“Michelle Lerch…[is] captivating on stage. Such voice(s)! Such beauty!”
— Encore Magazine
Meet Michelle
Praised for her “richness and dramatic range” (CVNC News), Soprano Michelle Lerch has gained notoriety in the areas of Opera, Musical Theatre, and Sketch/Improv Comedy. She has received many awards, including IU’s Jacobs School of Music graduate Musicianship Award and was a twice recipient of the Bel Canto Vocal Scholarship Foundation. Michelle was most recently seen in Opera for the Young’s virtual adaptation of Hansel & Gretel (Gretel), as well as Mabel in their live production of Pirates of Penzance the year prior. The soprano made her NC opera debut as Adele in Johann Strauss’s Die Fledermaus with Opera Wilmington in 2018.
TOP HITS
Companies worked with
Cornservatory (Corn Productions)
Opera for the Young
Opera Wilmington
Opera House Theatre Company
Chicago Summer Opera
Oberlin in Italy
Singer, Actress, Comedy Writer, Dancer, and she even plays ukulele…
Jacobs School of Music Graduate
Second City Conservatory
Awards/Accolades
2x Bel Canto Vocal Scholarship
IU Graduate Musicianship Award
3x placed SNATS
Known for her work with new music, Michelle Lerch made the collegiate premiere of Chrisann in IU’s Jacobs School of Music’s production of The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, in 2018. In addition, she has worked with New Voices Opera Company numerous times premiering new works. Most notably, her role as Diane in Kyle Peter Rotolo’s Marilyn’s Room. In addition, she had the pleasure of workshopping Shulamit Ran’s latest work-in-progress Anne Frank (Edith), under the baton of Arthur Fagen.
“Her voice moved with perfect smoothness over the entire range, including to fabulous high notes.”
-CVNC Online Arts Journal for NC
An equally talented musical theatre performer, Michelle Lerch has also been seen as Margot in Legally Blonde (Opera House Theatre Company, Wilmington), as well as IU’s JSOM production of Bernstein’s Mass. Additionally, her love of the arts has led her towards sketch comedy/improv. She can been seen performing at various comedy clubs throughout Chicago including The Annoyance Theatre, Improve Olympics (IO), and Bughouse Theatre.
Michelle Lerch currently resides in Chicago, IL and is a graduate of the Second City Conservatory. She received her Master’s in Vocal Performance from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, as well as a Performance Diploma in Voice in 2019. Prior to that, she graduated with honors from East Carolina University in 2016, with her Bachelors in Vocal Performance and Music Theory & Composition.