(Credit: Janel Lee)

The Santa Fe Opera has announced that mezzo-soprano Kaylee Nichols has been awarded the 2024 Award of Excellence. 

In a statement, the mezzo said, “Incredibly humbled to have received the 2024 Award of Excellence from Santa Fe Opera. Thank you Gayletha Nichols and Chandler Johnson for trusting me, supporting me, and getting me out of my head. Thank you to my family and colleagues who helped me with childcare this summer, helping me focus on making art. Thank you to my village and my team who constantly cheers me on from afar. Thank you to the donors and patrons that make these awards possible. Thank you to EVERYONE at The Santa Fe Opera for creating an environment in which I could thrive in my art during such a giant life transition. You will always have a special place in my heart!

This season Nichols returned as a 2024 Apprentice Artist and performed Flora in “La Traviata” and covered the role of Michele in the world premiere of “The Righteous” by Gregory Spears and Tracy K. Smith.

Nichols is a Tennessee District Encouragement Winner for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and has been a Central City Opera member of the Bonfils-Stanton Artist Training Program.