James Flora

Hailed for his “resonant, impeccably trained voice and fearlessness to his singing,” American tenor James Flora has received acclaim in repertoire ranging from Verdi and Wagner to works by Carlisle Floyd and Daron Hagen, having sung the role of Louis Sullivan from Hagen’s Shining Brow at Frank Lloyd Wright’s 20th-century masterpiece Fallingwater. James has sung with the Metropolitan Opera Chorus under Maestro Donald Palumbo in their most recent productions of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Fidelio. He made his Pittsburgh Opera debut as Fenton in Falstaff, and has since returned for seven productions, including Carmen, Turandot, Lucia di Lammermoor, and most recently as Second Jew alongside the Salome of Patricia Racette. 

James has performed leading roles in opera companies across the United States, including Alfredo (La traviata), Tamino (The Magic Flute), Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly), Rodolfo (La bohème), and Don José (Carmen), appearing with companies including Washington Concert Opera, Arizona Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Opera Company Middlebury, Opera Columbus, and others. Equally at home on the symphonic stage, he has sung with the Pittsburgh Symphony, Reno Philharmonic, Erie Chamber Orchestra, and Buffalo Philharmonic, and recently debuted with the La Voz Humana: Lenguajes Múltiples festival in Cuba with Maestro Leo Brouwer and guitar virtuoso Joaquin Clerch. James’ recent performances include a debut as Florestan in Fidelio with Opera Company Middlebury and Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, where he has previously been seen as Cavaradossi (Tosca) and Mitch (A Streetcar Named Desire).

James was a Young American Artist with Glimmerglass Opera, a Resident Artist with Pittsburgh Opera, and a Marion Roose Pullin Studio Artist with Arizona Opera, where he made his operatic debut as Malcolm in Verdi’s Macbeth. In 2010, James was a Richard Tucker finalist. He holds voice degrees from The Ohio State University (B.M. in vocal performance, summa cum laude) and Florida State University (M.M. in vocal performance).

He is currently on the voice faculty of the University of New Mexico and has served on the faculties of Arizona State University, University of Nevada—Reno, Central Michigan University, Otterbein University, and Point Park University, and is a member of NATS and AGMA. James has students performing on and off Broadway in productions of Hamilton, Urinetown, Shrek the Musical, and Rent and has students in Dolora Zajick’s Institute for Young Dramatic Voices. He is the co-artistic director and co-founder of Tito Gobbi Italian Summer Program on the grounds of the Gobbi Villa in Rome, Italy.