Biography
Karin Mushegain, called “superb” (The New York Times), and hailed for possessing “a rich voice and infectious theatricality” (Colorado Gazette), is captivating audiences with her exciting, energetic portrayals, dramatic poise, and dynamic vocal sound. This season, Ms. Mushegain returns to Seattle Opera for an exciting film version of Jonathan Dove's Flight, reprising the role of the Minskwoman, for which she has garnered much praise. This compelling and innovative production streams worldwide April 2021.
This past season, Ms. Mushegain made an exciting role debut as Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro with Charlottesville Opera..."You need to hear this cast. This is the creme de la creme of a generation of singers" (Daily Progress). She also made her Pacific Symphony debut in Madame Butterfly, and had a stellar return to the Bakersfield Symphony for her first Mahler's Symphony No. 2. In the 2017-2018 season, she made her role debut as Zibaldona in the US premiere of Alma Deutscher's Cinderella, with Opera San Jose, to great acclaim. "It is fascinating that Stacey Tappan and Karin Mushegain could sing so beautifully while chewing mouthfuls of scenery as the stepsisters. They conveyed unrestrained comedic abandon...and Ms. Mushegain's robust, shining mezzo were delectable to experience singly or in tandem" (Opera Today). She also returned to Pensacola Opera and made her Indianapolis opera debut as Aldonza in Man of La Mancha, made her role debut as Suzuki in Madame Butterfly with Opera San Luis Obispo, performed her first Bernstein's Symphony No. 1 Jeremiah with Bakersfield Symphony, and made her Sacramento Choral Society debut as the mezzo soloist in Mozart's Requiem.
Highlights of past seasons include the title role in La Cenerentola with Seattle Opera, Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro with Seattle Opera, Virginia Opera, and Opera San Jose, Zerlina in Don Giovanni with Austin Opera, the Minskwoman in Dove's Flight with Austin Opera and Pittsburgh Opera, Hansel in Hansel and Gretel with Virginia Opera, Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia with Charlottesville Opera, Lyrique-en- mer France, and Bakersfield Symphony, Philip Glass's Hydrogen Jukebox with Long Beach Opera, and the Novice in Suor Angelica with Los Angeles Opera, under the baton of James Conlon and the direction of Academy Award winning director William Friedkin.
Ms. Mushegain's signature role of La Cenerentola has not only taken her all throughout the US, but prompted both her European and Asia debuts. She has returned to France to perform Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Dorbella in Cosi Fan Tutté. She spent two seasons at Glimmerglass Opera where she sang Alessandro in the first professional US premiere of Handel’s Tolomeo, with the New York Times calling her performance "superb." On the concert stage, she has joined the Pittsburgh Symphony for their highly acclaimed Holiday Concert series, made her Virginia Symphony debut in Rossini's Stabat Mater, and her Salastina Music Society debut in Handel's Messiah. She joined the esteemed Festival Mozaic for Villa-Lobos’ Bachianas Brasileiras, and rang in the New Year with the Colorado Springs Philharmonic performing Montsalvatge's Cinco Canciones Negras, prompting the Colorado Springs Gazette to call Ms. Mushegain "the most pleasant surprise of the evening...with a rich voice and infectious theatricality."
Off the opera stage, Ms. Mushegain is continuing to gain praise for her work on the the ever-popular video game series, Heroes of Might and Magic. And Deutscher's Cinderella, led by the internationally renowned conductor, Jane Glover, was recently released on DVD with SONY Classics.