In her Women’s History Month essay, AGMA Chorister Chelsea Shephard reflects on producing the April 2025 concert Women in Opera, a program created in response to the persistent lack of opportunities for women in the opera field despite an abundance of talent. Designed to highlight the continuing disparity in gender-based opportunities within traditionally categorized operatic roles, the concert was made possible through the support and dedication of Met Chorus Artists, Inc. (MCA), the 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2015 by Met choristers and dedicated to promoting opera through performances and outreach events.
Women’s History Month Spotlight: A Celebration of Women in Opera
By Chelsea Shephard
In April 2025, I helped produce a very special concert that we simply called “Women in Opera.” The concert was created in direct response to a deficit of opportunities for women in the opera field, despite an abundance of talent, and to highlight the continuing disparity between gender-based opportunities in traditionally categorized roles for “men” and “women,” particularly where the chorus is concerned. We had the support and dedication of the Met Chorus Artists, Inc., in order to make the concert come to life. MCA is the 501c3 nonprofit founded in 2015 by Met choristers and dedicated to promoting opera through performances and outreach events.
Fifteen incredible women came together to perform “Women in Opera” and luxuriate in the beautiful acoustics of Manhattan’s Brick Presbyterian Church. We began with two sopranos in the back of the sanctuary while our fabulous pianist, Derrick Goff, articulated the familiar tremolos and brass leitmotif—voices from other sides of the sanctuary chimed in, layer by layer, as the audience was swept away with glorious cascades of Hojotoho! The Valkyries had arrived!
What followed was a true celebration of arias and ensembles for women, at turns tender and others hair-raising, drawing on familiar and new works from the operatic stage. Five sopranos shared Violetta’s stunning aria Sempre libera in what we affectionately call a “tag team” version, followed by more Verdi (the Court Ladies’ scene from Aida and Stride la vampa from Il Trovatore), plus Harriet Tubman’s Lullaby by Leo Edward and arias for Mimi, Musetta, and Rusalka. Two mezzo anthems were proudly featured—Voi che sapete and Habañera—the latter of which was also performed in a “tag team” arrangement. A special set of letter-writing scenes included an aria from Kirsten Volness’s WWI-themed Letters You Will Not Get; the Letters Aria from Ricky Ian Gordon’s Intimate Apparel; and that famous Mozart duet, you know the one. The expansive and emotional trios from Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier and Kevin Puts’ The Hours finished out the evening, connecting the beauty of women’s voices singing together over centuries.
It was so meaningful to gather with colleagues from the Met’s Regular and Extra Chorus and give voice to the incredible repertoire written for (and sometimes by) women. Our hope is that this concert will serve as inspiration to bring women’s voices — as singers, composers, producers, and more — to the forefront of the opera industry.
Bio: Chelsea Shephard, soprano, has been a member of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus since 2018 and a member of AGMA since 2011. She also serves as the Soprano/Alto Chorus Safety Delegate and is the Vice President of Met Chorus Artists, Inc. Hailing from Kalamazoo, MI she earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at DePaul University and Rice University, respectively. The first opera she ever saw was at AGMA signatory Lyric Opera of Chicago—it was Don Giovanni with Bryn Terfel in one of his final Leporellos.
Women in Opera Video by Michelle Kaminer: https://youtu.be/Ry5n1uezw0A?si=4zn28S7krk0KWX8z
Pictured in title image: Chelsea Shephard, Olga Xanthopoulou, Kimberli Render, Maria Maxfield, Maria D’Amato, Abigail Mitchell, Anne Nonnemacher, Elizabeth Sciblo, Rachele Schmiege, Claire Kuttler, Liz Pojanowski, Mary Hughes, Heather Petrie. Singers not pictured: Andrea Coleman, Jasmine Muhammad.