Tenor HUGO VERA, recognized for the vocal richness and dramatic force associated with the lyrico-spinto repertoire, appeared on the Metropolitan Opera roster for seven seasons and has sung with many of the field’s most respected companies.  His repertoire encompasses more than fifty operatic roles and over sixty-five large choral-orchestral works.  A passionate champion of living composers and new music, he has helped bring significant contemporary works to life, including Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Grapes of Wrath, Craig Bohmler’s Riders of the Purple Sage, and Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate’s Loksi’ Shaali’ (the first opera composed entirely in a U.S. tribal language).  He is the 2025 winner of The American Prize in Opera and appears in the Emmy Award-winning documentary Riders of the Purple Sage: The Making of a Western Opera.

Also a distinguished pedagogue, opera director, conductor, and entrepreneurial arts leader, Vera's career embodies a rare fusion of artistic distinction, pedagogical depth, and institutional vision.  A teacher of unusual breadth and impact, he has mentored singers across undergraduate, graduate, pre-professional, and professional settings.  His pedagogy is shaped by a multistylistic vocal approach that unites rigorous classical training with stylistic versatility.  Vera's students have earned admission to Yale, USC, Indiana, Peabody, KU, and NYU, and have gone on to perform with the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Pittsburgh Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and Arizona Opera.

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Dr. Vera currently serves as Assistant Professor of Music, Director of Vocal Arts & Opera, and Coordinator/Department Head of Voice at California State University, Northridge.  His broader teaching and leadership career includes appointments at New York University, Presbyterian College, the University of Kansas, the Vocal Academy of Orvieto, and the Vocal Academy of Opera in Bodrum, Turkey.  Vera is the founder of Lawrence Opera Theatre.

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Reviews
"Tenor Hugo Vera in the title role [of Werther]': He's a real find...he revealed a truly impressive instrument — big, beautiful, ringing and Italianate.”     - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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“Among the large supporting cast, highlights were...  Hugo Vera's promising debut as comic sidekick Trin." [La Fanciulla del West, Metropolitan Opera]     - New York Post

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“[Vera] gave a winning portrayal of Cavaradossi. He sang with impressive consistency of tonal color throughout his range and had good power."     - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

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Personal Website

http://hugoveratenor.com/

Media
Compilation
https://youtu.be/kfe3peNQ4kU?si=q1AAlRCdt-9mNASb