Bio

David William Hughes is a singer, conductor, composer, and actor based in Boston, MA. Born in the UK, David holds bachelors and masters degrees from the University of Oxford, where he studied composition with Martin Suckling and voice with David Crown, and was a member of the renowned comedy troupe the Oxford Imps (“Devastatingly funny, *****” - EdFringe Review). He has toured throughout Europe and the USA, has been commissioned – amongst others – by Oxford University and Angel Sharp Media, and has had his music performed at Winchester Cathedral, Downside Abbey, Merton College, Somerville College, and King’s Chapel.

In 2018 David wrote, produced, and performed the one-man musical comedy Elizabethan, which played to packed houses in New York, Boston, Western Massachusetts, and London, and to critical acclaim at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (“It’s a hoot, a bawdy entertainment, and a display of consummate musicality that brings tears to the eyes.” – ScotsGay Arts). In 2019 David toured Elizabethan in the US, Australia, and the UK, and presented his second solo show Wit and Mirth in Boston, London and Edinburgh (“An intimate delight, I loved every second.” – MusicalTalk). Other recent solo engagements have included the new opera Ami and Tami with the Landmarks Orchestra (“Hughes was perfect” – The Times of Israel), Purcell’s Ode on St. Cecelia’s Day with the Harvard Radcliffe Chorus, and new musical The King’s Ear at Boston University.

David is a Lay Clerk at St. Paul’s, Harvard Square and teaches music and comedy at the International School of Boston. Since 2014 he has directed the Renaissance chamber choir Tactus Ensemble (“Beautifully illuminated… viscerally satisfying” – Boston Musical Intelligencer). David studies voice with Frank Kelley.