Katherine Dobbs is an American mezzo-soprano from Grafton, Wisconsin, but originally hails from Houston, Texas. A recent graduate, Ms. Dobbs earned her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance at the DePauw School of Music along with two minors in German Studies and Italian Cultural Studies. At DePauw University She had the privilege to portray many dynamic characters, such as Orfeo in Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice, Miss Todd in Menotti's The Old Maid and the Thief, die Knusperhexe in Humperdinck's Hänsel und Gretel, Miss Marietta Shingle in A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, and Madame de la Haltière in Massenet's Cendrillon. While here at DePauw, despite being an undergraduate student, she was discovered in 2022 and hired as the cover for Miss Todd in Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief at Opera Project Columbus, where she had her first taste as a professional artist. 

 

Now pursuing a Master of Music in Vocal Performance at the highly prestigious Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, under the guidance of Dr. Robin Rice, Ms. Dobbs has so far performed as Mrs. Jones in Kurt Weill’s Street Scene and as Ottavia in Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea. Along with these main stage performances, she won 2nd place in the Houston Gilbert & Sullivan Society’s Career Grant Competition and was a feature performer in the artist lecture “Honor”, originally commissioned by MetLiveArts. The last four summers she has attended Dolora Zajick’s Institute for Young Dramatic Voices, and this past summer she performed as Ježibaba in Luke Housner’s Summer Workshop of Dvorak's Rusalka and attended the Lehrer Vocal Institute at the Music Academy of the West as a Studio Artist.​ This season she took the main stage again as Filipievna (Olga cover) in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, and later on she'll star as the title role of Lucretia in Britten's The Rape of Lucretia.

 

Ms. Dobbs has always had a passion for the stage. As a child, she participated in KidStage productions while being an active choral member in the Lawrence Community Girl Choir. She then began her classical training in middle school with private piano and music theory lessons with Erin Krebs at the age of 12, and built her solo repertoire through private voice lessons with Carol Jegen at the age of 13. While studying with Erin Krebs and Carol Jegen, Ms. Dobbs was involved in many musicals, plays, and eventually three choirs during her time attending Appleton West High School, including Dr. Meidl's Badger State Girl Choir. During this time, she also attended the Renaissance School for the Arts, where she regularly took classes in acting, directing, stage presence, ballroom dance, stage combat, and improvisation for four years.​

 

Once entering DePauw University, she studied voice under the combined guidance of Caroline Smith and Dr. Kerry Jennings. During this time, she also was regularly coached and accompanied by Amanda Hopson. Here she developed a passion for languages, resulting in a minor in German Studies, followed by a minor in Italian Cultural Studies. Besides her focus on music, she academically challenged herself daily and was on the Dean's List every semester.

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While Ms. Dobbs has lived most of her life in Wisconsin since the age of 6, she was originally born here in Houston, Texas. Knowing this, she is thrilled to be back in her hometown of Houston for her continued higher education.

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