Sager, Mikayla

(Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)

Canadian soprano Mikayla Sager is drawn to the rich, multifaceted characters of Italian repertoire. Following her recent concert performance with San Francisco Opera, the San Francisco Chronicle declared her “an extraordinarily gifted young soprano … Sager delivered Desdemona’s arias with a combination of intensity and hushed majesty.”

A second-year Adler Fellow, Sager performs in San Francisco Opera’s Centennial Season, appearing on the War Memorial Opera House stage as Sister Felicité in Dialogues des Carmélites, Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Keeper of the Gates of the Temple in Die Frau ohne Schatten, and as Image No. 1 in the world premiere of Gabriela Lena Frank’s El último sueño de Frida y Diego, in addition to covering the roles of Violetta in La Traviata and Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni. Throughout the Bay Area, she brings her portrayal of Mimì to performances of San Francisco Opera’s Bohème Out of the Box and the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra for a concert at the Mondavi Center. Additional concert appearances include The Future is Now, with the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Eun Sun Kim Conducts Verdi, both under the baton of the Company’s music director.

As the 2022 Maria Manetti Shrem Prize winner, Sager bowed as Giannetta in L’Elisir d’Amore under the baton of Maestro Gemma New. She has previously appeared as Violetta (La Traviata), Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), Vitellia (La Clemenza di Tito), Micäela (Carmen), and Donna Anna (Don Giovanni), as well as Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) and The Fox (The Cunning Little Vixen). Following her debut as Norina (Don Pasquale) with Venture Opera, Opera Canada praised her “edgy intensity, … she augmented her vocal prowess with enviable acting skills.”

Concert highlights include appearances with Festival Napa Valley, Hawaii International Music Festival tour, as well as numerous recitals, including an appearance at Carnegie Hall and a performance at David Geffen Hall with the New York Philharmonic.

An alum of Manhattan School of Music and the Merola Opera Program, Sager was a winner of the 2021 Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonygne Foundation’s Elizabeth Connell Competition, a Finalist for the Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition, a District Winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Vienna International Music Competition, a Finalist in the National Opera Association’s Carolyn Bailey and Dominick Argento Competition, and she was chosen as a final round participant in the Gran Teatre del Liceu’s Tenor Viñas Competition in Barcelona.

Sager draws inspiration from many other art forms, including architecture and ceramics, as well as her unconventional childhood aboard a sailboat that traveled around the world. These days, her travel companion is her rescue dog, Remy, whose fiery personality would suit any operatic stage.