ABOUT

SHAUNA CLAIRE | SOPRANO

Shauna Claire is an Irish soprano based in London, currently completing her Master of Performance in Vocal Studies at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, where she studies with Professor Janice Chapman, Linnhe Robertson and Michael Pugh.

Originally from Dublin, Shauna has performed across Ireland, the UK and continental Europe, with a repertoire spanning Mozart, Handel, Monteverdi, Strauss, Britten, Beethoven, Verdi, Massenet and contemporary opera.

Most recently, Shauna performed both Soeur Constance and Blanche de la Force on alternating nights in Guildhall’s production of Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites. The unusual opportunity to inhabit two dramatically contrasting characters within the same production marked an important stage in her development as both a singer and singing actress.

In summer 2025, Shauna made her Prague debut as Sophie in Massenet’s Werther at Prague Opernfest, performing with the Czech Virtuosi Orchestra in Prague’s historic Smetana Hall.

Her other operatic roles include Tytania in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Nannetta in Falstaff, Marzelline in Fidelio, Pamina and Papagena in Die Zauberflöte, Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Poppea in L’incoronazione di Poppea, Najade in Ariadne auf Naxos and Oberto in Alcina. She has worked with companies and programmes including Irish National Opera, Lyric Opera Ireland, Saluzzo Opera Academy, Berlin Opera Academy, Handel Opera Company and Ardingly International Music Festival.

Shauna also originated the role of Cis Power in the world premiere of Stephen McNeff’s Spirits Unsurrendered, performed at Dublin’s historic Kilmainham Gaol.

TRAINING

Shauna’s early training took her to the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she studied with Kathleen Livingstone, before returning to Ireland and becoming the final student of legendary Irish vocal pedagogue Dr Veronica Dunne.

She continued her studies at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, working with Sylvia O’Regan and coaches including Dr Dearbhla Collins and Dr Andrew Synnott, before moving to London to continue her postgraduate training at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

At Guildhall, Shauna currently studies with internationally renowned vocal pedagogue Professor Janice Chapman, alongside Linnhe Robertson and Michael Pugh, as she continues to develop her technique, repertoire and artistic identity.

Alongside her vocal training, Shauna has pursued her interest in acting and movement, including training at The Lir Academy in Dublin with Sue Mythen and Cathal Quinn.

AWARDS & PERFORMANCE

Shauna’s awards include prizes at the Dublin Feis Ceoil, including the Veronica Dunne Cup, alongside the Margaret Burke-Sheridan Trophy, awards at Sligo Feis Ceoil and Arklow Music Festival, the John McCormack Bursary and finalist recognition in the Catherine Judge Memorial Award.

During her earlier training, Shauna received scholarship offers from several leading UK conservatoires, including the Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music, Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Royal Northern College of Music and Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama.

Beyond the operatic stage, Shauna has performed extensively as a concert and choral soloist. Her concert work includes Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music under conductor John Hancorn and James Whitbourn’s Annelies, performed in collaboration with the Holocaust Education Trust Ireland under the direction of Blánaid Murphy.

Her work also extends beyond traditional opera and concert performance into film. Shauna appears in Transposing, produced by Basement Studios and premiering at the Barbican Centre in winter 2026.

BEYOND THE STAGE

Shauna’s artistic journey has been shaped by an extraordinary period of personal adversity. After developing Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), she spent more than a year using a wheelchair and was forced to step away from the career she had spent years building. Her eventual recovery required her not only to learn to walk again, but to rebuild her relationship with her body, her voice and performance.

Her return to professional training and the operatic stage has consequently become an important part of her artistic identity and informs her particular interest in resilience, performance psychology and the nervous system.

Alongside performing, Shauna is an experienced vocal teacher and a qualified Nervous System Regulation Practitioner, with a particular interest in supporting high-performing individuals and artists. She is also the founder of The PROArtist Academy, an educational platform exploring the business, mindset and entrepreneurial skills required to build a sustainable career in the performing arts.

Shauna has also built an established digital presence across Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, sharing the realities of life as a professional singer alongside opera, performance, lifestyle and educational content. Her online work has led to collaborations with international brands including Charlotte Tilbury and ASOS.

Away from her professional work, Shauna has a longstanding commitment to charitable and community initiatives, particularly those supporting homelessness and animal welfare.

Now based in central London, Shauna continues to balance her postgraduate studies at Guildhall with performance, teaching and her wider work in artist development — building a career that brings together opera, education, entrepreneurship and advocacy.