Susan Gundunas
As a child, Susan Gundunas began singing, dancing,
and acting on the stage of her parents’ Greek night
club in Los Altos, California. As an adult, she has
delighted audiences with her unique combination of
vocal brilliance and dramatic craft since she
learned Mimi from La Boheme in two hectic weeks and
debuted on Opera San Jose’s main stage.
Susan honed her drama skills studying Theatre Arts
as an undergraduate at Santa Clara University, and
began work as an actress with San Jose Repertory
Theater. While there, she crossed paths with George
Cleve, who urged her to study classical voice, and
from then on she found herself increasingly drawn to
music.
She won a contract at Opera San Jose as Principal
resident artist, where she sang Lucia, Violetta,
Mimi, Cio-Cio San, the title role of Vanessa, and
Oscar in Un Ballo in Maschera, among many other
parts. She followed her time in San Jose with a year
and a half in Germany singing Carlotta in Phantom of
the Opera and performed on television and with the
NDR Symphony in Hamburg in a concert of arias.
Since returning to the States, Susan has performed
across the country in a variety of roles, with the
Nevada Opera, Opera Memphis, Opera Idaho, Rimrock
Opera, Sonoma Opera, Pacific Repertory Opera, and
others. During this time she worked intensively with
composer Alva Henderson and librettist Dana Gioia as
they developed their new opera Nosferatu,
writing the part of Ellen expressly for Susan. Her
list of symphonic credits include work with the
Berkeley Symphony, Santa Cruz Symphony, San Jose
Chamber Orchestra, Erie Philharmonic, Peninsula
Symphony and the San Bernadino Symphony.
Susan has most recently been featured on two
recordings. as Ellen in Nosferatu and in her
recital “Life, Love, and Motherhood,” which are now
available through her website at
www.susangundunas.com.
Susan mastered vocal technique in studies with Jane
Randolph. When not performing, Susan teaches voice
at University of California, Berkeley and runs a
busy vocal studio in San Francisco, where she lives
with her husband and two sons.
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