Diana Damrau (German: [diːˈana ˈdamʁaʊ]; born 31 May 1971) is a German soprano who has achieved international fame for her performances, primarily in opera, but also in concert and lieder. She has been successful in coloratura soprano roles since her early career, and gradually proceeded into heavier roles of the 19th-century Italian bel canto repertoire. Her signature roles include the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor, and Violetta in La traviata.

Educated at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg, she had been engaged at the opera companies in Würzburg, Mannheim, and Frankfurt. Since beginning her freelance career in 2002, she has been performing on leading stages frequently, such as the Bavarian State Opera, Vienna State Opera, and Metropolitan Opera, where she appeared in 12 consecutive seasons since her debut in 2005/06. She also leads concert performances with French bass-baritone Nicolas Testé, whom she married in 2010.

Damrau has recorded dozens of opera and lieder recital albums since signing to EMI/Virgin Classics (absorbed into Warner/Erato Records in 2013). She was invested as Bavarian Kammersängerin and has been awarded the Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art and the Bavarian Order of Merit.

Damrau was born in Günzburg, Bavaria on 31 May 1971. She was inspired to become an opera singer after watching Zeffirelli's 1983 film of La traviata, which featured Plácido Domingo and Teresa Stratas. She began her operatic studies with Carmen Hanganu [de] at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg. During her studies, she developed an edema on a vocal cord.

After consulting with several doctors, she decided to undergo an alternative therapy without surgery. The treatment lasted about one and a half years. After graduating from music conservatory she worked in Salzburg with Hanna Ludwig.

Damrau made her operatic debut in 1995 as Barbarina in The Marriage of Figaro at the Mainfranken Theater Würzburg. In the next two years, she was engaged at the same theatre, featuring as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, and then as the Queen of the Night in Mozart's The Magic Flute, her debut in that role, and in the world premiere of Salieri's Cublai, gran kan de' Tartari (1998). Next, she performed with the Mannheim National Theatre and Oper Frankfurt for two years each. She made her Bavarian State Opera debut in 1999 with Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, and her Vienna State Opera debut with the Queen of the Night in 2000. In 2001, she made her Salzburg Festival debut, portraying the Naiad alongside Natalie Dessay's Zerbinetta; she became a regular in Salzburg and returned in the subsequent six editions.

Since 2002, she embarked a freelance career, and had frequent engagements with the Bavarian State Opera in roles such as Adele in Die Fledermaus, Marzelline in Fidelio, and the Queen of the Night. She took part in the world premiere of Cehra's Der Riese vom Steinfeld in the role of Small Woman in Vienna. Her engagements in Salzburg consist exclusively of roles in Mozart operas: The Magic Flute (Queen of the Night, 2002), Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Blonde, 2003; Konstanze, 2004), The Marriage of Figaro (Susanna, 2007). In the 2006 edition, which celebrated Mozart's 200th anniversary, she played the Queen of the Night in the premiere of Pierre Audi's production of The Magic Flute, and Fauno in Ascanio in Alba.

Damrau made her Royal Opera, London debut in January 2003, in David McVicar's new production of The Magic Flute, and then appeared in Arabella (Fiakermilli), Ariadne auf Naxos (Zerbinetta), and the world premiere of Maazel's 1984 in two consecutive seasons. At the Opera Frankfurt, she sang her first Konstanze in Die Entführung, a role she then repeated in Munich and Salzburg. In March 2004, she sang the role of Zdenka in Arabella for the first time in Munich. In December 2004, she was invited to sing the title role in Salieri's Europa riconosciuta, conducted by Riccardo Muti, for the reopening of La Scala in Milan. In 2005, she portrayed Gilda in the premiere of Doris Dörrie's controversial production of Rigoletto in Munich, and later in the year, made her Metropolitan Opera debut in New York City in the role of Zerbinetta.