Soprano Diana Damrau makes her role debut as Marie with San Francisco Opera this season, also marking her Company debut. A native of Günzburg an der Donau in Germany, she began her career at the opera houses of Würzburg, Frankfurt, and Mannheim, and she has since performed with the world’s top opera companies. Her recent engagements include Constanze (Die Entführung aus dem Serail), Pamina and the Queen of the Night (Die Zauberflöte), Aithra (Die Ägyptische Helena), Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Gilda (Rigoletto), Zerbinetta (Ariadne auf Naxos), and the title role of Lucia di Lammermoor at the Metropolitan Opera; Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel), the Queen of the Night, Zerbinetta, the Fiakermilli (Arabella), Adina (L’Elisir d’Amore), and creating the roles of the Gym Teacher and the Old Hag in the world premiere of Lorin Maazel’s 1984 with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden; Zerbinetta, Adele (Die Fledermaus), Aminta (R. Strauss’s Die Schweigsame Frau), Gilda, Pamina, Sophie (Der Rosenkavalier), and creating the role of the Small Woman in Cerha’s Der Riese vom Steinfeld with the Vienna State Opera; and Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro) and the title role of Salieri’s Europa Riconosciuta at Milan’s La Scala. Winner of Opernwelt magazine’s 2008 “Singer of the Year” award, Damrau recently signed an exclusive recording contract with Virgin/EMI, and she is featured on two recordings: Arie di Bravura (a selection of arias by Mozart, Salieri, and Righini) and Donna (a collection of Mozart arias). Upcoming engagements include Marie at the Met, opposite Juan Diego Flórez; Ophelia (Hamlet) with Washington National Opera; the title roles of Manon in Vienna and Lucia di Lammermoor with Deutsche Oper Berlin; Donna Anna (Don Giovanni) in Geneva; and Constanze in Barcelona.