Anita Watson

After completing a Bachelor of Music from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Australian soprano Anita Watson graduated with honours from the Australian Opera Studio. She was a member of the Cologne Opera Studio 2006-7 and the Jette Parker Young Artist Programme at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden from 2007-9.

Anita has won prizes in many prestigious competitions amongst them the Australian Singing Competition, the “Queen Sonja International Music Competition” in Oslo, “Neue Stimmen” in Germany and the Plácido Domingo “Operalia” competition. In 2009 she was awarded the 1st prize and the audience award at the international “ARD Music Competition” in Munich and the “SWR Emmerich-Smola Prize” in 2010.

As a Jette Parker Young Artist at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden her roles included the title role in Donizetti’s Rita, Naiad (Ariadne auf Naxos), Gretel and Dewfairy (Hänsel und Gretel), First Lady (Die Zauberflöte), Flowergirl (Parsifal) and Second Woman (Dido and Aeneas. In 2010 Anita made her house debuts at Teatro La fenice in Venice as Governess in The turn of the screw and at the Salzburg Festival as 5th Maid in Elektra. Other performances have included Mimì (Nationale Reisopera) and Donna Anna (Landestheater Salzburg, Teatro la Fenice and Opera Australia).

In addition to opera Anita has appeared worldwide in concerts, recitals and television and radio broadcasts. In 2010 Anita sang Beethoven’s 9th Symphony the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and Antonio Pappano. She also performed the Strauss Vier letzte Lieder with the Rheinische Philharmonie in Koblenz and the Mariiinsky Orchestra in St Petersburg, Stravinsky’s Mavra with the CBSO, Mahler’s 8th Symphony with Sir Mark Elder and recorded Ariadne auf Naxos for the Chandos label.

She recently visited Australia to perform Beethoven Symphony no. 9 with the MSO. Future engagements include First Lady (Die Zauberflöte) for Royal Opera House, Governess (The Turn of the Screw) for Théatre du Capitole in Toulouse and Ann Trulove (The Rake’s Progress) in Santiago de Chile.