An alumnus of Atlanta Opera’s Glynn Studio Artist program and now a principal artist at the Metropolitan Opera, Susanne Burgess returns to the stage of Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre on March 2 as the besotted lover Helena in Benjamin Britten’s magical operatic confection A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Based on Shakespeare’s delightful classic, Atlanta Opera’s production will enjoy a four-performance run through March 10.
Beyond her estimable contribution to the city’s musical fabric — and despite the fact that she has ventured across much of the planet already — the enchanting young soprano has happily become an Atlanta resident.
A true citizen of the world, Burgess was born in Geneva, Switzerland, to a British mother and Scottish father. She was raised in five different countries before the family settled in Austin, Texas, when Burgess was 14. Her household was not particularly musical. “They are all shocked that this has become my career,” Burgess says. “My mum is tone deaf!”
In high school, she had to choose between orchestra or choir and admits she chose the latter because she didn’t want to practice an instrument in her free time, which she observes “is pretty ironic in hindsight.” Her unusual vocal gift quickly became apparent, and the choir director recommended serious voice training. Before long, Burgess was acing competitions and won a full ride to the University of Nevada.
After college, Burgess hit New York and worked as a temp while pursuing music gigs. She soon landed spots in the young artist summer programs at Des Moines Metro Opera and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, then joined Glynn Studio in 2020, where she remained for two years. She has since returned to Atlanta Opera as a principal artist, scoring notable success with Mabel’s coloratura riffs in The Pirates of Penzance.
Burgess snatched a moment between rehearsals to speak with ArtsATL about her career and experiences in Atlanta.
ArtsATL: Tell us about your time with the Glynn Studio program.
Susanne Burgess: It was rather unique because I was there from 2020 through 2022, right in the heart of the pandemic. We had this tight bubble. It was in our contract that we could not go out or eat at restaurants. But because they could not bring in outside singers, I got so many performance opportunities. I did leading roles that I otherwise would have probably only covered because they couldn’t bring in stars. So I’m grateful in a way. The program was amazing to begin with, but, because of these circumstances, I felt I was almost in a fest while I was in Atlanta.
I also loved doing the Big Tent series. Those tent shows were extraordinary. We were in this pressure cooker, so we had to think outside the box and become really creative to make a show work. The product of all that was so unique.
ArtsATL: How did it feel to go straight from Atlanta to the Metropolitan Opera?
Burgess: It was incredibly vindicating. Atlanta was proud of me, and I was ready for the challenge because of the work that I did here. My road to the Met was through the Metropolitan National Council Auditions — but not because I won. I got to the Met because I didn’t win! It was a bit of revenge casting. I was in the regionals, and two of the judges wanted someone else, so I didn’t move forward. But the third judge happened to be on the casting team at the Met. I got an email telling me that despite my not moving forward in the competition, I was invited to give a stage audition at the Met. So I made my debut at the Metropolitan Opera because I didn’t win the Council auditions. I like to tell this story because I hope it might inspire others. You just never know.
ArtsATL: You won great acclaim for the role of Helena in Des Moines. What are your thoughts on this character?
Burgess: I often play characters who are plot keystones of love and purity. Helena is not that. I love that about her. And she is not far from some people we all know. I think of Helena as one of those women who loves Pride and Prejudice and romance novels and thinks that if a man is cruel to you, it’s because he just can’t come to terms with how much he really loves you. She really believes that and believes that Demetrius just needs one more push. Playing her as a real person is important to me — I don’t want to play her as a caricature of a clingy, annoying ex-girlfriend.
Something challenging about her vocally is most of my lines begin on an F-sharp. It’s right in the passaggio of the voice, and they begin in forte. She comes in with great strength, and then decrescendos as she loses steam. You can feel her waning in her strength to follow Demetrius. This is why I love Britten; there are so many little examples of that kind of thing — just genius. My biggest challenge is the need to sometimes go with “pretty” vocal choices. I like to get the drama across, so I’ll go for the bite in the sound and don’t necessarily go for the more beautiful choice.
ArtsATL: You have been involved with Atlanta Opera during a period of major growth for the company. Tell us about that.
Burgess: It’s pretty exciting. Atlanta is now one of the top 10 opera companies in the country. I have such pride in having been part of the young artist studio and to be returning, but there is also a bit of pressure associated with it. I wouldn’t call it fear, but there is a sense that you have to prove you deserve that higher status. So there is excitement but also more pressure to perform to the level that is expected now.
So many opera singers who live in Atlanta — some of the best singers I know. That speaks to the excellence of the musical community but also to the quality of life you can have here and still have such quality arts organizations. My fiancé and I just bought a house here.
ArtsATL: What do you most love about being an opera singer?
Burgess: There are moments where there is nothing moving in the room. The orchestra, you and the audience are all sharing that moment; everybody’s heartbeats are kind of synched. It feels like an amazing togetherness. I love that — I love creating those moments and I love being in an audience when they happen. I also love meeting new colleagues. I get to meet new, interesting people from all over the world. Working with these amazing people is my favorite thing.
ArtsATL: What is special about A Midsummer Night’s Dream?
Burgess: This piece has something for everyone. There’s comedy, love and magic. The costumes are insane. It’s a great opera to bring first timers to. You will have a chance to see artists like Iestyn Davies, who is probably the best Oberon in the world, but also some young, hungry performers who are really upping their own game here. There is something cool about that.
ArtsATL: Is there anything you want audiences to know about you?
Burgess: I love for people to say hello after performances. It’s important for audiences to have access to the performers. We aren’t untouchable — we are real people.
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Mark Thomas Ketterson is a Chicago-based arts critic and writer. He was the longtime Chicago correspondent for Opera News and has also written for Playbill, the Chicago Tribune and other publications.
