Kitty Whately is one of the UK’s most characterful mezzo sopranos and a highly acclaimed interpreter particularly of contemporary opera and art song. She has performed leading operatic roles around the world, alongside song cycles written for her by Jonathan Dove, Sally Beamish, Steven Hough, Juliana Hall and Tarik O’Regan. She features on several discs of song and is a passionate champion of women composers. Her recent album Befreit: A Soul Surrendered, with Joseph Middleton, included world premiere recordings of songs by Johanna Müller-Hermann and Margarete Schweikert.

Engagements include Michelle Festen (Royal Opera House), Poppea L'incoronazione di Poppea and Dorabella Così fan tutte (The Grange Festival), Isabelle in Missy Mazzoli’s one-woman opera Song from the Uproar (BBCSO/The Barbican), Hermia A Midsummer Night's Dream (Rouen, Bergen, Beijing), Hansel Hansel and Gretel and Elvira Don Giovanni (Scottish Opera) and Meg in Opera Holland Park’s UK premiere of Little Women by Mark Adamo.

As a past winner of the Kathleen Ferrier award, and former BBC New Generation Artist, Kitty is in high demand as a recitalist and concert artist. She has sung with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and her frequent performances with the BBC orchestras include De Falla’s The Three Cornered Hat, her BBC Proms debut in Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ Suite from Act II of Caroline Mathilde, as well as recordings of Ravel’s Sheherezade Canteloube’s Songs of the Auvergne with John Wilson and BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, and songs by Rodgers & Hammerstein, Jerome Kern and Cole Porter with BBC Concert Orchestra. Kitty regularly performs recital programmes in all the major chamber venues in the UK and makes regular appearances on BBC Radio 3, in concert and in recordings for the Composer of The Week series.

Kitty is the co-founder of the charity SWAP’ra (Supporting Women And Parents in Opera).