Ms. Vernon grew up in The New Haven area of Connecticut. Much of her childhood was spent making Sunday Sauce at Nana’s, learning about her father’s home and stories, and apple picking with her brothers. Drawing from her multi-cultural background, Ms. Vernon enjoyed learning about and honoring family traditions, especially from her Italian-American and Appalachian Cherokee descendants. Ms. Vernon credits her unique upbringing and supportive family to the pursuance of her passion.

Ms. Vernon has been a featured soloist with organizations appearing in renowned theaters such as Carnegie Hall, Music Hall, Paul Hall, The Bushnell Theatre, Peter J. Sharp Auditorium, Seiji Ozawa Hall, and The New World Center. In seasons past she has been featured as the soprano soloist in the Lord Nelsen Mass by Hayden, the Nunes Garcia Requiem, Messiah, and Mozart’s Requiem. 

This season, Ms. Vernon can be heard throughout the greater Ohio region as the soprano soloist in Beethoven 9 and Handel’s Israeli in Egypt, and singing The Queen of The Night’s Vengeance Aria with The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Pops. She is also performing All Gods Creatures, a recital with her collaborator, Samuel Martin, pianist, in the Orange Recital Series, in Orange Connecticut.

While at CCM, Ms. Vernon has been involved with projects spanning multiple genres including art song, opera, and musical theater. This season Ms. Vernon will make her role debut as Gretel in Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel. Ms. Vernon has debuted several roles at CCM including, Eurydice in Orpheus in The Underworld, and Die Königin der Nacht in Die Zauberflöte.

This past season, Ms. Vernon made her professional debut with Queen City Opera in Cincinnati, Ohio singing The Queen of The Night, in Josh Shaw’s reimagined video game production of Magic Flute. In 2022 Ms. Vernon made her debut with the Princess Cruise Line and headlined in their on-board production, where she sang Die Königin der Nacht. On this same tour, she also performed her solo concert “I Could Have Sang All Night” with the orchestra, which repertoire spanned from golden age musical theater to classical cabaret standards, to operatic hits.

Prior to beginning her studies at CCM, Alea spent her summers at The Casentino Voice Festival in Popi, Italy, New York Summer Music Festival, The Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and The Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. In the summer of 2019, Ms. Vernon was a member of The Janiec Opera Company at Brevard Music Center. She became one of the youngest members to ever hold residency.

Ms. Vernon is particularly passionate about twenty-first-century music. This spark ignited when she did her first world premiere in October of 2018, in The Midwest Composers Symposium. Since then, she has been involved in several premieres in both opera and concert repertoire. In 2022, Ms. Vernon premiered the song “Take This Job and…” by Evan Mack, as a collaboration with Cincinnati Song Initiative. She has also been involved in workshopping new compositions such as Revenants, a new opera, written by Eli Lucas with the Scandinavian Society. 

Ms. Vernon is a National YoungArts Winner, Second Place Winner in SongSlam, a competition that commissions new works, a 3Arts Scholarship Winner, First Place in The American Prize Women in Song, Pre College Division, First Place in The American Prize Women in Opera, Pre College Division,  and a two time George London Scholarship Recipient. 

Above all. Ms. Vernon is an advocate for classical music, wishing to bring classical music and opera to all walks of life. She believes there is a place for opera in everyone's life, be it performing, being part of the creative process, or enjoying it from the audience. Ms. Vernon is especially fulfilled in her work with public schools creating educational performances, masterclasses, and outreach programs, hoping to pass on the spark. 

During her free time, Ms. Vernon enjoys being the “Dog Mom” to four year old Mini-Bernedoodle, Sophie Vernon. The two can be found playing fetch, tug of war, going on runs and walks, and of course visiting the local puppy Patisserie.