Rome, Ga. – Shorter University alumna and music faculty member Indra Thomas will be featured in a concert titled “Memoirs of an International Diva” on Sunday, Sept. 24, at 7:30 p.m. at the DeSoto Theatre on Broad Street. The performance is presented by Rome’s Heritage First Bank and is part of the Parker FiberNet Concert Series at the DeSoto.

Tickets are available for purchase online at www.historicdesototheatre.org or by calling 706-591-8377. General admission tickets are $17, and reserved seats are $37.

An Atlanta native, Thomas studied at Shorter College (now Shorter University) and has traveled the world to international acclaim. Considered one of the foremost Aidas in the world today, Thomas has appeared at many of the world’s great opera houses such as the Metropolitan Opera, the Vienna State Opera, and many other prominent venues. She has appeared with top orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, the London Symphony, Leipzig’s Gewandhaus Orchestra, and many others around the world. Her debut at Carnegie Hall in Messa di Requiem by Verdi received excellent public and critical acclaim, soon blossoming into one of the world’s truly great operatic and concert sopranos. She has a particular affinity for Verdi roles, her signature ones being in Aida, Il Trovatore, Un Ballo in Maschera, Don Carlo and Otello – as well as the Requiem, her favorite Verdi work.

Part of Thomas’ repertoire will include arias by Verdi and Charpentier, French songs by Duparc, German lieder by Strauss, and songs by Gershwin. “We’re going to travel the world, and I will share small anecdotes about my career from start to finish,” said Thomas, now back at Shorter University as a Visiting Professor of Music-Voice.

Thomas has recorded for NPR as well as the LSO Live and Naxos labels and has received both an Emmy and a Grammy nomination. As a teenager in Atlanta she sang “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” in the funeral scene of the Academy Award-winning film, Driving Miss Daisy.

Founded in 1873, Shorter University is a Christ-centered, four-year liberal arts university committed to excellence in education. The Princeton Review annually includes Shorter on its list of best Southeastern Colleges. The university offers traditional bachelor’s degrees in 40 areas of study, online courses and degree programs, undergraduate programs for working adults, and master’s programs. Learn more about Shorter at www.shorter.edu.

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