Bio

Lucila Zavala is a 24-year-old Puerto Rican soprano currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Music at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, where she studies under the tutelage of Ana María Martínez and Bethany Self. In 2023, she was named a National Semifinalist in the Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition of the Metropolitan Opera, and since then, she has been award of the Education Fund Grant Recipient from the Metropolitan Opera House.

This season, Zavala will cover the role of Morgana in the opera "Alcina" and will be part of the cast as Gossip in "The Ghost of Versailles." She was also a cover as Lucia in "The Rape of Lucretia" last season at Rice. In May 2023, she attended the Young Artist Vocal Academy at the Houston Grand Opera, working directly with Dr. Stephen King. Most recently, she participated in the Seagle Festival during the summer of 2023 as a Nancy Smith Fellow, where she made her debut in the role of Juliette in their production of Gounod's "Romèo et Juliette," as well as Sor Isabel in Crozier's "With Blood, With Ink" as an Emerging Artist.

During the 2022-2023 academic year, Zavala was a fellow of the Olga Iglesias, a project dedicated to supporting emerging singers in their professional development, as well as educating school communities through educational recitals about music, classical vocal genres, styles, and their history in Puerto Rico. This project utilizes resources from the historical collection of OIP and educational material from the Metropolitan Opera’s Educational Program, thanks to a collaborative agreement.