Sophie KIDWELL

British mezzo-soprano Sophie Kidwell is praised in the German, Austrian and Swiss press for her “voluminous, velvety-smooth and elegant voice” (Opera Gazet), which makes audiences “sit up and take notice” (Das Opernmazagin), and is hailed as “a name opera fans should remember” (Badische Neuste Nachrichten). Sophie Kidwell is the winner of the 2024 Young Welsh Singer of the Year competition and a prize winner of the 43rd International Hans Gabor Belvedere Singing Competition 2025, where she was offered a two-year soloist contract at Stadttheater Bühnen Bern. In the upcoming 26/27 season, Sophie will make her role debuts there in the Swiss capital as Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni, Mozart), Amastre (Xerxes, Handel) and Lola (Cavalleria Rusticana, Mascagni), as well as reprising the role of Flora (La Traviata, Verdi), and singing the world premiere of Ophelias Flügel in the role of Ophelia IV by Sarah Nemtsov.

In February 2026, Sophie made her "striking" (Opernwelt Magazine) role debut as Olga (Eugene Onegin, Tchaikovsky) at Theater Aachen, and looks forward to returning to sing Maddalena (Rigoletto, Verdi) at Opéra de Lausanne in June this year, having made her “extremely attractive, erotic” (Opera Gazet) debut in the role at Theater Basel in 2023. Sophie Kidwell went on to gain great stage experience at Theater Basel, as a member of the International Opera Studio OperAvenir from 2023-25, including her first full Ring Cycle as Flosshilde (Das Rheingold and Götterdämmerung) and Grimgerde (Die Walküre, Wagner), conducted by Jonathan Nott and staged by Benedikt von Peter. In her second year at Theater Basel, Sophie Kidwell jumped in last-minute for the title role of Carmen (Carmen, Bizet) and subsequently sang it with the Basel Symphony Orchestra until the end of the season.

Carmen has somewhat become a signature role of Sophie's, having sung 26 performances to date. She began her professional career as Carmen at the Schlossfestspiele Ettlingen, Germany in 2022. This was immediately followed by the title role in the Austrian premiere of La Tragédie de Carmen with the Bruckner Orchestra at Landestheater Linz. In Linz, Sophie also appeared in further productions, including Wanda in the children’s opera Wanda Walfisch (Anna Wenzel) and Hänsel (Hänsel und Gretel, Humperdinck).
Sophie’s concert career has taken her to renowned venues across Europe including the Royal Festival Hall and the Royal Albert Hall. Most recently, she performed the Alto solos in Romeo Castellucci's internationally revered staging of the Mozart Requiem with the Basel Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Ivor Bolton CBE, and Dvořák’s Stabat Mater with the Bern Symphony Orchestra. She looks forward to singing her first Elgar Music Makers at the Basel Stadtcasino in June 2026.