The blossoming career of mezzo-soprano Nina van Essen is taking her across the globe, from prominent opera stages to prestigious concert halls such as Teatro alla Scala di Milano, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Theater an der Wien, Royal Danish Opera, Dutch National Opera, Zaterdag Matinee Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Oper Leipzig, and many more. During her time as a member of the ensemble at Staatsoper Hannover (2019–2024), she developed a diverse repertoire, performing roles such as Hänsel in Hänsel und Gretel by E. Humperdinck, Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia by G. Rossini, Mercédès in Bizet’s Carmen, Ruggiero in Händel’s Alcina, Piacere in Händel’s Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno, Romeo in V. Bellini’s I Capuleti e I Montecchi, Orfeo in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, and Cherubino and Dorabella in Mozart’s classics Le Nozze di Figaro and Così Fan Tutte.

In the 2024/25 season, Nina will take on new roles, including Siebel in Gounod’s Faust, Hermia in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Arbate in Mozart’s Mitridate, Re di Ponto, and Three in We Are the Lucky Ones, a world premiere by Philip Venables. She has collaborated with leading stage directors such as Lydia Steier, Immo Karaman, Barbora Horáková, Tatjana Gürbaca, and Elisabeth Stöppler, as well as esteemed conductors including Sir Mark Elder, Reinbert de Leeuw, Alexander Joel, and Stéphane Denève.

Beyond opera, Nina has been engaged in collaborations with organizations such as Festival Musique et Vins, the Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival, Serie Grote Zangers, ASKO Schönberg Ensemble, Grachtenfestival, Nouvel Opéra de Fribourg, Residentie Orkest, Les Talens Lyriques, and Theater Magdeburg. Her extensive concert repertoire includes mezzo-soprano solo parts in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor, Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle, and orchestral song cycles such as Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’Été and Ravel’s Trois Poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé.

Nina’s talent has been recognized with numerous awards. In 2023, she won first prize and the Best Female Voice Award at the ninth edition of the Concorso Lirico Internazionale di Portofino. At the International Vocalist Competition in ’s-Hertogenbosch, she received the Audience Prize and the Annett Andriessen Concert Prize, which included a concert tour in Ningbo, China.

Nina graduated in 2018 from the Dutch National Opera Academy and earned her bachelor’s degree summa cum laude, with distinction, from the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague. During an Erasmus exchange, she also studied in Lyon, France, at the CNSMD (Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et Danse).