Laura Santamaria (she/her) is a Colombian-American soprano from West Palm Beach, FL. She is a recent recipient of the Richard Gaddes Career Award from Opera Theatre of Saint Louis—for the second consecutive year—and was named a 2024 Florida District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. In 2025, she was also a semifinalist in the James Toland Vocal Arts Competition.

 

That same year, Laura returned to Opera Theatre of Saint Louis as a Gerdine Young Artist, where she performed the role of Peaseblossom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and covered Norina in Don Pasquale. She also sang in the choruses of Die Fledermaus and Don Pasquale, and performed scenes from Rigoletto, Falstaff, and Carmen. In the previous season, she covered Musetta in La Bohème and Berta in The Barber of Seville. She also participated in the company’s Opera on the Go initiative, singing the role of Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance for more than 20 schools.

 

In April, she made her role debut as Fiordiligi in the Boston Conservatory’s production of Così fan tutte. In August, she joined the prestigious Ravinia Steans Music Institute as a fellow, where she appeared in Schubert on the Road, a curated recital led by Graham Johnson.

 

Laura is currently an Emerging Artist with Boston Lyric Opera, where she will sing in the choruses of Macbeth and The Daughter of the Regiment. In October, she will perform the role of Marie in the company’s workshop and tour.

 

She recently earned her Master of Music in Opera Performance from Boston Conservatory, studying under Dr. Rebecca Folsom. A passionate advocate for her Latin American heritage, Laura enjoys performing art songs by composers such as Jaime León, María Grever, and Alberto Ginastera.