(they/them)

Heralded as “an artist with extraordinary things to say” (The Globe and Mail) and “a force of nature” (Toronto Star), Nikkei Canadian settler Teiya Kasahara 笠原貞野 (they/he) is a transgender opera singer and interdisciplinary theater creator based in Tkarón:to (colonially known as Toronto, Canada). Teiya comes from a background of nearly 20 years of singing both traditional and contemporary operatic roles across Turtle Island and Europe including the Queen of the Night Die Zauberflöte, Cio-Cio San Madama Butterfly, and the soprano solos in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Verdi’s Requiem.

In their practice Teiya explores the intersections of identity through reimagining the operatic and classical music canon in works such as their iterative Butterfly Project, Little Mis(s)gender (in development with Queer AF Collective), and Dichterliebe: Whose Love?, among others. They have recently launched an autoethnographical multifaceted series entitled Project T with its first performance in New York (ChamberQUEER, June 2024) and will continue with public documentation, performances and recordings of their transition. Other vocal highlights include performing alongside two-time Polaris Prize and Juno award winner Jeremy Dutcher in albums Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa (2018) and Motewolonuwok (2023), and creating the role of Solana in the world premiere of Canada’s first lesbian opera When the Sun Comes Out (Queer Arts Festival, 2013). Later this season they will create the title role in Silence for its world premiere presented by Nuova Arts.

Visit www.teiyakasahara.com for more information.