New Zealand soprano Michaela Cadwgan graduated in 2020 with First Class Honours in BMus from The New Zealand School of Music—Te Kōkī, Victoria University of Wellington, where studied under the tutelage of Dr. Margaret Medlyn, Wade Kernot, Dr. Jenny Wollerman, and Bruce Greenfield. Alongside this, she earned a BA in German and Italian. Michaela is an alumna of the New Zealand Opera School, which she attended in January 2020 and January 2024. This year she was the runner-up of the Dame Malvina Major Foundation Scholarship and the recipient of the Dame Sister Mary Leo Foundation Award.
A regular performer in New Zealand, some of her notable performances include the title role of Suor Angelica in the NZSM Puccini Double Bill (2019), as well as collaboration with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (NZSO at Te Papa 2020), Opera Australia Orchestra (IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition Finals 2023), Auckland Philharmonia (2019, and 2022), and Orchestra Wellington (2022). Additionally, Michaela was the winner of the Wellington Regional Aria Competition (2021), runner-up at The Lockwood New Zealand Aria Finals (2022) and most recently was awarded the Saluzzo Opera Academy Scholarship alongside the Merenda Travel Prize and the MOST Audience Prize at the IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition Finals in August 2023.