas) with Opera Queensland, makes her debut with State Opera South Australia (Così fan tutte) and performs again with Sydney Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Sir Donald Runnicles.

Later in 2024, Anna moves her family’s German home from Frankfurt to Oldenburg, where she takes up a full time Principal Artist position with Oldenburgisches Staatstheater.