ABOUT
JENN
Lauded for her “nuanced dramatic impulses” and a “voice that is liquid, lambent, and lit from within,” Jennifer Holloway breathes life into the characters she plays and the music she sings at celebrated opera houses and concert halls around the world.
Following the devastating loss of so much art in 2020, Holloway is eternally grateful and hopeful to retrun to the stage. Her amended season includes her Role debut as Elsa in Lohengrin at Oper Leipzig, followed by her Wiener Staatsoper debut as Der Komponist, under the baton of Christian Thielemann. She then continues her collaboration with the celebrated conductor at the Semperoper in Dresden, where she will reprise the role of Sieglinde, as well as debut the roles of Freia and Gutrune in the company's 2021 Ring Cycle. The remainder of the season includes returns to two beloved Strauss roles: Der Komponist in Hamburg, and Octavian at the Wiener Staatsoper.
Since turning her sights to German and French repertoire in 2016, especially works by Strauss and Wagner, Holloway has delighted audiences and critics alike in such roles as Salome (Dresden; Bilbao; Leipzig; UK; Atlanta), Cassandre (Dresden), Sieglinde (Hamburg; Vienna; Augsburg), and in the little known and notoriously difficult role of Greta Graumann in Der Ferne Klang (Frankfurt)
Recent seasons have also seen Holloway in the roles of Octavian (Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires; Valencia, Spain), Der Komponist (Metropolitan Opera; Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires) Donna Elvira (COC Toronto; Pittsburgh; Tulsa; Hannover, Germany) Adalgisa (English National Opera; Bordeaux, France; National Theater Mannheim), and as Fulvia in Gluck’s Ezio (Boston),
Her new music premieres have included song cycles by Natalie Draper (She Who Continues), Frederic Chaslin (Robert Frost Melodies), Richard Clawson (Psalms) and the role of Temple Drake in Oscar Strasnoy’s Requiem for a Nun (Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires).
At the beginning of her career, Holloway concentrated her repertory in major roles by Mozart and Handel, performing the roles of Dorabella in Cosí fan tutte (Dallas, Atlanta, Minneapolis, New York City Opera, Tokyo, Pittsburgh), Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro (Dallas, Portland, Bordeaux), Idamante in Idomeneo (Opéra National de Bordeaux), Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni (Pittsburgh, Tulsa, Toronto), Irene in Tamerlano (Teatro Real Madrid, Los Angeles Opera) and the title role in Serse (Pittsburgh). She made her debut with the Metropolitan Opera in New York in December 2010 as Flora in Willy Decker’s new production of La Traviata and returned to the house as Tebaldo in Don Carlo, conducted by the Late Lorin Maazel. She has appeared with English National Opera in productions Die Fledermaus (Orlofsky), La Boheme (Musetta), and Norma (Adalgisa); with the Glyndebourne Festival in new productions of Hänsel und Gretel (Hänsel) and Falstaff (Meg Page); at the Santa Fe Opera in new productions of Cendrillon (Prince Charmant) and Faust (Siebel); at the Maggio Musicale in Florence, the Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse (Rameau’s Hippolyte et Aricie with Emmanuel Haïm); at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris (Rossini’s La Pietra del Paragone as Donna Fulvia); and as Giovanna Seymour in Anna Bolena (Teatro Colón, Lisbon). Concert and festival appearances include those at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, Bard Music Festival, and Chicago’s Grant Park Music Festival and with conductors such as Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Lawrence Foster, Frederic Chaslin, Gustavo Dudamel, Leonard Slatkin, and with Maestro Bertrand de Billy.
An alumna of Brookwood High School in Snellville, GA, as well as the University of Georgia, and the Manhattan School of Music, Jennifer Holloway has established herself as one of opera’s finest singing actors. She has taken part in the prestigious young artist programs at the Opera Theatre of St. Louis, the Santa Fe Opera, and the Pittsburgh Opera. In 2012, The University of Georgia recognized her success with their Outstanding Alumni Award, and in 2020, she joined other nationally recognized alumni on Brookwood High School's Wall of Fame.
last updated October, 2020
Please contact Arsis Artists for the most up-to-date version.
Jennifer Holloways Stimme, die sich vom Mezzosopran zum Sopran entwickelte, und das, obwohl sie beide Stimmlagen beherrscht, ist für die Rolle der Grete prädestiniert. Gefühle wie: jeder von uns hat sich schon mal als Außenseiter gefühlt, wurde von jemandem verlassen, sind ihr nicht fremd. Wie sie diese gebrochene, aber auch starke Frau interpretiert, das istschon eindrucksvoll. Mühelos meistert sie die schwierige Partie der Grete, die mal an Wagner, mal an Puccini erinnert.
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Feuilletonfrankfurt | Renata Feyerbacher | April 2019
Jennifer Holloway's voice, which developed from mezzo-soprano to soprano, and because of her mastery of both voices, is predestined for the role of Grete. Feelings like: each of us has felt like an outsider at some point, has been abandoned by someone, are no strangers to her. The way she interprets this broken but also strong woman is impressive. She easily masters the difficult part of Grete, which is sometimes reminiscent of Wagner, sometimes of Puccini.
Feuilletonfrankfurt | Renata Feyerbacher | April 2019
Dresden – Die Amerikanerin Jennifer Holloway hat ihr Rollendebüt als "Salome" in der gleichnamigen Strauss-Oper mit Bravour gemeistert. Bei der Premiere des Klassikers am Samstagabend in der Dresdner Semperoper wurde sie mit Bravo-Rufen und viel Applaus bedacht. Holloway überzeugte nicht nur stimmlich, sondern zog das Publikum auch mit ihrem schauspielerischen Können in den Bann. Wie sie die nach Liebe dürstende Prinzessin an der Grenze zwischen Kindheit und Jugend in allen Nuancen glaubwürdig darstellte, war hollywood-reif und hauchte dem Opern-Thriller ein hohes Maß an Authentizität ein.
Musik Heute | DPA | Sept 2016
Dresden - The American Jennifer Holloway made her role debut as "Salome" in the Strauss opera of the same name with flying colors. At the premiere of the classic on Saturday evening in the Dresden Semperoper, she was greeted with bravo calls and lots of applause. Holloway not only convinced vocally, but also cast a spell over the audience with her acting skills. The way she credibly portrayed the princess thirsting for love on the border between childhood and youth was Hollywood-ready and breathed a high degree of authenticity into the opera thriller.
Musik Heute | DPA | Sept 2016
Ganz das Gegenteil Jennifer Holloway: Ihr runder Sopran charakterisiert Grete als eine sich genau bewusste Frau. Ihr großes Wald-Solo und das als Positionsbestimmung statt Klagegesang genommene Selbstgespräch im Venedig-Akt werden zu Höhepunkten. Denn die Sängerin geht nicht auf Schrekers Verführungen zur Darstellung einer Femme fatale ein. Sie holt kantable Inseln in greifbare Nähe und kostet diese ohne Konditionsverluste aus.
Concerti | Roland H. Dippel | April, 2019
But when the precocious aphorist is as mesmerising as Jennifer Holloway, the absence of gore is hardly felt. This young singer was until recently more inclined to the mezzo repertoire, but her Salome was, if anything, stronger in the upper than the lower register, and she carried off the final scene with such abandoned aplomb that it was tempting to be moved by it as well as enjoyably stunned. The Spectator | Michael Tanner | April 2018
“...with an outstanding central performance by Jennifer Holloway. She catches all the complexities and conflicts of the Judean princess: at once a petulant spoilt child and a woman who mistakes lust and infatuation for love, weary of being leered at and objectified, and unable to interrogate her own destructive urges... Holloway’s guttural demands for Jokanaan’s head are pure revenge, sitting as happily in her voice as the floated high notes and ecstatic outpourings.”
Rebecca Franks | The London Times | April 2018
“Jennifer Holloway is a stunning lead in a superb Salome cast... The title role — for which Strauss later on called for the impossible, “a 16-year-old with the voice of Isolde” — is played and sung by Jennifer Holloway in a figure-hugging golden frock... On the evidence of her Leeds performance, I’d say she has almost everything for the role.
Her voice has a warm middle and a pretty fearless top, and her clear German diction helps her to penetrate Strauss’s orchestral tumult. Her insistent demands to the despairing Herod for the Baptist’s head were terrifyingly vehement.”
Hugh Canning | The Sunday Times | April 2018
Jennifer Holloway leads the cast as the title character. Her impressive instrument was full, technically proficient, and exciting to hear, not to mention vibrant, stunning, and just about every other positive adjective that a standard dictionary could imagine. Her high notes were striking and her lows were just as enthusiastic, leaving a middle that satisfied with creamy legato and warmth that needs to be heard at every house. On top of the excellent voice, Holloway’s interpretation of a young, tender teenager was believable, thoughtful, and impressive. For an adult woman to manage to so easily capture the essence of a mentally ill girl throwing a temper tantrum about a crush, or disgusted by a man, or for her to manipulate Narraboth while still giving him nothing - it was all excellent. Holloway captures Salome perfectly, leading the show triumphantly and creating a believable heroine with an excellent arch of insanity as she descended into apparent madness.
Shmopera | Daniel Weisman | Jan 2020
"...Jennifer Holloway mit ihrem bruchlos geführten, echten jugendlich dramatischen Sopran das Kunststück, lyrische Innigkeit und silbern schimmernde Höhen sowie endlose Legatobögen und dramatische Ausbrüchen zu einem großen Bogen zu einen. Edel timbriert sorgt Jennifer Holloway für das größte Hörvergnügen des Abends. Ihr „Oh hehrstes Wunder“ Herrlichste Maid“ bleibt lange im Gedächtnis haften"
Online Merker | Dr. Ingobert Waltenberger January, 2018
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"...Jennifer Holloway, with her uninterrupted, true young dramatic Soprano, pulls off the acrobatic stunt of combining lyrical intimacy and silver shimmering highs as well as endless legato lines and dramatic outbursts into one big arc. With elegant timbres, Jennifer Holloway ensures the greatest listening pleasure of the evening. Her "Oh hehrstes Wunder" is liable to remain in the memory for a long time.
Online Merker | Dr. Ingobert Waltenberger January, 2018
Der Höhepunkt des Abends ist die US-Amerikanerin Jennifer Holloway als Sieglinde! Sie hat eine sehr starke, dichte, intensive und cremige Stimme. Sie ist in jedem Moment und mit gewaltiger Ausdauer und langem Atem souverän im Gesang, sowohl in den Tiefen als auch in den herrlich schön strahlenden Höhen. Auch ihre Textverständlichkeit ist ganz hervorragend.
Ihr „Oh hehrstes Wunder! Herrlichste Maid!“ im dritten Akt berührt zutiefst und begeistert mit massiger Schönheit. Das ist nicht nur die Sternstunde des Abends, sondern sicher einer der Höhepunkte der Hamburger Opern-Saison. Allein dafür hat sich der Besuch dieser Walküre schon gelohnt.
Man mag es gar nicht glauben, aber diese Vorstellungen in Hamburg sind Jennifer Holloways Debüt in dieser Rolle. Und noch mehr als das. Es ist ihre erste gespielte Wagner-Rolle überhaupt. Frau Holloway ist eine Entdeckung und wird Wagner-Freunden noch viel Freude machen!
Die Elsa in Lohengrin, die Eva in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg und die Senta in Der fliegende Holländer hat diese wunderbare Sängerin im Repertoire. Es ist sicher nur eine Frage der Zeit, bis die Musikwelt Frau Holloway auch in diesen Rollen wird erleben dürfen.
Klassik Begeistert | Andreas Schmidt | Jan 2018
The highlight of the evening is the American Jennifer Holloway as Sieglinde! She has a very strong, dense, intense and creamy voice. She is sovereign in singing in every moment and with tremendous perseverance and long breath, both in the depths and in the wonderfully beautiful shining highs. Her text intelligibility is also excellent.
Your “Oh dearest miracle! Most glorious maiden! ”In the third act touches deeply and delights with massive beauty. This is not only the great moment of the evening, but certainly one of the highlights of the Hamburg opera season. For this alone, the visit of this Valkyrie was worth it.
You might not believe it, but these performances in Hamburg are Jennifer Holloway's debut in this role. And even more than that. It is her first ever played Wagner role. Ms. Holloway is a discovery and will give Wagner friends a lot of joy!
Elsa in Lohengrin, Eva in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Senta in The Flying Dutchman has this wonderful singer in her repertoire. It is surely only a matter of time before the music world will see Ms. Holloway in these roles as well.
Klassik Begeistert | Andreas Schmidt | Jan 2018
Jennifer Holloways zarte Erscheinung passt zu der devoten Schicksalsergebenen Sieglinde. Doch auch ihr gelingt die Entwicklung zur starken, liebenden Frau, die bereit ist, erst für den Geliebten, dann für den ungeborenen Sohn Siegfried alles auf sich zu nehmen. Stimmlich berührte sie mit wandelbaren Sopran und einem großen Tonregister. So gehören zu ihren Rollen, der Oktavian im „Rosenkavalier“, genauso wie die Musetta. Ihre Sieglinde ist zart und kraftvoll zugleich und allein ihr: „O hehrstes Wunder! Herrlichste Maid!“ verursachte Gänsehaut. Auch umgab sie schon als schüchterne Ehefrau ein Strahlen, das von großer Bühnenpersönlichkeit zeugt.
Das Opern Magazin | Detlef Obens | Nov 2018
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Jennifer Holloway's delicate appearance suits the submissive fate-devoted Sieglinde. But she too succeeds in developing into a strong, loving woman who is ready to take everything on herself : first for her lover and then for the unborn son Siegfried. Vocally, she touched with a flexible soprano and a wide range... Her Sieglinde is tender and powerful at the same time and her: “Oh hehrstes Wunder, herrlichte Maid! ”Caused goose bumps. Even as a shy wife, she was surrounded by a radiance that testifies to a great stage personality.
Das Opern Magazin | Detlef Obens | Nov 2018
Jennifer Holloway, die ihr Debüt in der Titelpartie feierte, macht sich in dieser Salome-Interpretation hervorragend, zumal es ihr nicht nur gelingt, eine kindliche Erscheinung abzugeben, sondern auch einen zarten und immer schönen Stimmklang zu bewahren. Dennoch hat sie dabei ausreichend Kraft und Dramatik, um diese schwierige Partie zu bewältigen.
Klassik.com | Theo Hoflich | Sept 2016
Jennifer Holloway, who celebrated her debut in the title role, does an excellent job in this interpretation of Salome, especially since she not only manages to look childish, but also to maintain a delicate and always beautiful voice. Nevertheless, she has enough strength and drama to cope with this difficult role.
Klassik.com | Theo Hoflich | Sept 2016
Jennifer Holloway gibt ein fulminantes Rollen- und Hausdebüt, sowohl sängerisch als auch schauspielerisch. Mit ihrer unverbrauchten Stimme und ihrem mädchenhaften Spiel verleiht sie der Salome eine besondere Aura. Sie wechselt problemlos die Register, spielt mit der Stimme, und ist auch in den dramatischen Höhen leuchtend klar.
Operrnetz | Andreas H. Hölscher | Sept 2016
Jennifer Holloway makes a brilliant role and house debut, both as a singer and as an actor. With her fresh voice and her girlish acting, she gives Salome a special aura. She easily changes registers, plays with her voice, and is brilliantly clear even in the dramatic highs.
Operrnetz | Andreas H. Hölscher | Sept 2016
Jennifer Holloway deutlich aus einem durchschnittlich guten Ensemble heraus, weil sie ihre Cassandre dunkel strahlend leuchten lässt und selbst in Ausbrüchen tiefster Verzweiflung klar in Fokus und Linienführung bleibt.
Die Deutsche Bühne | Detlef Brandenburg |
October, 2017
Jennifer Holloway clearly stands out... she lets her Cassandre shine darkly and remains clear in focus and lines even in outbursts of deepest despair.
Die Deutsche Bühne | Detlef Brandenburg |
October, 2017
Jennifer Holloway gelang als Grete eine beeindruckend eindringliche Charaktergestaltung. Sie blieb stets glaubwürdig und überzeugte sowohl als junge, naive Frau, aber auch als selbstbewusste Kurtisane. Sie zeichnet das Porträt einer jungen Frau, die, gefangen in männlicher Doppelmoral, auszubrechen versucht, aus den Zwängen und Ängsten des patriarchalen Mikrokosmos’ einer Kleinstadt. Ihre schillernde Stimme mit präzisen Höhen war den enormen Anforderungen der Rolle souverän gewachsen.
Bachtrack | Alexandra Richter | April, 2019
As Grete, Jennifer Holloway created an impressively haunting character. She always remained credible and convinced both as a young, naive woman, but also as a self-confident courtesan. It draws the portrait of a young woman who, trapped in male double standards, tries to break out of the constraints and fears of the patriarchal microcosm of a small town. Her dazzling voice with precise highs rose masterfully to the enormous demands of the role.
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Bachtrack | Alexandra Richter | April, 2019
Signalons d’abord une remarquable nouvelle recrue, la stupéfiante Jennifer Holloway, qui arrive à faire accepter le personnage difficile de la folle, par l’intensité avec laquelle elle s’investit dans son chant. Souhaitons que la mezzo américaine ne laisse pas sa voix dans sa transformation en soprano (elle chante désormais Salomé et Sieglinde), et qu’elle reste disponible pour servir le répertoire français.
Forum Opera | Laurent Bury | Oct 2018
Let us first mention a remarkable new recruit, the astounding Jennifer Holloway, who manages to make accept the difficult character of the madwoman, by the intensity with which she invests in her singing. Let us hope that the American mezzo does not leave its voice in its transformation into a soprano (she now sings Salomé and Sieglinde), and that she remains available to serve the French repertoire.
Forum Opera | Laurent Bury | Oct 2018
Her Salome was supercharged with acoustic power, kaleidoscopic vocal colors, spellbinding inflection, and a characterization that developed throughout the act. Holloway evolved from teenage tenderfoot to femme fatale, and finally arrived as an unhinged anti-hero.
Opera News | Stephanie Adrian | April, 2020