Biography

Praised for her “lovely mezzo voice” (Berkshire Fine Arts) and “dramatically incisive” stage presence (Parterre Box), American-Canadian Ilanna Starr joins The Atlanta Opera as a Studio Artist for the 2025–26 season. She recently completed a two-year artist residency with the Atelier lyrique of Opéra de Montréal (OdM). This summer she sang the title role in Giulio Cesare with Concerts Lachine and was a vocal fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center where among many projects, she made her debut as the title role in L’enfant et les sortilèges. 

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Highlights of last season include her return to the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera for her role debut as Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro and then to Opéra de Montréal’s mainstage for L'Enfant et les Sortilèges as La Chatte and L’Écureuil. With the Atelier lyrique, she appeared in several scenes projects as Ruggiero (Handel's Alcina), Nerone (Handel's Agrippina), Mrs. Jessel (Britten's Turn of the Screw), Adalgisa (Bellini's Norma), and sang Sesto in a full production of La clemenza di Tito directed by Stephen Lawless. Her work last season also extended beyond the opera stage with performances as Elsa in Frozen in concert with GFN Productions and the Baker’s Wife in Sondheim's Into the Woods with Opera North.

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Her 23/24 season included her “stand out” (l’Opéra) performance as Nerone in L’incoronazione di Poppea with Orchestre de l’Agora, as well as Mercédès in Carmen with l’Orchestre symphonique de Trois-Rivières, Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus with the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera, and her memorable mainstage debut with l’Opéra de Montréal (OdM) as Flora Bervoix in La traviata.

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​A successful competitor, Ilanna most recently won the top prize of Jeune Espoir Lyrique Canadienne at the 2025 Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques Galas as well as First Prize (virtual division) in the 2025 Camille Coloratura Awards and First Place in the 41st Piero Boni International Opera Competition. She also earned First Prize in the 4th Vienna International Classical Singing Competition, an encouragement award from the 2025 Zenith Opera Competition, and was named a quarter-finalist in the 2025 Elizabeth Connell Prize Competition. This spring she was awarded Third Place in the Virtuoso Category of the 2025 Mimas International Opera Competition, won Audience Favorite in Opera Ithaca’s 2025 Edward M. Murray Vocal Competition, and earned Second Place in both the National and DC-Chapter levels of the the 2025 Martorella Classical Voice Scholarship Competition (formerly the Dorothy Lincoln Smith Classical Vocal Competition) through the National Society of Arts and Letters. Earlier this season, she won Third Place in the Artist Division of the National Opera Association’s 2025 Carolyn Bailey Argento Vocal Competition, Second Place in the Professional Crossover Category at Opera Mississippi’s 2025 John Alexander National Vocal Competition, and was also named a semifinalist in the 2025 Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition.

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​​​​​Last year Ilanna became a regional finalist and two-time award winner at the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition after being named a 2024 District Winner, having received an encouragement award in 2022. She was a finalist in the Canadian Opera Company’s 2024 Centre Stage Competition and won second place in the young artist division of the 2024 Orpheus Vocal Competition. On the global stage, Ilanna was a semifinalist in the 2024 International Hans Gabor Belvedere Competition and won third prize in the opera category at the 2024 Nuits Lyriques de Marmande Concours International. ​

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In 2023, she was named a Wirth Vocal Prize finalist as well as the winner of the top prize of Talent Lyrique Québécois through Théâtre Lyrichorégra. As a two time laureate of the Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques, Ilanna has been awarded funding from Théâtre Lyrichorégra, LOJIQ, and the Francis Poulenc Foundation.  Additionally, she is the recipient of a career development grant through the Fondation Jeunesses musicales du Canada.

 

Previous operatic role highlights include Hänsel (Hänsel und Gretel), Dorabella (Così fan tutte), Tisbe (La Cenerentola), La Messagiera (L’Orfeo), Melissa (La liberazione di Ruggiero), and Amastre (Serse). Ilanna has also amassed experience interpreting characters in newer operatic works covering the role of the Captain in the Chicago premiere of David T. Little’s Dog Days as well as Brittomara in the Midwest premiere of Jake Heggie’s If I Were You. Most recently she originated the role of Venus in the world premiere of Dean Burry’s Il giudizio di Pigmalione.

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In concert, Ilanna has sung the mezzo solo in John Corigliano’s Fern Hill in addition to being a featured street player soloist in Bernstein’s MASS. Collaborating frequently with Northwestern’s Contemporary Music Ensemble, conducted by Alan Pierson of Alarm Will Sound, she was the solo vocalist in Andrew Hamilton’s 20-minute work, music for people who like art, as well as a soloist in Marcos Balter’s meltDown Upshot at Chicago’s 2021 EarTaxi Festival.​ She was a finalist in Northwestern's 2022 Concerto Competition for her performance of Ravel's Shéhérazade.

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Passionate about exploring diverse human experiences through art music, Ilanna has curated and performed collaborative recitals centered around the voices of women, domestic violence, relationship communication styles, and the resilience of Jewish culture during the Holocaust and throughout the 20th century.

 

She has trained at Tanglewood, SongFest and Chautauqua and holds degrees from Vanderbilt University, Northwestern University, and McGill University.

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Equally at home in pop and jazz styles, Ilanna was one of the 325 individuals out of 125k auditionees who received a golden ticket to Hollywood on Season 10 of American Idol. She was only 15. 

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A lover of dogs and baroque rage arias, Ilanna digs singing from her heart and laughing from her belly (and vice versa).