About
Hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as "the evening's biggest find," and praised by both the New York Times for "wielding a rich, substantial voice, along with a winning stage presence," and the Boston Globe for having a "voice full of alluringly dark colorings," Dana Beth Miller is rapidly establishing herself as one of the most promising and exciting dramatic mezzo-sopranos on the stage today. She has been engaged by the leading opera houses around the world including the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Deutsche Oper Berlin, San Francisco Opera, Washington National Opera, Grand Théâtre de Genève, Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Seattle Opera, Dallas Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, and Cincinnati Opera, among many others.
During the 2018-2019 season, Ms. Miller makes her debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra as La Badessa in Suor Angelica under the baton of Andris Nelsons. She then joins the Metropolitan Opera for their acclaimed Ring Cycle production in Die Walküre to cover the role of Grimgerde, returns to Boston Lyric Opera as Offred’s Mother in The Handmaid’s Tale , and finishes the season with her debut at the Tanglewood Festival as Grimgerde in Die Walküre with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Miller opened her 2017-2018 season as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana with New Orleans Opera. She then made her debut in the United Kingdom with English National Opera as Amneris in a new production of Aïda at the London Coliseum. Her season continued with Erda in Das Rheingold at Arizona Opera, the mezzo-soprano soloist in the Verdi Requiem with the Oregon Symphony, and Dame Quickly in Falstaff with Opera Colorado.
Ms. Miller began her 2016-2017 season with the National Taiwan Symphony as the contralto soloist in Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde. She then made a critically acclaimed debut with Washington Concert Opera, in Washington, DC, in the title role of Massenet's Hérodiade. Other engagements during the season included Amneris in Aïda at Pensacola Opera, Margret in the David McVicar production of Wozzeck for her return to the Grand Théâtre de Genève, the mezzo-soprano soloist in the Verdi Requiem with the Český Krumlov International Music Festival in the Czech Republic, and Ulrica in Un Ballo in Maschera for her return to Florida Grand Opera.
She opened her 2015-2016 season at the Grand Théâtre de Genève as Anna in Les Troyens with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under Charles Dutoit and as Hippolyta in a new production of Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream. She then joined Florida Grand Opera as Adalgisa in Norma, the Tucson Symphony Orchestra as the alto soloist in Handel's Messiah, Tulsa Opera as Dalila in Samson et Dalila, and both Arizona Opera and the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe as Dame Quickly in new productions of Falstaff. In addition, she returned to Deutsche Oper Berlin for Mrs. Sedley in Peter Grimes and Azucena in Il Trovatore.
Ms. Miller opened her 2014-2015 season with the German premiere of Hans Krasa's Die Verlobung im Traum at Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe in the role of Marja Alexandrowna. She returned to Deutsche Oper Berlin as a guest artist in a reprise of her acclaimed Dame Quickly in the Christoph Loy production of Falstaff, Annina in Der Rosenkavalier, Sonyetka in a new production of Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Erste Magd in Elektra, and Princess Clarissa in L'amour des Trois Oranges. Additionally in the United States, Ms. Miller joined Washington National Opera for Mary in Der Fliegende Holländer and made her role debut as Azucena in Il Trovatore with Knoxville Opera.
From 2012 -2014, Ms. Miller was a principal soloist and member of the prestigious ensemble at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Highlights included her first Erda in two complete Ring Cycles with both Sir Simon Rattle and Donald Runnicles, Dame Quickly in a new Falstaff directed by Christoph Loy, La Cieca in La Gioconda, Mrs. Sedley in David Alden's Peter Grimes from English National Opera, and Ulrica in Un Ballo in Maschera. Additional engagements during those two seasons included a return to Opera Colorado for Maddalena in Rigoletto, the alto soloist in Mahler’s Third Symphony with the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, Mary in Der Fliegende Holländer for her debut with both the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and the Princeton Festival, and Amneris in Aïda with Tulsa Opera.
The 2011-2012 season saw her as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana with Edmonton Opera, Dame Quickly in Falstaff with Deutsche Oper Berlin for her European operatic debut, Maddalena in Rigoletto with Florida Grand Opera, and Amneris in Aïda for Arizona Opera.
Highlights of earlier seasons include her first Carmen at Boston Lyric Opera, the Foreign Princess in Rusalka at Opera Colorado, Margared in Lalo's rarely performed opera, Le roi d'Ys, with the American Symphony Orchestra at Avery Fisher Hall, Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana with Pensacola Opera, Dulcinee in Massenet's Don Quichotte, with Tulsa Opera, Maddalena in Rigoletto with San Antonio Opera, the mezzo-soprano soloist in the Verdi Requiem with the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra and Oratorio Chorus, both the Mother and Witch in Hansel and Gretel with Cleveland Opera and Tulsa Opera, the mezzo-soprano soloist in Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and Austin Symphony, Mère Marie in Poulenc's Dialogues des Carmélites with Austin Lyric Opera, and the mezzo-soprano soloist in Stravinsky's Les Noces with the New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center.
Ms. Miller won first place in both the 2006 Classical Singer National Vocal Competition and the 2004 Jensen Foundation Voice Competition, was awarded second prize and the Leonie Rysanek Award at the 2006 Elardo International Opera Competition, took third place in the 2003 Opera Index Career Grant Competition, the 2003 Loren L. Zachary National Vocal Competition and the 2004 Eleanor Lieber Awards at Portland Opera, and was a finalist in the 2005 and 2006 Richard Tucker Career Grant Competition. She has also won first place in the National Opera Association Competition, received Career Development Grants from both the Dallas Opera and the San Francisco Opera’s Merola Program, and has won several district and regional awards in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. Ms. Miller holds a bachelor's degree in Vocal Performance from the University of North Texas College of Music. She continued her education with Master of Music studies at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and post-graduate work at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia.