Soprano Ariel Downs has been praised for her “ravishing coloratura” and “vivid” singing. The 22/23 season includes her Carnegie Hall debut, a return to Thompson Street Opera as Calco (The Boy Who Wanted to be a Robot), and her role debut as Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance with Heartland Opera Theatre. Last season, she sang Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi) with Mid-Ohio Civic Opera and covered She (The Kamikaze Mind) and Recipe (Would you Eat Me?) with Thompson Street Opera. Other recent roles include Musetta (La bohème), Madame Silberklang (The Impresario), Miss Wordsworth (Albert Herring), Adele (Die Fledermaus), Despina (Cosi fan tutte), and Nannetta (Falstaff). Ariel is a grant recipient from the Koch Cultural Trust, Sigma Alpha Iota Professional Development Grant, and the UMKC Women’s Council, as well as 1st place winner and Audience Favorite in the Sinfonietta Bel Canto Competition, and Finalist in the Artist Presentation Society Competition. Ariel resides in Chicago and studies with Maria Kanyova.