Suzanna Guzmán is a two-time Emmy Award winner (2019 and 2021 for Live Special Event) and a four-time nominee. A celebrated mezzo-soprano and native of East Los Angeles, she is one of the original Associate Artists of Los Angeles Opera and was named a 2024 Hispanic Legend of LA Opera.
Ms. Guzmán has performed as a principal soloist with leading orchestras and opera houses around the world, including the Metropolitan Opera, Washington National Opera, Dallas Opera, Opéra de Genève, and San Diego Opera, among others. She made her professional debut with the Bilingual Foundation of the Arts in the musical Wanted: Experienced Operators, starring Carmen Zapata.
Internationally, she starred as the Art Banker in Michael Nyman’s Facing Goya, conducted by John Kennedy and directed by Ong Keng Sen. This multi-city production toured successfully and was featured at both the 2014 Spoleto Festival USA and the Singapore International Festival of Arts.
As a member of Yuval Sharon’s avant-garde opera company, The Industry, Ms. Guzmán appeared in several groundbreaking productions, including the critically acclaimed mobile opera Hopscotch, in which she portrayed “Lucha the Eldest,” with music by Mark Lowenstein. She also performed as Marcellina in Ragnar Kjartansson’s epic Bliss, a 12-hour performance of three magical minutes from Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, presented by the LA Philharmonic.
Renowned for her portrayal of the title role in Bizet’s Carmen—which TIME Magazine described as “a fire-breathing singing actress, devastatingly sexy”—she is also a passionate advocate for new music. She has created lead roles in operas by composers such as Jake Heggie, Nicholas Lell Benavides, Eric Whitacre, Daniel Catán, Gian Carlo Menotti, Ian Krouse, and Tobias Picker.
Her accolades include being a soloist on the Grammy-nominated 2006 recording Carlos Chávez: Volume III (Best Classical Recording), a Helen Hayes Award nomination for Best Actress, and national finalist honors in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. She is also a first-place winner in competitions sponsored by the San Francisco Opera and Opera Guild.
Equally accomplished in musical theatre, Ms. Guzmán is a long-time member of Actors' Equity Association and has performed with companies across the U.S., including Sacramento’s Music Circus, B Street Theatre, La Mirada CLO, Long Beach CLO, Woodminster Summer Stage, Pantages Theatre, Rubicon Theatre, and Bristol Riverside Theatre. In 2024, she was a company member of the Tuacahn Center for the Performing Arts, appearing as the Dowager Empress in Anastasia, Cora/Bulda in Disney’s Frozen, and the Judge in Jersey Boys.
A passionate advocate for arts education, she frequently tours with her one-woman show, Don’t Be Afraid; It’s Just Opera!, and is widely recognized for her mentorship of California students. Her honors include the 2012 Hispanic Scholarship Foundation’s “Mentor of the Year Award,” the Spirit of California Award from the Latino Legislative Caucus, the 2013 Mexican American Foundation Woman of the Year Award, and the 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Nederlander Organization.
Dr. Guzmán serves on the Board of Councilors at the USC Thornton School of Music and on the Board of Directors of the Neighborhood Music School Los Angeles. She holds an honorary Doctor of Music degree from Occidental College. For over two decades, she was a popular radio host on K-Mozart (Sunday Evening Opera, L.A. Opera Notes, LA Opera on Air, LA Opera Live) and later became the weekly television host of Open Call on PBS SoCal/KCET. Ms. Guzmán resides in Los Angeles and spends equal time in Washington Heights. Future Engagements include Abuela Claudia in In The Heights with Woodminster Summer Musicals
Ms. Guzmán has performed as a principal soloist with leading orchestras and opera houses around the world, including the Metropolitan Opera, Washington National Opera, Dallas Opera, Opéra de Genève, and San Diego Opera, among others. She made her professional debut with the Bilingual Foundation of the Arts in the musical Wanted: Experienced Operators, starring Carmen Zapata.
Internationally, she starred as the Art Banker in Michael Nyman’s Facing Goya, conducted by John Kennedy and directed by Ong Keng Sen. This multi-city production toured successfully and was featured at both the 2014 Spoleto Festival USA and the Singapore International Festival of Arts.
As a member of Yuval Sharon’s avant-garde opera company, The Industry, Ms. Guzmán appeared in several groundbreaking productions, including the critically acclaimed mobile opera Hopscotch, in which she portrayed “Lucha the Eldest,” with music by Mark Lowenstein. She also performed as Marcellina in Ragnar Kjartansson’s epic Bliss, a 12-hour performance of three magical minutes from Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, presented by the LA Philharmonic.
Renowned for her portrayal of the title role in Bizet’s Carmen—which TIME Magazine described as “a fire-breathing singing actress, devastatingly sexy”—she is also a passionate advocate for new music. She has created lead roles in operas by composers such as Jake Heggie, Nicholas Lell Benavides, Eric Whitacre, Daniel Catán, Gian Carlo Menotti, Ian Krouse, and Tobias Picker.
Her accolades include being a soloist on the Grammy-nominated 2006 recording Carlos Chávez: Volume III (Best Classical Recording), a Helen Hayes Award nomination for Best Actress, and national finalist honors in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. She is also a first-place winner in competitions sponsored by the San Francisco Opera and Opera Guild.
Equally accomplished in musical theatre, Ms. Guzmán is a long-time member of Actors' Equity Association and has performed with companies across the U.S., including Sacramento’s Music Circus, B Street Theatre, La Mirada CLO, Long Beach CLO, Woodminster Summer Stage, Pantages Theatre, Rubicon Theatre, and Bristol Riverside Theatre. In 2024, she was a company member of the Tuacahn Center for the Performing Arts, appearing as the Dowager Empress in Anastasia, Cora/Bulda in Disney’s Frozen, and the Judge in Jersey Boys.
A passionate advocate for arts education, she frequently tours with her one-woman show, Don’t Be Afraid; It’s Just Opera!, and is widely recognized for her mentorship of California students. Her honors include the 2012 Hispanic Scholarship Foundation’s “Mentor of the Year Award,” the Spirit of California Award from the Latino Legislative Caucus, the 2013 Mexican American Foundation Woman of the Year Award, and the 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Nederlander Organization.
Dr. Guzmán serves on the Board of Councilors at the USC Thornton School of Music and on the Board of Directors of the Neighborhood Music School Los Angeles. She holds an honorary Doctor of Music degree from Occidental College. For over two decades, she was a popular radio host on K-Mozart (Sunday Evening Opera, L.A. Opera Notes, LA Opera on Air, LA Opera Live) and later became the weekly television host of Open Call on PBS SoCal/KCET. Ms. Guzmán resides in Los Angeles and spends equal time in Washington Heights. Future Engagements include Abuela Claudia in In The Heights with Woodminster Summer Musicals
