Marley Isabella Matejka

• NPR "From the Top" Fellow, 2023-24 (Show airs December 11th)
• Second Place, UMass Young Artist Awards, Spring 2023
• Silver Medal, Indiana State School Music Association Competition, Division I, 2019

Marley Isabella Matejka, 17, is a lyric coloratura soprano studying classical voice at Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, Massachusetts. Originally from Eugene, Oregon, Marley came to opera from a childhood background in musical and traditional theatre, where she enjoyed playing such roles as Glinda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz, Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Eva in But the Giraffe and Brundíbar.

After a Montessori school field trip to see The Magic Flute, Marley became enamored with the otherworldly vocals of opera, and at age 12, she began classical training while continuing to perform in school choirs, community theatre productions, and show choir, which combines expressive singing and dancing. During her freshman year, she decided to focus exclusively on classical voice and transferred to Walnut Hill, where she studies with Matt Anderson and Elaine Smith Purcell.

At Walnut Hill, Marley has performed in several fully staged operas, including Dido and Aeneas, Orpheus in the Underworld, and The Little Prince. As part of her studies, she performed with the Youth Chorale at the New England Conservatory in Boston for two years and currently sings under the direction of Cailin Manson in the school’s choir. In fall 2023, Marley was selected as a fellow for NPR's "From the Top," with an air date of December 11th.

In addition to her musical studies, Marley is focused on issues of social justice and activism, serving as a Diversity and Inclusion representative for her school and co-founding a student organization dedicated to creating safe, empowering spaces and community for students who self-identify as non-normative or occupy marginalized spaces of any kind. She is also the co-leader of Sister to Sister, an affinity group for Black female-identifying students. A senior, Marley is applying to a range of conservatories both in America and abroad.