Melissa Shippen has made operatic and symphonic debuts in her young career throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. The soprano was heard on her first official recording release Belle Nuit while in concert in Munich with Vesselina Kasarova. This season saw her exciting debut as Micaela in Carmen with The Atlanta Opera. Critics have described Melissa as: 'a dramatic soprano with an attractive, powerful sound' (Britten War Requiem at Carnegie Hall, The New York Times), as 'angelic' while portraying Mimi (La Bohème with Wolf Trap, The Washington Post), and according to The Rutland Herland of her recent Thais with Opera Company of Middlebury, "Shippen imbued her dramatic voice with emotion, from tender to passionate to reverent beautifully, naturally and convincingly."