A native New Yorker, Mezzo soprano Lucy Joy Altus grew up only blocks away from the Metropolitan Opera. Eager to be a Broadway kid, Lucy studied dance and acting in addition to singing. Standing now at just shy of 6 feet, she proved too tall to be a child star. She immediately turned to classical voice at the age of 13 when she joined the National Children’s Chorus and soon grew to be one of their top soloists. She began her classical voice studies with choir director, Luke McEndarfer. While enrolled with the National Children’s Chorus, Lucy performed solos at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center and at Carnegie Hall. With the chorus, she traveled and performed throughout Europe and Asia, including Vatican City in Rome, the Great Wall of China in Beijing, the DMZ in Seoul, South Korea, and the Musikverein in Vienna. Currently, Lucy is featured on the chorus's album, Illumine. In 2016, McEndarfer introduced Lucy to voice teacher Catherine Mazzone.
In May of 2022, Lucy graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a BFA in Vocal Performance where she studied with renowned soprano, Maria Spacagna. At Carnegie Mellon, Lucy performed as the alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah and Sesto in Sartorio’s Giulio Cesare. In her senior year she played Ramiro in Mozart’s La Finta Giardiniera and Un pâtre, La Chatte, and L’écureuil in Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges.
An accomplished competitor, when Lucy was just 18, she was awarded as an alternate for the Joyce DiDonato Master Class at Carnegie Hall. While she did not get to perform, she was honored to be recognized. In 2021, Lucy became an SAS Performing Arts Company Semi-Finalist. She won second prize in the Les Music Es Du Centre France Music Competition and third prize in the International Clara Schumann Competition. In 2022, Lucy won first prize in the young adult voice category of the Charleston International Music Competition. She also won first place in the Music International Grand Prix Competition in the same category.
In January of 2022, Lucy had the great honor of becoming a District Winner for the South Carolina District in the Metropolitan Opera Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition, formally known as the Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions. She then was awarded an Encouragement Award at the Southeast Regionals in Atlanta. In the 2023 season, she was an Encouragement Award winner for the New York District. In March of 2022, Lucy became 1 of 10 finalists to compete for Opera Grand Rapid’s VanderLaan Prize. Later that year, Lucy received honorable mention from the Hal Leonard Vocal Competition, as well as first prize in the Beethoven Young Musician Competition. Altus was a finalist in the prestigious Opera Index Vocal Competition, won second place in Opera Mississippi’s John Alexander National Vocal Competition, and was a semi-finalist in Houston Grand Opera’s 35th Annual Concert of Arias. Most recently she was a finalist in the Marcella Sembrich International Voice Competition, an Encouragement Award Winner in the Opera Index Vocal Competition, a New Orleans District Winner for the Metropolitan Opera Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition, and an Encouragement Award Winner for the Opera Florham International Vocal Competition.
Additional awards include the Rose Snyder Scholarship Fund (2020), the Charlotte Black Memorial Award (2021), the Shirley Rabb Winston Scholarship Encouragement Award (2022), and the Lauren Eshbaugh Memorial Award (2022). Lucy is also a proud recipient of the Novick Career Advancement Grant (2024).
In addition to singing, Lucy has a passion for modeling, social media, and administration. While at Carnegie Mellon, she was on the Executive Board of a student-run fashion show called “Lunar Gala.” In her senior year, Lucy earned the title of “Head Model Coordinator,” in which she managed and directed 30+ people. Also while at university, Lucy worked with The National Opera House as a social media marketing intern. Lucy was in charge of designing and presenting social media campaign ideas, creating informative and entertaining posts for her client, and staying updated with the latest marketing concepts and techniques.
In May of 2024, Lucy received her Master’s degree at The Juilliard School. At Juilliard she has had the great pleasure of performing in Javier Arrebola’s Liederabend, as well as in a scenes program. In February of 2023, Lucy performed as a Priestess, Nymph, and Alto soloist in Purcell’s King Arthur. That Spring, she performed the role of La Maestra Delle Novizie as well as covered La Zia Principessa in Puccini’s Suor Angelica. In the same production, she covered Zita in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi. In her second year, Lucy participated in a masterclass with renowned mezzo soprano, Susan Graham, played Estelle in John Musto’s Later the Same Evening and played Annio in Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito.
In the summer of 2023, Lucy was thrilled to join the Merola Opera Program in San Francisco where she covered the role of Lucretia in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia. She also performed in scenes as Giovanna in Verdi's Rigoletto, Emilia in Verdi's Otello, Annio in Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito, and Tisbe in Rossini's La Cenerentola. She returned for another summer in 2024 where she performed in scenes as Siebel in Gounod’s Faust, Alisa in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, and Dorabella in Mozart’s Così fan tutte.
Lucy is thrilled to be joining the Bayerische Staatsoper Opera studio for the 25/26 season.
In her free time, Lucy enjoys exercising, enjoying time with loved ones, and playing with her orange cat, Copper.
