Katerina Skafidas, known by her colleagues as Kat, is a Boston-based soprano from Syracuse, New York. She is active throughout the Northeast, particularly between New York and New England.
While active on the operatic stage, she is also well-versed in early music, musical theater, and new music written by living composers.
Ms. Skafidas trained from a young age as an actress, a dancer, a pianist, and a chorister. Her father George was a composer, conductor, and piano teacher, and her mother Cynthia is an active pianist, organist, and piano teacher. Cynthia and Kat often perform as a soprano/piano duo.
RECENT PROJECTS:
In the Boston area, she has appeared with the Boston Lyric Opera, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the BYSO Opera. She can regularly be heard singing at St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Milton, where she sings on the schola cantorum and is also co-music director with her partner, Kyle Seniw. She teaches and sings with Whole Tone Music Academy, a collective of teaching artists in Somerville.
In December 2025, she was invited to sing as the featured soprano soloist in Bach's Weinachtsoratorium in Michelstadt, Germany, in the heart of their cherished Christmas Markets. She has developed budding musical relationships with many artists in this charming Odenwald region of Hessen, Germany.
She won the 2022 Seattle, Washington District round of the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition and competed in the 2023 Western Regional round.
RECORDING PROJECTS:
In the spring of 2024, Ms. Skafidas sang in a recording project for Natalie Draper's studio recording of Allein zu dir, a soprano/alto duet with organ. The recording was performed at Setnor Auditorium in Syracuse, NY, published through Acis Productions for the composer's upcoming album. Her collaborators included Katie Weber, mezzo-soprano, and Dr. Anne Laver, organ.
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She also sang as a soloist and chorister in the preview (2021), premiere (2022), and the published studio recording (2025) of Linda Chase's environmental oratorio for climate change, Laudato Sì: For Our Common Home.
The recording is now available via Albany Records (2025).
The November 2021 preview was held at New England Conservatory, the studio recording was held at WGBH Studios in May 2022, and the world premiere was on June 25, 2022, at Old Cambridge Baptist Church.
Laudato Sì commissioned the chamber choir Carduus for the project. Ms. Skafidas regularly sings with the group around the Boston area, and has been featured at Symphony Hall performing Morton Feldman's Rothko Chapel.
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Ms. Skafidas earned her graduate degree in voice and opera studies, with a concentration in voice pedagogy at the New England Conservatory (M.M. '22), under the tutelage of Jane Eaglen. At the New England Conservatory Opera, she sang the roles of 'Princesse' in L'enfant et les sortilèges, 'Second Woman' in Dido and Aeneas, ' 'Dalinda' in a semi-staged scenes production of Ariodante, and 'Danica' in Svadba, an a capella, 6-woman, 55-minute opera in Serbian by Ana Sokolović.
IN SYRACUSE:
In the spring of 2020, she prepared the role of 'Dido' in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas for the Syracuse University Opera. Due to the unfortunate COVID-19, this and all her remaining 2020 performances were canceled (including her senior recital). However, she learned a great deal about virtual programming, rehearsing, and online teaching, as well as recording and microphone techniques during this time.
In 2019, she performed ‘Contessa' in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro twice, once in an English adaptation at Syracuse University, and once in Italian at the New York Lyric Opera Theatre. In later 2019, she also participated in Syracuse University's production of the staged song cycle, Vignettes: Ellis Island by Alan Louis Smith. Earlier on at SU Opera, in 2018, she sang 'Ciesca' in Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, and in 2017, she sang 'Julie' in Speed Dating Tonight!
An enthusiastic part of the Central New York scene, Ms. Skafidas engaged in opera and new music professionally as a recitalist, in comprimario roles, and as a chorister with a number of companies including Syracuse Opera, Society for New Music, Syracuse Shakespeare Festival, and Civic Morning Musicals.
She graduated summa cum laude at the Setnor School of Music (B.M. '20) at Syracuse University and studied with Janet Brown. She represented her class as a graduating Class Marshal for the College of Visual and Performing Arts, having spent her time as a VPA peer advisor, music theory tutor, and work-study in Setnor Operations as a house manager. She also was honored as a sister of Sigma Alpha Iota, the international music fraternity for women, as well as Pi Kappa Lambda, the National Music Honor Society.
Ms. Skafidas has collaborated with various composers on premiering their new music, particularly through the Society for New Music, an organization supporting living artists in contemporary music. In conjunction, she also worked as an intern for the Society for New Music.
WORK WITH KAT:
Ms. Skafidas has sung in varying mediums from internationally competitive barbershop choruses to early music, to chamber music, to musical theater. She does not discriminate against an opportunity to make music and tell a story. She is available upon request on contract for various musical services, including weddings and funerals, liturgical or secular. She actively takes inquiries for new music and collaborates with composers often.
Alongside her performing endeavors, she teaches voice lessons in-person in the Boston area and online. Inquiries may be made by contacting her via email or phone.
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She can also be found in the arts admin and non-profit sector. Currently, she is working with her voice teacher Jane Eaglen in running the Boston Wagner Society and Ms. Eaglen's educational program, the American Wagner Festival for young dramatic voices. Jane, who is the president of BWS, delegated Kat as head artistic admin, who is has worked to market and rebrand the society, digitized the society's records, and rebuilt its website.
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Recent Opera Roles: Woglinde (Das Rheingold, Vorspiel semi-staged), Danica (Svadba), Princesse (L'enfant et les sortilèges), Second Woman (Dido & Aeneas), Contessa (Le Nozze di Figaro), Ciesca (Gianni Schicchi), Dido (Dido & Aeneas), La Cugina (Madama Butterfly), 3rd Apparizione (Macbeth), Julie (Speed Dating Tonight!), Dalinda (Ariodante, first act semi-staged), Nedda (I Pagliacci; Act I, sc. 12)
Chorus: Bernstein: Candide, Berlioz: Les Troyens, Romeo et Juliette, Bizet: Carmen, Mozart: Don Giovanni, Così fan tutte, Poulenc: Dialogues of the Carmelites, Puccini: Madama Butterfly, Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk, Verdi: Aida, Don Carlo, La Traviata, Macbeth.
Venues: Boston Symphony Hall, Tanglewood Music Center, Carnegie Hall, Jordan Hall, Lincoln Center, Opera America, Syracuse Opera, Society for New Music, New York Lyric Opera, Civic Morning Musicals, Syracuse Chorale, Syracuse Pops, and Syracuse Shakespeare Festival.
Awards & Acknowledgments:
- Civic Morning Musicals Vocal Competition: 2025 Phyllis Bryn-Julson Award
- Civic Morning Musicals Vocal Competition: 2023 Phyllis Bryn-Julson Award
- Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition: 2022 Seattle District Winner
- New England Conservatory: 2022 Academic Honors & Dean's List
- Civic Morning Musicals Vocal Competition: 2018 First prize, Neva Pilgrim Award
- Society for New Music: Cazenovia Counterpoint Rising Star
- Setnor School of Music: Anna Freeland Berry Memorial Prize in Voice, Sigma Alpha Iota Scholastic Award, Civic Morning Musicals Award, Donna Miller Award in Voice
- SU College of Visual & Performing Arts: 2020 VPA Class Marshal
