With a voice and stage presence described as “warm and lyrical with a lot of dramatic power” by the Omaha World Herald, Karen Hughes Beacom has made a name for herself on the opera and concert stage.  A Metropolitan Opera National Council Regional Finalist, her career is crossing borders, with international performances at the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, China as the soprano soloist in Bach’s Mass in B Minor with the Tianjin Symphony and as the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro under the baton of Joseph Rescigno in Novafeltria, Bellaria and Sant’Archangelo, Italy.  

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This versatile soprano has performed dozens of leading roles in opera, with highlights including Violetta in La Traviata, Mimí in La Bohème, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro, Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus, Cio-Cio San in Madama Butterfly, Micaela in Carmen, Pamina in The Magic Flute, Fiordiligi in Cosí fan tutte, and Alexandra in the world  premiere of O Pioneers!, among others. Her opera credits include Des Moines Metro Opera, Utah Festival Opera, Opera Omaha, Sun Valley Opera, DuPage Opera Theatre, Chautauqua Institution and Soo Opera.  

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Recent solo concert highlights include Handel’s Messiah and Saint-Saëns Oratorio de Noël with Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Mozart’s Requiem and Vivaldi’s Gloria with the Keewenaw Symphony, and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony and Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Sault Symphony Orchestra in Ontario, Canada. Karen has also appeared with the Summit Choral Society in Akron, OH, the Nebraska Choral Arts Society in Omaha, Nebraska and recorded backup vocals on the Mannheim Steamroller album Christmas Extraordinaire.

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In addition to performing, Karen is the founder and artistic director of the Soo Opera in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Founded in 2007 as a part of the Soo Theatre Project, Soo Opera has brought fully staged works with orchestra to the Eastern Upper Peninsula every year since its inception, including annual performances on Mackinac Island at the Grand Hotel and Mission Point Theater.

 

Karen holds a Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where she studied under Metropolitan Opera Mezzo-Soprano Ariel Bybee. A student of Bybee’s in New York City, where she attended the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, Karen subsequently followed her mentor and teacher to earn her degree in the field of opera. Karen also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Harp Performance from DePauw University.