Kimberly Gratland James

Mezzo-Soprano

Mezzo-soprano Kimberly Gratland James enjoys an active career as an operatic and symphonic performer.  Onstage she recently appeared as Carmen with the Helena Symphony and returns to Helena in Spring 2009 for Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro.  Previously she performed the role of Mrs. Hannan in Phillip Marshall, Lola in Cavalleria rusticana, Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor, and covered the title role of Carmen at the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.  She performed Jo in Little Women with Opera Mundi in Mexico City, a role she previously performed at Chautauqua Opera and Indiana University.  Additional professional credits include Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro with Lyric Opera Cleveland, Hansel in Hansel and Gretel with Chautauqua Opera, and the Page in Salome with New Orleans Opera.  Ms. James also performed a number of feature mezzo-soprano roles as a student at Indiana University including Erika in Vanessa, Dido in Dido and Aeneas, Siébel in Faust, Princess Clarissa in The Love for Three Oranges, and Mrs. Sedley in Peter Grimes.

Kimberly is also a successful concert artist.  In 1999 she performed John Adams’ Grand Pianola Music with the New World Symphony, which was conducted by Adams and returned the next December to perform in Andriessen’s De Staat.  She reprised Grand Pianola with Adams and the London Sinfonietta at Lincoln Center in 2003 and the Los Angeles Symphony in 2004.  She recently performed the mezzo solos in Verdi's Requiem at Bass Hall in Fort Worth with the Texas Christian University Chorale and Orchestra and with the Corpus Christi Symphony.  She reprises the Verdi in March 2009 with the Missoula Symphony.  She has also performed Mahler's 2nd Symphony and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony at Amherst College and the Duruflé Requiem at Indiana-Purdue University at Fort Wayne and appeared with the Indianapolis Symphony in Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  Her symphonic repertoire includes Ravel’s Shéhérazade and Mahler’s Fourth Symphony which she performed with the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra.  She also sang music of Rodgers and Hammerstein with the Fort Worth Symphony in a concert conducted by Skitch Henderson.  Other concert repertoire highlights include the Mozart Requiem, Handel Messiah, Bach Christmas Oratorio, Bach St. John's Passion, Bach Magnificat, and the Dubois Seven Last Words of Christ.