Cameroonian-Ugandan-American mezzo-soprano Veena Akama-Makia has been praised in the operatic world, for her “richly expressive, warm, and velvety mezzo soprano” (Music OMH) and for having a “sweet mezzo voice of clarity” (Operawire). In her 2025/26 season, she will return to the Royal Ballet and Opera to sing the roles of Annina in La Traviata and Giovanna in Rigoletto. As a former Jette Parker Artist at the Royal Ballet and Opera, she performed roles such as Annina in La Traviata, Mércèdes in Carmen, Inès in Il Trovatore, Herdswoman in Jenůfa, Giovanna in Rigoletto, Zweite Magd in Elektra, Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, La Mère in Larmes de couteau, and The Queen in Full Moon in March. She also covered the roles of Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, Mary in Der fliegende Holländer, Bersi in Andrea Chénier, La Voix and La Muse in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, and the Witch in Hansel and Gretel.

In her 2023/24 season with the Royal Ballet and Opera, she also made her Royal Philharmonic Orchestra debut and role debut as Marta in a concert performance of Iolanta.

Her past engagements include being an Apprentice Artist with Des Moines Metro Opera, where she covered roles in Carmen and The Falling and Rising. Additionally, she was a standout at the Chicago Opera Theater, debuting roles such as Tawny Betty in the world premiere of Quamino’s Map and Nancy in Albert Herring. In the summer of 2022, Veena was a Young Artist with San Francisco Opera’s renowned Merola Opera Program, where she portrayed Dritte Dame in Die Zauberflöte and earned praise for her solo performances in the Merola Grand Finale

Veena Akama-Makia has been recognized with numerous awards, including being the winner of the 2023 American Opera Society of Chicago Best Vocal Artist Award, a Finalist in the 2023 Butler International Opera Competition, a 2023 Annapolis Opera Voice Competition Semi-finalist, a 2022 & 2021 Encouragement Award Winner from The Metropolitan Opera’s Opera Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition-Illinois District, Semi-Finalist in the 2022 Irene Dalis Vocal Competition, Tier I Semi-Finalist in the James Toland Vocal Competition, a Finalist in the Jesse Kneisel Lieder Competition, a Finalist in the 2020 Mildred Miller Competition, Semi-Finalist in the 2020 Premiere Opera Foundation, and NYIOP International Competition, Semi-Finalist in the 2020 Rochester International Vocal Competition, Semi-Finalist in the 2021 Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition, and received 2nd place in the 2022 Musicians Club of Women Vocal Competition.

Ms. Akama-Makia is an alumna of the Royal Ballet and Opera’s Jette Parker Artist Program, Des Moines Metro Opera Apprentice Program, the Chicago Opera Theater Young Artist Program, Merola Opera Program, the Finger Lakes Opera’s Tomita Young Artist Program, and the Rochester Fringe Festival. She received her Master of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music and earned her Bachelor of Music at the University of Central Arkansas.