Molly Mahoney’s sublime singing, memorable humor, and heartfelt portrayals seen in a variety of repertoire have charmed audiences and critics alike. A stylistically diverse performer, she sings opera, musical theater, and jazz with equal aplomb.

Molly champions the Great American Songbook, singing with Big Bands since the age of ten. She appeared in concert with Vinnie Falcone, musical director and accompanist for the late Frank Sinatra, and she has toured nationally as lead female vocalist with a jazz quintet. She has opened for artists including The Ink Spots, The Mills Brothers, Peter Marshall and The Modernaires. Her soulful, honest portrayals of familiar favorites and rare gems from this musical era can be heard on her debut album, Two for the Road. Molly has performed her one woman show, Mischief!, at Society Cabaret in San Francisco’s Union Square with award-winning musical director and co-writer G. Scott Lacy, in addition to performances in San Diego, New York City, and London.

When her genealogy revealed that Cole Porter is her distant cousin, Molly knew she had to create a show to honor his music. She combines her spellbinding Big Band and classical sounds with her captivating storytelling abilities to create a unique experience of story and song, highlighting love songs by Cole Porter. Spring 2022 brings both an album and a tour of My Cousin Cole.

A favorite of San Francisco Bay Area audiences, recent seasons have included performances as Lady Angela in Patience with Lamplighters Music Theatre, Angelina in Cinderella with San Francisco Opera Guild Outreach, performances for West Edge Opera’s new works series, Snapshot, and as Clizia in West Edge Opera’s production of The Chastity Tree by Vicente Martín y Soler.

In the 2015-16 season, Molly made her role debut as Beggar Woman in Sweeney Todd with Townsend Opera and Fresno Grand Opera after her introduction to the company as a soloist in Opera Remix: Music and Verse. She returned to Livermore Valley Opera, singing the role of Zulma in L’Italiana in Algeri, and performed Renu in Jack Perla’s River of Light with Festival Opera. The season also saw Molly’s return to Ars Minerva, portraying Cillene in the modern world premiere of Pallavicino’s opera Le Amazzoni nelle Isole Fortunate. The mezzo made her company debut the previous year in another modern world premiere as Arsinoë in La Cleopatra by Castrovillari.

During the 2014-15 season, Molly returned for her third appearance as a soloist with the North State Symphony, reprised her portrayal of the title role in La tragédie de Carmen, returned to West Bay Opera as Siébel in Faust, and sang the role of Soprano II in Philip Glass’s Hydrogen Jukebox with West Edge Opera, where her voice was described as having “sheer beauty and eloquence” by the San Francisco Chronicle.

Previous seasons include performances as Zweite Dame in Die Zauberflöte, Gianetta in L’elisir d’amore, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, and Tolomeo in Giulio Cesare, in addition to concert performances as alto soloist for the Mozart Mass in C Minor and Handel’s Messiah.

An experienced interpreter of the operettas of Gilbert and Sullivan, Molly has portrayed the roles of Melissa in Princess Ida and Pitti-Sing in The Mikado with Lamplighters Musical Theater, in addition to the title role in Iolanthe in a recorded performance named one of the Top 12 Must Have Opera CD Releases of 2014 by Opera News. The glowing review highlighted the “simplicity and eloquence” of Molly’s performance as the beloved exiled fairy. Her musical theater credits include Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, Anne Collier in 1940s Radio Hour, Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof and Maisie in The Boyfriend.

Molly holds a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. A native of Minneapolis, she is currently enjoying island life on Alameda in the San Francisco Bay Area where she lives with her husband Robin and her dog Casserole.