Soubrette / Light Soprano

A soprano of very light vocal weight, and the looks and disposition of a young girl. Soubrette roles are often flirtatious and witty, and outsmart the rich and powerful by the end of the opera. Many soubrette roles have names that end in “-ina”: Despina (Mozart’s Cosí fan tutte), Adina (Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love), and Zerlina (Mozart’s Don Giovanni) are all soubrettes.

The clip below is from Johann Strauss’s operetta, Die Fledermaus, and features a famous soubrette role, Adele. Adele is a maid in the house of Gabriel von Eisenstein, and on this particular evening, has feigned illness to get out of working so that she may attend a party. Her employer is also in attendance, and recognizes her as his chambermaid. In this aria, sometimes called “The Laughing Song,” Adele laughs off his suggestion that she is a lowly maid, pointing out all of her noble qualities. Listen for the youthful quality of this soprano’s voice. Sung in English.

From Nashville Opera’s 2005 production of Johann Strauss’s operetta, Die Fledermaus.

Other soubrette roles: Susanna (Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro), Blonde (Mozart’s The Abduction from the Seraglio). Many soubrette roles have names that end in “-ina”: Despina (Mozart’s Cosí fan tutte), Adina (Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love), and Zerlina (Mozart’s Don Giovanni) are all soubrettes.