Sophie Harmsen

Sophie Harmsen (?-) is a Canadian-born opera singer.

Biography

Born in Canada and raised in South Africa.

In 2007 she moved to Germany, where she studied with Prof. Dr. Edith Wiens. In 2008 Sophie was a laureate of the International Robert Schumann Competition in Zwickau. She lives in Berlin with her family.

Training

Sophie Harmsen studied at the University of Cape Town, trained with Prof. Dr. Edith Wiens, and has been mentored by Tobias Truniger for many years.

Career

Her repertoire includes performing Annio (Mozart, La Clemenza di Tito) at the Teatro Real Madrid, Dorabella (Mozart, Cosi fan tutte) at the Opéra de Dijon and the Opéra de Luxembourg, Stephano (Gounod, Romeo et Juliette) at the Tiroler Landestheater in Innsbruck, Argene (Myslivecek, L’Olimpiade) at the opera houses Prague, Caen and Theater an der Wien to now singing repertoire by Richard Strauss (Octavian, Der Rosenkavalier). In her work with renowned directors such as Robert Wilson, Ursel and Karl-Ernst Herrmann, William Kentridge and Andreas Dresen she was able to hone her already convincing and much praised acting skills.

Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance

She worked for Cape Town Opera playing roles including Hermia (Britten, A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Graf Orlowsky (Strauss, Die Fledermaus), Mercedes (Bizet, Carmen) and Cherubino (Mozart, Le nozze di Figaro).