Lilian Sukis (born 29 June 1939,

Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...

) is a Canadian operatic

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

n birth. Her family moved first to Germany during World War II, and then to Canada in 1950. She earned a BA from McMaster University and a diploma from the University of Toronto, and made her professional opera debut in 1964 as Kate Pinkerton in Giacomo Puccini's ''

Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...

'' with the Canadian Opera Company. In 1965 she sang the role of Countess Almaviva in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...

'' at the

Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival ...

. That same year she became a pupil at the Metropolitan Opera Studio and School. She made her debut at the Met in 1967 as Helen Niles in the world premiere of

Marvin David Levy Marvin David Levy (August 2, 1932 – February 9, 2015) was an American composer, best known for his opera ''Mourning Becomes Electra''. ''Mourning Becomes Electra'' was given its world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera in 1967. Although deemed ...

's ''

Mourning Becomes Electra ''Mourning Becomes Electra'' is a play cycle written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The play premiered on Broadway at the Guild Theatre on 26 October 1931 where it ran for 150 performances before closing in March 1932, starring Lee Baker ...

''. In 1969 she became a member of the Bavarian State Opera where she remained for more than 20 years. She has also appeared as a guest artist with several major opera houses and opera festivals internationally, including the

Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival (german: link=no, Bayreuther Festspiele) is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived ...

, the

Frankfurt Opera The Oper Frankfurt (Frankfurt Opera) is a German opera company based in Frankfurt. Opera in Frankfurt am Main has a long tradition, with many world premieres such as Franz Shrek's ''Der ferne Klang'' in 1912, '' Fennimore und Gerda'' by Frede ...

, Graz, the

Hamburg State Opera The Hamburg State Opera (in German: Staatsoper Hamburg) is a German opera company based in Hamburg. Its theatre is near the square of Gänsemarkt. Since 2015, the current ''Intendant'' of the company is Georges Delnon, and the current ''General ...

, the Salzburg Festival, and the Vienna State Opera among others.

References

1939 births Living people Canadian operatic sopranos University of Toronto alumni McMaster University alumni 20th-century Canadian women opera singers Lithuanian emigrants to Canada {{Canada-opera-singer-stub