Lara began her studies in her native Portugal. She went on to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, in London, supported by a Gulbenkian Foundation scholarship.
She studied with Laura Sarti, and graduated with a First Class Honours degree.
On completing her undergraduate course, Lara joined the young artist’s programme of the Centre National d'Insertion Professionelle des Artistes Lyriques (Cnipal) in Marseille.
Since graduating, Lara has enjoyed an international career singing a wide-ranging repertoire.
Operatic engagements include, Fifth maid in Elektra by R.Strauss in the theaters of Modena, Ferrara, Piacenza and Bolzano conducted by Gustav Kuhn; Queen of the Night (Magic Flute) for Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon; Elvira (L’Italiana in Algeri) for Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon conducted by Donato Renzetti; Sofia (Il Signor Bruschino by Rossini) for the Opéra National de Bordeaux; Blondchen (Entfürung aus dem Serail) for Opera de Marseille; Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro) for Teatro da Trindade in Lisbon; Despina (Cosi fan Tutte) for Teatro Rivoli in Oporto; Madame Siberklang (Der Schauspieldirektor) at the International Music Festival of Algarve; Frasquita (Carmen) for the Portuguese Opera company; Princess Hirvaia in Offenbach’s Dick Whittington and his Cat at the Bloomsbury Theatre in London; Flaminia in Haydn's Il Mondo della Luna for Opera East and Adina (Elisir d'amore) for Swansea City Opera.
Lara has an interest in modern opera, which led to her singing the role of Kristin in the critical acclaimed Italian premier of Phillippe Boesmans' opera Julie at the Teatro Comunale di Bolzano. The Bread seller and Solo voice in the Cathedral in the Portuguese premier of The Nose by D. Shostakovich for Teatro Nacional de São Carlos conducted by Donato Renzetti; Parasha in Stravinsky’s opera Mavra for Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon; Alice, a trapeze artist in Circus Tricks a new work by Mike Henry with Tete a Tete Opera Festival in London.
Lara is equally at home on the concert stage and performs regularly as a soloist with the major Portuguese Orchestras. Other Concert highlights include Exultate et Jubilate by Mozart at the Kremlin in Moscow accompanied by the Kremlin Chamber Orchestra, who invited her back the following season to sing Schubert's Salve Regina at the Glazunov Gallery in Moscow; A solo song recital at the prestigious Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon; Bachianas Brasileiras n. 5 by Villa Lobos for the Tibor Varga Festival in Switzerland; Seven Popular Spanish Songs by Manuel de Falla with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Marseille; Gala concerts at the Opera de Toulon, Opera de Marseille, Opera d’Avignon and The Floral Hall at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
Engagements in the current season include: Soprano solo in Mahler's fourth symphony at Casa da Música in Oporto conducted by Joseph Swensen, Clarissa in Die Drei Pintos by Weber/Mahler at the Bloomsbury Theater in London, Elena in Il Capello di Paglia di Firenze by Nino Rota at Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon, where later this year she will also be singing the role of the Princess in El Gato Con Botas (Puss-in- boots) by Xavier Montsalvage directed by Emilio Sagi in a production from Teatro Real, Madrid.
Lara has broadcast live for RAI ( Radio Audizioni Italiane), Antena 2 ( Portuguese Classical Radio) and RTP ( Portuguese National Television).
She has been awarded several prizes, including the Donizetti Prize at the Jaumme Aragall singing competition in Spain, English song prize and the Anne Wyburd Award at the GSMD, second prize at the Iberian Voices international singing competition, and the first prize at the Concurso de Interpretação de Música do Estoril in Portugal.
September 2011
