Las Vegas, NV – (May 6, 2025) Opera Las Vegas (OLV) announced today that it has hired celebrated Mexican-American Soprano Cecilia “Ceci” Violetta López as General Director and CEO effective July 1, 2025. Having performed her first professional role in the 2012 Opera Las Vegas production of Don Giovanni, Ms. López returns to Southern Nevada as only the fifth General Director in the company’s 27-year history.
“As the popularity of professional opera expands across the Las Vegas Valley, Ceci is the perfect person to help shape our future,” said Robert Kramer, Board President of Opera Las Vegas. “Her dynamic vision and passion for the arts will propel our organization to new heights, fostering creativity and excellence throughout our performances and initiatives.”
Having recently been named one of “Idaho’s Top 10 Most Influential Women of the Century” by USA Today, Ms. López will oversee all fundraising and business strategies with the goal of elevating artistic planning, maximizing audience growth, and expanding community initiatives. She will relinquish her position as Opera Idaho’s first Artistic Advisor. Outgoing OLV General Director Jim Sohre will transition to the position of Artistic Director.
At the same time, Ms. López will continue her singing career which has taken her to stages ranging from the Iron Range of Minnesota to the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Florida Grand Opera, American Symphony Orchestra, and Europe, among many others. She remains a fan favorite with local Opera Las Vegas audiences for her star turns in such past successes as The Elixir of Love, our sold-out performance of La traviata, and last season’s Celebración Latina – A Mariachi Festival.
A native of Idaho, from humble beginnings, Ms. López was numbered among opera’s “25 Rising Stars” by Opera News and is the recipient of an Idaho State Concurrent Resolution honoring her life as an Idahoan and her world in the world of opera. Her admirable life story includes twenty years having lived in Las Vegas, first studying music education and vocal performance at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, then using the city as a home base from which she launched a prolific national and international career as a leading soprano. In 2024, UNLV honored her as Alumna of the Year.
“My life is comprised of a collection of full circle moments,” said Cecelia López, “and this new chapter of my career is another. I have remained active and connected with the Opera Las Vegas family. Knowing where I started, farming alongside my mother in the beet fields of Southern Idaho, to my studies at UNLV, to the many stages where I’ve taken some of the most gratifying bows, it’s humbling to know I’ll be following in the founders’ footsteps. It’s a privilege to expand upon the existing Opera Las Vegas legacy.”
Top image by Gregory Moine – Flickr: View of Las Vegas’ strip from the helicopter, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21829334