Press headshot via The Metropolitan Opera (metopera.org)

Sean Panikkar

Tenor (spinto/dramatic)

Born September 17, 1981 in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, United States (45 years old)

Opera

Sean Panikkar is an American operatic tenor. He has performed in many leading opera houses both nationally and internationally, including the Metropolitan Opera, Teatro alla Scala, Carnegie Hall, Salzburg Festival, as well as Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Fort Worth Opera,

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Wikipedia

Ask about Sean

Signature Roles

Adam in CO2 Arturo in Lucia di Lammermoor Dionysus in The Bassarids Gandhi in Satyagraha Leonard Woolf in The Hours Loge in Das Rheingold Nadir in Les Pêcheurs de Perles Peter Grimes in Peter Grimes Rodolfo in La Bohème Tybalt in Roméo et Juliette

10 Signature Roles10 Principal Houses

Up next

Jenůfa as Števa · Metropolitan Opera House · Dec 4, 2026

Spotlight

Career Trajectory

Beginning his professional journey through San Francisco Opera's prestigious young artist programs, Sean Panikkar made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2007 and quickly established himself as a tenor of exceptional versatility, equally at home in the lyric elegance of Mozart and the dramatic intensity of Britten and contemporary opera. His 2018 Salzburg Festival debut as Dionysus in Henze's The Bassarids marked his international breakthrough, earning him recognition as Opernwelt's Artist of the Week and solidifying his status among the world's leading dramatic tenors. Today, he maintains an active presence across Europe's premier houses and American opera companies, known for his intellectual approach to character and his technical command across a repertoire spanning four centuries.