Soprano Rebecca Shorstein continues to delight audiences with her “radiant voice and captivating stage presence” at theaters across North America and Europe. Her 2019-20 season sees her return to Keene, New Hampshire to reprise one of her signature roles as Adele in Die Fledermaus, followed by her debut with Permian Basin Opera in Midland, Texas as Gianetta in L’elisir d’amore. Last season saw Rebecca in three company debuts – with Boheme Opera New Jersey in From Opera to Broadway; Salt Marsh Opera in an outreach version of Mozart’s The Magic Flute; and with Raylynmor Opera as Berta in Il barbiere di Siviglia. Rebecca released her first full album, A Certain Kind of Darkness, in December 2019, with downloads currently available on all major streaming services.
As half of the cabaret duo REBONICA, Rebecca joins soprano Monica Pasquini for performances this season in Philadelphia and New York City. The duet appears in concert with the Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota in January 2020 for High Flying Sopranos featuring a variety of classical, pops and contemporary favorites including works by Mozart, Offenbach, Puccini, Berlin, and Lloyd Webber.
Recent debuts for Rebecca include performances as Despina in Mozart's Cosi fan tutte and Gretel in Hansel and Gretel with Opera on the James, as well as Claire de Loon in On the Town, First Wood Nymph in Rusalka, Gianietta in L'elisir d'amore, and Noemie in Cendrillon with Resonance Works Pittsburgh. She appeared as Berta in Il barbiere di Siviglia with the Phoenicia Festival in upstate New York alongside veteran performer Kevin Glavin and Metropolitan Opera star Lucas Meachem; Pittsburgh Opera Studio in the role of Gianetta in L’elisir d’amore; and in the role of Adele in Die Fledermaus in her return to the New York Opera Exchange and her debut with Undercroft Opera. She served as a resident young artist with Opera on the James during the spring of 2015. On the concert stage, Rebecca made her debut with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra as the soprano soloist in Lawrence Siegel’s Kaddish under the baton of Maestro Eugene Tzigane, followed by a return to the RPO in her role debut as Annina in La Traviata under Music Director Ward Stare. Rebecca continues her international touring schedule of REBONICA – A Cabaret Duo alongside soprano Monica Pasquini, which debuted in 2016 with performances in Florida, Kentucky, New York, Boston, and Spello and Torino, Italy.
Additional engagements include with Piedmont Opera as Berta in Il barbiere di Siviglia; Opera Theater of Pittsburgh as Serpetta in La finta Giardiniera and Fifi in the world premiere of Demestres’ Honeymoon Suite; Opera on the James as ensemble in Little Women; New York Opera Exchange as Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni and Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte; and New York Lyric Opera as Königin der Nacht in Die Zauberflöte and La Fée in Cendrillon.
Rebecca made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2013 in concert with the New York Lyric Opera. Additional concert engagements include performances with the Ft. Smith Symphony for their 90th anniversary gala performance and with the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in Jacksonville, Florida as a featured alumna for their annual ‘Extravaganza’ (the first time a vocalist has been invited to return as a featured performer). Additional New York credits include with the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra, and as a featured soloist in multiple holiday concerts at the Players Club under the auspices of the Sherrill Milnes Voice Foundation.
Rebecca made her European debut in 2010 as Königin der Nacht with the Mittelsächsiches Theater Freiberg. She also won prestigious accolades from the Schlern International Music Festival in Italy.
Originally from Jacksonville, Florida, Rebecca completed her Masters degree at Florida State University where she performed the role of Servilia in La Clemenza di Tito and the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute. She received her Bachelors degree from The North Carolina School of the Arts, where she created the role of Lydia Bennett in a workshop premiere of Kirke Mechem’s Pride and Prejudice.