Delaware native Julia Swan Laird, known for her "finely placed, lyrical and purely produced soprano voice," begins 2026 with the world premiere of Complications in Sue at Opera Philadelphia as the soprano cover.  As a resident artist at Pittsburgh Opera, she performed  "Diana/Greek Woman" in Iphigénie en Tauride, "Taller Daughter" in Proving Up, and "Annina" in La traviata, as well as "First Wood Sprite" in Rusalka, "Barbarina" and a student matinee performance of "Susanna" in Le Nozze di Figaro, and "Dalinda" in Ariodante. Other appearances include “Lucy,” in The Telephone and Mademoiselle Jouvenot in Adriana Lecouvreur with Pittsburgh Festival Opera, "Berta" in a joint production of Il barbiere di Siviglia with OperaDelaware and Opera Baltimore, “Fairy Godmother” in Pauline Viardot’s Cinderella with Piedmont Opera, and "Suor Genovieffa" in Suor Angelica with OperaWest!. Julia was a Filstrup Resident Artist with Tulsa Opera in the fall of 2020, where she covered "Gilda" and sang "Giovanna" and "Page" in an innovative production of Rigoletto. She is an alumna of the Accademia della Lirica Italiana in Bari, Italy, and the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival Opera Studio where she performed scenes from Don Giovanni, The Ghosts of Versailles, and Carmen. While at Arizona State University’s Music Theatre and Opera program, Julia performed as "Romilda" in Serse, "Esmeralda" in The Bartered Bride, "First Spirit" in Die Zauberflöte, and the title roles in Les Mamelles de Tirésias and The Fairy Queen. 

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Equally at home in the concert hall, Julia appeared as a soprano soloist with MidAmerica Productions at Carnegie Hall, performing the Monteverdi and Vivaldi Magnificats. She has also sung Beethoven’s Mass in C with the Westmoreland Symphony and was a featured soloist with the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, performing excerpts from Der Rosenkavalier and Rigoletto with the AIMS Festival Orchestra. Winterthur Museum presented Julia’s recital of Libby Larsen works centered on the female perspective as the opening event of its 2020 Women’s Suffrage Centennial Celebration. A Resident Artist with the Mount Desert Summer Chorale, she performed at its 50th Anniversary Gala and appeared as a soloist in Mendelssohn’s Elijah. Julia has additionally been a soprano soloist with ensembles including the St. Joseph on the Brandywine Choir and Chamber Ensemble, the Choral Society of Durham, and the Pro Cantores Orchestra.

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Julia has earned numerous competition honors, including finalist recognition with the Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition and Florida Grand Opera’s Young Patronesses of the Opera Competition. She placed third in both the Opera Ithaca Edward M. Murray International Voice Competition and the American International Czech and Slovak Competition, and fourth in the 2019 AIMS Meistersinger Competition. Additional finalist distinctions include the Grand Junction Symphony Orchestra Young Artist Competition, Pittsburgh Festival Opera Mildred Miller Competition, MIOpera Competition, and Saltworks Opera Competition. Julia is also a first-place winner at Arizona NATS, Cal-Western Regional NATS, and North Carolina NATS.

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Julia graduated from Arizona State University with a Master of Music in Opera Performance and a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance. She currently resides in Raleigh, North Carolina.