Mezzo-Soprano Samantha Hankey Announces 2025-2026 Season Highlights

House & Role Debut at the Staatsoper Berlin, Debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra

Cal Performances Debut with Pianist Myra Huang

Performances with Wiener Staatsoper in Tokyo, Monte Carlo, and Vienna

Return to the Glyndebourne Festival

“dusky focus and hypnotic allure” – The Times (London)

“She is emerging as a major artist of her generation.” – The New York Times

www.samanthahankey.com

New York, NY (July 10, 2025) – Lauded for her “elegance and youthful tone” (Financial Times) and “a complete dramatic presence with a voice as lustrous as it is molten” (Opera Magazine), mezzo-soprano Samantha Hankey announces her 2025-2026 season, featuring an international slate of operatic roles and recitals.

Among the highlights of her upcoming season, Hankey makes her house and role debuts with Staatsoper Berlin, performing as La muse/Nicklausse in Les Contes d'Hoffmann, and her concert debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, performing as Erika in a concert version of Vanessa. She appears in four productions with Wiener Staatsoper, beginning her season on tour with the company in Tokyo, Japan for performances as Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier. In three additional productions with the company, she performs as Dorabella in Così fan tutte in Monte Carlo, as Der Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos in Vienna, and again as Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier, also in Vienna. She reprises the role of Der Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos at the Glyndebourne Festival to close her opera season. In concert, she appears at Carnegie Hall with the Oratorio Society of New York, and in two recital performances with pianist Myra Huang: with Art Song Chicago and in her Cal Performances debut in Berkeley, California.

In her first engagement of the season, Hankey appears with Wiener Staatsoper at Tokyo Bunka Kaikan (Metropolitan Festival Hall) in Tokyo, Japan for four performances as Octavian in director Otto Schenk’s production of Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, taking the stage on October 20, 22, and 24, 2025 at 3:00pm, and October 26, 2025 at 2:00pm. The production is conducted by Philippe Jordan.

She returns to the United States for a string of engagements through the fall and winter, appearing first at Carnegie Hall with the Oratorio Society of New York for a performance of Mozart’s Mass in C minor and John Corigliano’s Fern Hill on November 10, 2025 at 7:00pm. She performs next with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, where she sings the role of Erika in a concert version of Barber’s Vanessa on January 8, 2026 at 7:30pm and January 10, 2026 at 8:00pm. Co-presented by the Boston Lyric Opera and conducted by Andris Nelsons, this powerful Pulitzer Prize–winning work will be performed as a centerpiece of the BSO’s E Pluribus Unum: From Many, One theme. On January 18, 2026 at 3:00pm, Hankey performs the first of two appearances with pianist Myra Huang this season at Cal Performances at the University of California, Berkeley. The program features Schumann’s Dichterliebe, paired with a selection of songs by Porter, Poulenc, Satie, Schoenberg, Trenet, and Weill. In her final scheduled U.S. performance of the season, Hankey appears again with Huang for a recital with Art Song Chicago at the city’s Roosevelt University on January 25, 2026 at 7:00pm, performing a program including Dichterliebe, Francis Poulenc’s 3 Songs by Lorca, and an array of cabaret songs.

Performing in Europe for the remainder of her 2025-2026 schedule, Hankey appears in two successive productions with the Wiener Staatsoper, first at Opéra de Monte-Carlo as Dorabella in a one-night, semi-staged performance of Mozart’s Così fan tutte, conducted by Louis Langrée on February 9, 2026 at 7:00pm. She then appears with the Wiener Staatsoper in Vienna, singing the role of Der Komponist in Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos on February 19, 22, and 25, 2026. She goes on to sing the role of La Muse/Nicklausse in the Staatsoper Berlin production of Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann, with performances on March 5, 2026 at 7:00pm; March 8, 2026 at 6:00pm; March 12, 14, and 20, 2026 at 7:00pm; and March 22, 2026 at 6:00pm. She then returns to the Wiener Staatsoper to reprise her role as Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier, again in Vienna. Performances will be held May 9, 12, 15, and 18, 2026.

Hankey concludes her 2025-2026 season with a return to the Glyndebourne Festival in Lewes, UK, where she sings the role of Der Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos from July 19 to August 29, 2026.

Samantha Hankey 2025-2026 Season Calendar

Monday, October 20 – Sunday, October 26, 2025
Wiener Staatsoper Presents Der Rosenkavalier
Tokyo Bunka Kaikan | Tokyo, Japan
Link: www.nbs.or.jp/english/news/details-wiener-staatsoper-2025-japan-tour-october-2025.html#:~:text=We are pleased to announce,Rosenkavalier at Tokyo Bunka Kaikan

Monday, November 10, 2025
Oratorio Society of New York Presents Mozart’s Mass in C minor and John Corigliano’s Fern Hill
Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium | New York, NY
Link: www.carnegiehall.org/calendar/2025/11/10/oratorio-society-of-new-york-0800pm

Thursday, January 8 and Saturday, January 10, 2026 
Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Lyric Opera Present Vanessa
Symphony Hall | Boston, MA
Link: www.bso.org/events/jan-8-10-barber-vanessa?performance=2026-01-10-20:00 

Sunday, January 18, 2026 
Cal Performances Presents Samantha Hankey and Pianist Myra Huang
Hertz Hall, University of California | Berkeley, CA
Link: calperformances.org/events/2025-26/recital/samantha-hankey-mezzo-soprano-myra-huang-piano/

Sunday, January 25, 2026 
Art Song Chicago Presents Samantha Hankey and Pianist Myra Huang
Ganz Hall, Roosevelt University | Chicago, IL
Link: www.artsongchicago.org/winter-lieder-lounge

Monday, February 9, 2026
Wiener Staatsoper Presents Così fan tutte
Opera de Monte-Carlo | Monte Carlo
Link: www.opera.mc/en/seasons/25-26/cosi-fan-tutte

Thursday, February 19 – Wednesday, February 25, 2026 
Wiener Staatsoper Presents Ariadne auf Naxos
Wiener Staatsoper | Vienna, Austria
Link: www.wiener-staatsoper.at/en/calendar/detail/ariadne-aufnaxos/ 

Thursday, March 5 – Monday, March 22, 2026 
Staatsoper Berlin Presents Les Contes d'Hoffmann
Staatsoper Berlin | Berlin, Germany
Link: www.staatsoper-berlin.de/en/veranstaltungen/les-contes-d-hoffmann.21881/#event-123568 

Saturday, May 9 – Thursday, May 18, 2026
Wiener Staatsoper Presents Der Rosenkavalier
Wiener Staatsoper | Vienna, Austria
Link: www.wiener-staatsoper.at/kalender/detail/der-rosenkavalier/2026-05-12/#:~:text=Der Rosenkavalier - Oper am 12,Mai 2026 | Wiener Staatsoper

Sunday, July 19 – Saturday, August 29, 2026
Glyndebourne Festival Presents Ariadne auf Naxos
Glyndebourne Festival | Lewes, UK
Link: www.glyndebourne.com/festival/festival-2026-announcement/

More About Samantha Hankey
With “much elegance and youthful tone” (Financial Times), mezzo-soprano Samantha Hankey is increasingly lauded for her powerful stage presence and as “a complete dramatic presence with a voice as lustrous as it is molten” (Opera Magazine).

Highlights of Hankey’s 2025-2026 season include house debuts with Staatsoper Berlin, where she sings the role of La muse/Nicklausse in Offenbach’s Les Contes d'Hoffmann, and with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, performing as Erika in Barber’s Vanessa. She appears in four productions with Wiener Staatsoper, performing as Octavian in Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, Dorabella in Mozart’s Così fan tutte, and Der Komponist in Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos in Vienna. She reprises the role of Der Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos at Glyndebourne Festival to close her opera season. In recital, she appears at Carnegie Hall with the Oratorio Society of New York, and in two performances with pianist Myra Huang: with the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago and in her Cal Performances debut in Berkeley, California.

Recent seasons saw Hankey make her debuts with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Ravinia Festival in Mozart's Idomeneo, at New National Theatre Tokyo in the title role of Carmen, at London's Royal Opera House as Dorabella in Così fan tutte; at Detroit Opera as the Fox in Leoš Janácek’s The Cunning Little Vixen; and in a role debut as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana at Lyric Opera of Kansas City. She returned to Opernhaus Zürich for Così fan tutte; performed as a featured soloist in Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, and appeared in recital at Antwerp LiedFest. She also sang Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier at The Metropolitan Opera, made her role and house debuts as Mélisande in Pelléas et Mélisande in Netia Jones’ production at Santa Fe Opera, performed as Federico García Lorca in Golijov’s Ainadamar at Scottish Opera, and made her house debut as Hänsel in Hänsel und Gretel at Lyric Opera of Chicago.

From 2019-2021, Hankey held a Fest contract at the Bayerische Staatsoper, where she made notable appearances in leading roles. During the same period, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Pantalis in Mefistofele and returned for a myriad of named roles. Her major house debuts also include Opernhaus Zürich, Den Norske Opera, The Dallas Opera, and Grand Théâtre de Genève. 

On the concert stage, she has performed at the Bard Festival, Carnegie Hall, the title role in Handel’s Agrippina in concert with Il Pomo d’Oro in Finland, in solo recital at Wigmore Hall, New York City at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Hankey co-developed the lead roles in David Herzberg’s The Rose Elf and The Wake World, both of which received considerable praise, premieres, and CD recordings. She has also premiered new works with Opera Philadelphia and The Metropolitan Opera. 

Hankey’s career includes numerous awards in national and international competitions. In 2018, she won both First Prize and the Media Prize at the inaugural Glyndebourne Cup, multiple prizes at the Operalia Competition, and a Grants from the Richard Tucker Music Foundation. She was a 2017 Grand Finals Winner by the Metropolitan Opera National Council, took First Prize in the Dallas Opera Guild Vocal Competition, and received a Leonore Annenberg Arts Fellowship in the foundation’s final year.

Hankey is a graduate of The Juilliard School, where she received both her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees. A native of Massachusetts, she embraced her passion for music from an early age and pursued pre-college vocal training at the Longy School of Music and the New England Conservatory. Learn more at www.samanthahankey.com.

*Photo Credit: Daniel Welch

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