Michael Butler is a lyric tenor hailing from Bowie, Maryland. He has been described as possessing a “bright lyric tenor that rings throughout his range,” along with a “plush and resonant middle voice with vibrant high notes” (OperaWire). He made his Des Moines Metro Opera debut in summer of 2021, where he was a resident artist for the 2020 and 2021 summer seasons, and debuted with New York City Opera in the summer of 2020. He has been seen around the D.C. Metropolitan Area in numerous concerts and productions with Opera Baltimore, Washington Opera Society, Belcantanti Opera, and Partners4theArts. Butler was a Renée Fleming Artist at Aspen Music Festival in Summer of 2022, where he sang the role of Fenton in Verdi’s Falstaff alongside Sir Bryn Terfel in the titular role.

A few recent accolades include award winner in the Carolyn-Bailey Argento National Opera Competition this past January, First Place in the 2020 Sue Götz Ross Memorial Voice Competition, First Place in the 2020 National Classical Singer Competition, and Encouragement Award in the 2020 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (Capitol District). In March of 2022, Butler debuted the title role in Gounod’s Faust with Washington Opera Society. Selected previous credits include the role of Rodolfo in Puccini’s La Bohéme (Maryland Opera Studio), Miles Teller in Missy Mazzoli’s Proving Up (Maryland Opera Studio), Jimmy O’Keefe in John Musto’s Later the Same Evening (Maryland Opera Studio), Allan Murray in Justine Chen’s The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing (Maryland Opera Studio), Count Tassilo in Kálmán’s seldom performed operetta Gräfin Mariza (Washington Opera Society), Monostatos in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte (Maryland Opera Studio), Claudio in the world premiere of Francis Pollock’s Briscula the Magician (Belcantanti Opera Company), Il Messagero in Verdi’s Aïda (Washington Opera Society), Prince Sou-Chong in Lehár’s Das Land des Lächelns (Washington Opera Society), Borsa in Verdi’s Rigoletto (Belcantanti Opera Company), Ivan Lykov in Rimsky-Korsakov’s The Czar’s Bride (Belcantanti Opera Company), the title role in Rossini’s Le Comte Ory (Chicago Summer Opera), and Dancaire in Bizet’s Carmen (Washington Opera Society).

In the remainder of the 2022-2023 season, Butler will cover The Prince in Tchaikovsky’s The Love for Three Oranges with Des Moines Metro Opera, as well as various concerts with Partners4theArts and Washington Opera Society. In the fall of 2023, Butler is excited to pursue an Artist Diploma in Opera Studies at the famed The Juilliard School in New York City.