American mezzo soprano Luretta Bybee made her San Diego Opera debut as Mrs Sedley in 1984’s Peter Grimes, returning as Praskowia/ Dodo in The Merry Widow in 1985. Recent performances include Amanda in the world premiere of Amelia at Seattle Opera, Herodias in Salome with Arizona Opera, Orlando Opera and Cleveland Opera, Klytämnestra in Elektra with Seattle Opera where she also appeared as a Valkyrie in Die Walküre and the Second Norn in Götterdämmerung. Other notable performances include Amneris in Aida with Nashville Opera, Seattle Opera, Portland Opera and Opera Carolina, Ulrica in A Masked Ball with Opera Memphis, the title role in The Rape of Lucretia for L’Opera de Montreal, Mary in The Flying Dutchman for Seattle Opera, Emilia in Otello with New Orleans Opera, Delilah in Samson and Delilah with Memphis Opera and Paula in Florencia en el Amazonas. She is well known for her portrayal of Carmen which has been seen in the opera companies of Hawaii, Tulsa, Memphis, Dayton, Shreveport, Chautauqua, Dublin and New York City, where she made her City Opera debut.