Cecilia Violetta López: Making Opera for Everyone

By Isabel M. Castro

When Cecilia Violetta López stepped into her new role as General Director and CEO of Opera Las Vegas on July 1, she wasn’t stepping onto an unfamiliar stage. The soprano, celebrated for her luminous voice and magnetic presence, has been part of the company’s story for more than a decade. But now, instead of standing in the spotlight, she is steering the organization into its future.

Opera Las Vegas has been part of the city’s cultural fabric since 1999. With López at the helm, the company begins its 27th season with renewed purpose—and history in the making. She is the first Latina to serve as General Director of an American opera company, a milestone that reflects her lifelong conviction that opera belongs to everyone.

“I want people to see themselves in opera,” López says. “It’s powerful storytelling. It’s human. And it’s for all of us.”

A Childhood Filled with Song

López’s story begins far from the neon glow of Las Vegas. Born in Rupert, Idaho, to Mexican immigrant parents from Michoacán, she grew up in a household filled with hard work, music, and resilience.

Her childhood followed the rhythm of farmwork. Since her parents found seasonal labor, summers were spent in Idaho’s sugar beet fields, winters in Mexico. By day, young Cecilia hoed beets under the sun. By night, she turned a broom into a microphone, pretending to be Jem from Jem and the Holograms, imagining a future filled with song.

Opera was not part of her world then. Instead, her mother, María de la Luz, taught her mariachi tunes, while Sesame Street provided her first lessons in English. Even without opera, music pulsed at the center of her life.

Her father, José Luis, gave her a name that would prove prophetic. When filling out her birth certificate, he spelled her middle name “Violetta” with two T’s—the Italian form of “Violeta,” and also the name of one of opera’s most iconic heroines in Verdi’s La traviata. At the time, it was an accident. Today, it feels like destiny.

Her mother instilled something even more powerful than music: a mantra that still guides López. “She always told us that hard work pays off,” López recalls. “Maybe not when you want it to, but eventually, it always does.”

From Fields to the Stage

That lesson carried López through challenges. In high school, she joined the dance team despite never having danced before, proving her willingness to work until she could hold her own. Later, she would master roles sung in Czech, Italian, French, German, Russian, Spanish, and English—despite starting with no formal exposure to opera.

“People are shocked when I tell them I grew up hoeing beets in Idaho, never knowing opera existed,” she says with a laugh. “Now I’m an opera singer—and I want people to see opera as something for everyone.”

After high school, López moved to Las Vegas, following a relationship. She became a mother, worked as an orthopedic technician, and enrolled at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). At first, she chose music education, drawn by the promise of steady work and summers off with her child. But opera found her anyway.

Inspired by UNLV’s production of La bohème, she decided to add vocal performance as a second major. With her mother’s encouragement, she ultimately pursued it full-time, walking at commencement with a degree in vocal performance. She graduated in December 2011 and, just one month later, signed her first professional contract with Opera San José. She has been singing professionally ever since. 

Defining Roles and Mentors

In the years to come, López’s operatic destiny emerged—and one role in particular defined her journey: Violetta in La traviata. López first heard the aria “Sempre Libera” as a UNLV student and vowed she would one day perform it. She has since sung Violetta around the country, earning praise for her soaring voice and emotional depth. By March 2026, she will have appeared in 16 different productions of the opera.

“Every time I sing Violetta, I find new layers,” she says. “And I think of my father’s choice of spelling my name. It feels like fate.”

Her artistic lineage is deeply rooted in both family and mentorship. She grew up singing Pedro Infante's rancheras alongside her mother in the fields. Later, Diana Soviero, the celebrated soprano, became a mentor who taught her the courage to bring her whole self to the stage. She admires Renée Fleming and Martina Arroyo for their artistry and influence. And in arts administration, she credits Mark Junkert of Opera Idaho for giving her one of her earliest opportunities to work behind the scenes. 

From Stage to Leadership

López’s path to leadership was as organic as her rise to the stage. She spent years as Opera Idaho’s first and only Artistic Advisor, where she not only performed but also took on administrative roles. She worked on programming, fundraising, and community outreach—gaining the experience that prepared her for her current role.

Recognition followed her performances: Opera News named her one of its “25 Rising Stars.” USA Today included her in “Idaho’s Top 10 Most Influential Women of the Century.” The Idaho State Museum created an exhibit in her honor, and her hometown of Rupert celebrated her as a cultural ambassador. UNLV also recognized her as Alumna of the Year.

Her career has taken her from the beet fields of Idaho to Carnegie Hall, from mariachi evenings at home to the Metropolitan Opera’s artist roster. Yet she insists her greatest achievement isn’t a single performance, but the opportunity to make opera accessible to all.

A Mission in Las Vegas

Now leading Opera Las Vegas, López blends her artistry with her vision for the future. She also continues her enthusiastic collaboration with the Las Vegas Philharmonic during the 2025–2026 season.

Her debut season as General Director and CEO opens with Mariposa Que Vuela, a multimedia autobiographical concert that fuses opera and mariachi—a reflection of her roots and her belief in music without borders. The season continues with classics like Le nozze di Figaro and Pagliacci, as well as Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors paired with Four Lost Santas.

She also plans to expand outreach throughout local schools via touring productions. Opera Las Vegas already offers programs like Voices Raised for Vets, Opera Legends in Black, and Celebración Latina. López aims to deepen those efforts, bringing opera into schools, expanding the Studio Artist Program in partnership with UNLV, and raising the company’s visibility for locals who may not realize opera exists in their own city.

“Las Vegas deserves a strong cultural life, not just for tourists but for our community,” she insists. “Opera is storytelling at its most human—and everyone should experience it.”

Her long-term vision is clear: slow, steady growth; financial sustainability; new partnerships; and a stronger presence for Opera Las Vegas at The Smith Center, where she dreams of staging full productions.

Music Without Borders

Despite her international career, López has never left behind the music of her childhood. She still sings mariachi with her mother and enjoys a wide range of artists, from Antonio Aguilar and Lola Beltrán to Taylor Swift, Juanes, Garth Brooks, Bad Bunny, and Los Tigres del Norte. Her broad tastes remind audiences that opera singers can connect to all kinds of music.

“Opera chose me, but music has always been my first love, in every form,” she says.

That openness to all genres informs her mission to reach new audiences. Whether through opera, mariachi, or pop, she believes music connects people in ways that transcend language and culture.

The Heart of Her Mission

At the center of López’s story is a simple, unwavering belief: opera is for everyone.

“There’s nothing more magical than opera,” she reflects. “It’s live theater, it’s music, it’s storytelling. My mission is to open that world to as many people as possible. Opera chose me—but music has always been my first love.”

López’s journey—from the fields of Idaho to international opera stages and now the leadership of Opera Las Vegas—is more than a career. It’s a testament to determination, mentorship, and heritage. For her, it’s only the beginning. López has emerged as a dynamic leader in American opera. She will launch Opera Las Vegas’s 27th season (2025–26) with Mariposa Que Vuela, a multimedia autobiographical concert blending opera, zarzuela, and mariachi.

For more information, visit operalasvegas.com, and follow on Facebook and Instagram @operalasvegas, X (formerly Twitter) @operalv, and YouTube @operalasvegas7735.