After performances with Wolf Trap Opera and the Opera Theater of St. Louis, Patricia Risley makes her Metropolitan Opera debut as Tebaldo in Verdišs Don Carlos this December. A member of Lyric Opera Center for American Artists since 1995, she has also appeared in over ten productions with Lyric Opera of Chicago, including Norma, Faust, Die Zauberflöte, Die Walküre, and The Ghosts of Versailles.

Bursting with enthusiasm over her upcoming Metropolitan Opera debut, Ms. Risley described her first rehearsal with Maestro James Levine as simply "awe-inspiring. The whole experience been so exciting. I was sitting in the house for a rehearsal of Manon and realized that very soon my voice would be filling this incredible hall." After her debut performance as Tebaldo, Ms. Risley will sing the role of Thisbe in the Metropolitan Opera production of La Cenerentola with mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli. She will then return to Chicago for several future engagements with Lyric Opera of Chicago. In addition to her work at Lyric Opera, the Met, Caramoor, Glimmerglass Opera, Music of the Baroque, and Maggio Musicale-Firenze, Ms. Risley has also made several symphonic and oratorio appearances, including performances of de Falla's Siete Canciones populares Españolas and Mahler's Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen.

With Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from Indiana University, Ms. Risley completed the Professional Studies Program at Mannes in 1995. "Mannes is a great school. As a student, you receive so much personal attention. It is so important for young singers to feel relaxed and to have the space and support to find their own technique. At a larger school, competition abounds. At Mannes, your colleagues are your friends and your support structure." Currently studying with her Mannes voice teacher Ruth Falcon, she added, " Anyone who has the opportunity to study with Ruth Falcon is lucky. With her instruction and my education at Mannes, I have felt fully prepared for my professional endeavors."

Citing Mannes alumna Frederica von Stade as her role model since high school, Ms. Risley is well on her way to following the footsteps of this great mezzo-soprano and fellow Mannes alumna.