Elizabeth Medeiros Hogue, a rare dramatic coloratura, is currently setting the stage on fire with her menacing portrayal of The Queen of the Night in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. A Portuguese-American, originally from San Jose, California, Elizabeth has been critically acclaimed in Nevada Opera, Virginia Opera, and Todi Music Fest productions of The Magic Flute, Lucia di Lammermoor, and Andrea Chenier. Her rare gifts have allowed her to also cover diverse roles such as Hanna Glawari in The Merry Widow, Rosalinda in Die Fledermaus, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, Amelia in A Masked Ball, Violetta in La Traviata and the title roles of Tosca and Lucia. Elizabeth’s acting and singing abilities have also been utilized in numerous musical theatre and Gilbert and Sullivan roles such as Maria in West Side Story and Josephine in H.M.S. Pinafore. She has worked with conductors such as, Michael Borowitz, Walter Attanasi, Peter Mark, Dan Saunders, and Toshiyuki Shimada and stage directors, Guy Montavon, William Shomos, Dorothy Danner, William Theisen, Lillian Groag, Bernard Uzan, and Dona D. Vaughn. Elizabeth studied music at the New England Conservatory of Music and theatre at San Jose State University. She completed the Young Artists' Apprentice Program at the Portland Opera Repertory Theatre in Maine. Elizabeth is the recipient of the Lillian Nordica Scholarship award, the N.A.T.S. First Place Award from both the Boston and Maine chapters and was a Finalist for the Center of Contemporary Opera International Vocal Competition. Elizabeth was also a finalist for the Lyric Opera of Chicago's Center for American Artists program in 2002. Some upcoming highlights include the role of the Soprano in Tom Johnson’s Four Note Opera in Norfolk, Virginia, the soprano soloist in Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater for the Todi Music Fest in Portsmouth, Virginia and her international debut concert in Ontario, Canada in November 2006.

PERSONAL: Elizabeth was born in San Jose, CA. Her father, Aires S. Medeiros was born in Faial, Açores and her mother, Barbara Simmons Medeiros was born in New Bedford, Mass. of Portuguese descent. Elizabeth has two siblings, a sister and a brother. Her brother, Aires-Joseph, is a drummer and has played for various New England-based dance bands. Elizabeth is married to David Hogue and has a son, Joshua.

Elizabeth grew up with music in her household. Her father, Aires, was part of a Portuguese guitarra group with his three older brothers, Alvarino, Egidio, and Leonel. His sister, Fatima Silva, and Elizabeth's mother, Barbara, would sing the fado and cantigas popular with them at various Portuguese functions and festivals. Elizabeth decided to pursue music in her teens. She was a member of the San Jose Children's Musical Theatre where she gained experience in theatre. She also played the clarinet and was a member of the San Jose Portuguese Marching Band for several years. Elizabeth was accepted to pursue a degree in Vocal Performance at the New England Conservatory of Music. However, after a year, she decided that she could pursue both music and theatre at her hometown of San Jose in a more liberal arts setting. This decision ended up having Elizabeth change her career path to Drama and she received her Bachelor's Degree in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Drama. She graduated "with distinction." Elizabeth also received a masters degree in Library Science, thinking she could have a "real" job while pursuing a theatrical career.