Baritone Evan Bravos, marked as a “young talent to watch” by the Chicago Tribune, has received critical acclaim for his “lovely lyric baritone” (Opera News) in artful interpretations of opera, oratorio and art song repertoire. Mr. Bravos’ 2022-23 season opened with a solo appearance in Carmina Burana with the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra, followed by the role of Nathan/Father in White Snake Projects’ newly minted annual holiday series, “Let’s Celebrate.” Bravos will cover the Vicar in Albert Herring and perform the role of Kenny Kincaid in The Cook-Off with Chicago Opera Theater. He also makes his debut appearance with Opera Tampa as Silvio in I Pagliacci.

Recent performances by the Greek-American baritone have included the roles of Cascada in The Merry Widow with New Philharmonic Opera; Manfred Lewin in the Chicago premiere of Jake Heggie’s Two Remain with Chicago Fringe Opera; and Hannah Before in Laura Kaminsky’s As One with Opera Santa Barbara. He also “sang winningly” (Opera News) as Clay in the world premiere of Matthew Reccio and Royce Vavrek’s online opera The Puppy Episode with Chicago Opera Theatre, and created the role of Claudius in the world premiere and recording of Joseph Summer’s Hamlet in a collaboration between the State Opera Ruse, Parma Recordings and Boston’s Shakespeare Concert Series.

Of Bravos’ recent performance in the West Coast premiere of Jennifer Higdon’s Cold Mountain at the Music Academy of the West, Voice Magazine raved, “Stellar is not an exaggeration in describing the vocal cast for Cold Mountain. Baritone Evan Bravos’ performance in the lead role of Inman indicated his career is already moving forward and little wonder; he commands a powerful, rich voice and his acting chops are first-class.”

​Performances with Virginia Opera as George Jones in Kurt Weill’s Street Scene and as Masetto in Don Giovanni led Broadway World to proclaim, “If the future of opera sounds like Bravos, the art boasts a bright future indeed.” Bravos has also performed with companies like Opera Theatre of St. Louis, creating the roles of Pvt. Johnson and Sgt. Brown in the world premiere of Huang Rao’s An American Soldier and singing John Bagtry in Regina alongside mezzo-soprano Susan Graham; Sarasota Opera, covering Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Count Gil in Il Segreto di Susanna, and Gasparo in Rita; Opera on the James, performing Masetto in Don Giovanni; Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, singing the title role in Don Giovanni; and with San Diego Opera, Central City Opera and the Aspen Music Festival. In the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s “Lyric Unlimited” series, Bravos played Figaro in Il Barbiere di Siviglia and covered Enrique in the debut of the Mariachi opera El Pasado Nunca se Termina.

His additional roles have included Maximilian, Sea Captain and Grand Inquisitor in Bernstein’s Candide, Escamillo and El Dancaïro in Carmen, Harashta in The Cunning Little Vixen, Prison Guard 2 in Dead Man Walking, Herr Zeller in The Sound of Music, Martin in Candide, Fisherman in Peter Grimes, Sid in Albert Herring, Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus, and Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath, for which the Chicago Tribune praised Bravos’ “strong singing and acting.”

He has been a soloist in Mendelssohn’s Elijah (Milwaukee Symphony), Copland’s Old American Songs (Madison Symphony), Orff’s Carmina Burana (Chippewa Valley Symphony), Handel’s Messiah (Santa Fe Symphony) and in the Fauré Requiem on tour with the Colorado Symphony Chorus in Paris, Strasbourg and Munich. An avid recitalist, Bravos was a 2018 Vocal Fellow at Ravinia Festival’s Steans Music Institute and has been featured in art song initiatives at the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago and the Horto Music Festival in Pelion, Greece. He has also performed Patrice Michaels’ Notorious RBG in Song on several occasions.

Bravos received an Encouragement Award in the 2014 Metropolitan National Council auditions, was a finalist in the National Opera Association Dominic Argento competition, a recipient of the Central City Opera Apprentice Artist Award and a winner of the Pasadena Opera Guild competition. A native of St. Charles, IL, he studied at Lawrence University Conservatory (B.M.) and Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music (M.M.), where he is working toward his Doctorate in Musical Arts.