THe Opera Babes are an English classical crossover duo comprising mezzo‑soprano Karen England and soprano Rebecca Knight. The pair met while performing The Magic Flute with a touring opera company in Cambridge and began busking together in London’s Covent Garden in 2001, which led to a contract with Sony. Their breakthrough came in 2002 when they performed "Un bel dì vedremo" from Madame Butterfly on television sports programmes, including ITV’s World Cup coverage, and released their debut album Beyond Imagination the same year, which topped the UK Classical Chart for eleven weeks and reached Number Four on the US Billboard Classical Crossover Albums chart; the album sold over 1.7 million copies. In 2006 they released Renaissance on Instant Karma UK, a collection that received critical praise for its blend of opera and popular standards. After a brief hiatus in 2007, the duo returned to touring in 2008, performing for Queen Elizabeth Two, at the Los Angeles Opera House with Plácido Domingo, and on cruise ships. Their third album, Silent Noon, was issued in 2012 by Warner Classics, featuring British repertoire from Handel to Britten. The duo has been ambassadors for SOS Children’s Villages since 2005 and has performed with major orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
