Kai Rüütel-Pajula

(mezzo-soprano)

EDUCATION AND WORK
Kai Rüütel-Pajula has appeared to critical acclaim on the stages of the Royal Ballet and Opera, Dutch National Opera, Theater an der Wien, Teatro Real, Opera Vlaanderen, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Scottish Opera, Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse, Opéra National de Lyon, Grand Théâtre de Genève, Teatro Municipal de Santiago, and Dallas Opera. A consummate singer and actress, she has collaborated with notable directors such as Robert Carsen, Laurent Pelly, Keith Warner, Calixto Beito, Christof Loy, and Peter Konwitschny to name a few. Rüütel-Pajula studied at the Koninklijk Conservatorium in The Hague, the Dutch National Opera Academy, and was a member of the Jette Parker Young Artist Programme from 2009 to 2011.

REPERTOIRE
Judith (Bartók’s “The Bluebeard’s Castle”)
Carmen (Bizet’s “Carmen”)
Mezzo-soprano part in Chaya Czernowin’s opera “Infinite Now” (world premiere in Opera Vlaanderen)
Charlotte (Massenet’s “Werther”) 
Angel (Mendelssohn’s “Eliyah”)
Blanche and Venerable lady (Prokofiev’s “The Gambler”)
Suzuki (Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly”)
Lyubasha (Rimsky-Korsakov’s “The Tsar’s Bride”)
Smee’s wife (Schreker’s “Der Schmied von Gent”)
Polina (Tchaikovsky’s “The Queen of Spades”)
Olga (Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin”, Dallas Opera)
Fricka, Waltraute, Second Norn, Wellgunde (Wagner’s “Der Ring”)
Mary (Wagner’s “Der fliegende Holländer”, Teatro Real)

Concerts:
Mozart’s Requiem (St. Luis Symphony Orchestra)
Elgar’s “Dream of Gerontius” (The Three Choirs Festival) 
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 (Residentie Orchestra of the Netherlands) 
Mahler’s “Rückert Lieder” (Cadogan Hall), “Das Lied von der Erde”, Symphony No. 2 and No. 8, “Kindertotenlieder”
Pergolesi “Stabat Mater”

Photo: Krõõt Tarkmeel