About

Tenor Brenton Ryan is hailed by Opera News for his “remarkable tonal suavity and refined phrasing,” and is widely recognized at internationally acclaimed opera houses and orchestras as a singer of great vocal diversity and dramatic depth. The 2025–2026 season sees his return to the role of Loge in a new production of Das Rheingold marking his debut with the Osterfestspiel Salzburg, conducted by Kirill Petrenko. He will also perform the same role in concert with the Berlin Philharmoniker. Mr. Ryan also continues his longstanding relationship with the Bayerische Staatsoper singing Steuermann in Der Fliegende Holländer on tour in Shanghai, China, as well as Don Basilio in a concert performance of Le nozze di Figaro. He also returns to the Metropolitan Opera for his role debut as The Incredible in Andrea Chénier, conducted by Gianandrea Noseda.

The 2024–2025 season saw Mr. Ryan’s role debut as Peter Quint in Britten’s The Turn of the Screw, conducted by Gemma New as well as his role debut as Tony in Francesca Zambello’s production of West Side Story with Houston Grand Opera. He also returned to Bayerische Staatsoper for his role debuts as Der Schulmeister and Mücke in Barrie Kosky’s production of The Cunning Little Vixen, and to the Metropolitan Opera to reprise the roles of Eros in John Adams’ Antony and Cleopatra and as Basilio in Le nozze di Figaro. Additional engagements included returns to San Francisco Opera to sing Nick in Poul Ruders’ The Handmaid’s Tale as well as to Lyric Opera of Chicago as Basilio in Le nozze di Figaro.

Highlights of Mr. Ryan’s appearances at the Metropolitan Opera include his house debut as Pedrillo in Die Entführung aus dem Serail, conducted by James Levine in his final appearance as Music Director, and subsequent appearances as Missail and covering Shuisky in a new production of Boris Godunov, Monostatos in the new Simon McBurney staging of Die Zauberflöte, Tanzmeister in Ariadne auf Naxos, Spoletta in the new David McVicar production of Tosca, and Der Narr in the new William Kentridge production of Wozzeck.

Additional operatic highlights include multiple appearances with Bayerische Staatsoper including as Pedrillo in Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Missail in Boris Godunov, and Second Jew in Salome, Tanzmeister in Ariadne auf Naxos, Mime and cover Loge in Barrie Kosky’s new production of Das Rheingold and Monostatos in David McVicar’s production of Die Zauberflöte with Royal Opera Covent Garden, and his European debut as Pedrillo in a new production of Die Entführung aus dem Serail with Opéra de Monte-Carlo. 

He has sung the roles of Eros in the premiere of John Adams’ Antony and Cleopatra, Triquet in Eugene Onegin, and Chaplain in Dialogues de Carmélites, Novice in Billy Budd, and Don Curzio in Le nozze di Figaro with San Francisco Opera. He made his role debut as Loge in Das Rheingold with Dallas Opera, returned to Opera Theatre of Saint Louis singing Nero in Tim Albery’s production of The Coronation of Poppea, and returned to Opera Philadelphia to debut Lysander in the U.S. premiere of Robert Carsen’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. His Lyric Opera of Chicago debut was as Der Narr in Wozzeck conducted by Sir Andrew Davis and subsequent performances saw him as Monostatos in the Barrie Kosky production of Die Zauberflöte, and his house debut with San Francisco Opera as Janek in Oliver Tambosi’s production of The Makropulos Case. 

At LA Opera, Mr. Ryan has sung Pedrillo in the James Robinson production of Die Entführung aus dem Serail, John Wormley in concert performances of Matthew Aucoin’s Crossing, Gastone in La traviata alongside Placido Domingo, Monostatos in Die Zauberflöte, Spirit/Sailor in Dido and Aeneas, Léon in The Ghosts of Versailles, which received a 2017 Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording, and Beppe in Pagliacci conducted by Domingo. Mr. Ryan made his house debut with Opera Philadelphia as Monostatos in the Barrie Kosky production of Die Zauberflöte, his house debut with Santa Fe Opera singing the role of Dancing Master in Ariadne auf Naxos, and subsequent performances as Flute in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Don Basilio in Le nozze di Figaro, his house debut with Dallas Opera singing both Gastone in La traviata and Florian in Der Ring des Polykrates. He has also sung Henrik in A Little Night Music in his house debut with Houston Grand Opera.

Additional operatic engagements include debuts at Gran Teatro del Liceu in Barcelona as Eros in John Adams’ Antony and Cleopatra, and with the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in Valencia as Monostatos in Die Zauberflöte, as CM in the premiere of Gregory Spears’ The Righteous with Santa Fe Opera, his house debut with San Diego Opera as Gastone in La traviata, his house debut with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis singing the roles of Titorelli, Flogger, and Student in the US premiere of The Trial by Philip Glass, The Male Chorus in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, and Bardolfo in Verdi’s Falstaff as a Filene Young Artist at Wolf Trap Opera Company, Tony in West Side Story, and Léon in The Ghosts of Versailles at the Aspen Music Festival and School, Mosca in John Musto’s Volpone, Captain Macheath in The Beggar’s Opera, and the Prince in Susa’s Transformations.

Mr. Ryan’s concert appearances include American Symphony Orchestra to sing Schoenberg’s Gurre-Lieder at Carnegie Hall, the world premiere of Matt Aucoin and Peter Sellars’ Music for New Bodies with Dacamera in Houston, a semi-staged performance of Wozzeck, which received a 2018 Grammy for Best Opera Recording, and Ravel’s L’heure Espagnole, both with the Houston Symphony under Hans Graf, his Virginia Symphony Orchestra debut for Orff’s Carmina Burana, his Los Angeles Philharmonic debut in Beethoven's Choral Fantasy, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with both the Lexington Philharmonic and Rice University, Mozart’s Requiem with the Omaha Symphony, Elijah at DePaul University, and a semi-staged performance of Thomson’s The Mother of Us All singing the role of Jo the Loiterer with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by music director Ward Stare.

Mr. Ryan is a winner of the Birgit Nilsson prize at the 2016 Operalia competition, a graduate of Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, and also holds a Bachelor of Music degree from DePaul University. He is featured in the film In Our Nature, starring John Slattery, Zach Gilford, Gabrielle Union, and Jena Malone, singing a selection from Pagliacci.

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