Ms McCusker also had notable success performing the role of Tytania in the acclaimed new production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by Strictly Ballroom and Moulin Rouge director Baz Luhrmann which was performed at the 1994 Edinburgh Festival. She has also performed the role of Romilda in Nicholas Hytner's production of Xerxes for the Victoria State Opera and Mimi in a concert performance of La Bohème. During her time in Australia, she has worked successfully with conductors such as Christopher Hogwood, Jane Glover, Richard Hickox, Roderick Brydon, Carlo Felice Cillario and Richard Bonynge.
Kathryn McCusker made a very successful European debut at the beginning of 2000 singing the role of Antonia in Opéra de Massy's new production of Les Contes d'Hoffmann. In 1999 she won the Vienna State Opera award in Australia and as a result, spent four months in the 1999/2000 season working as a company principal with the Vienna State Opera, performing such roles as Countess Ceprano in Rigoletto.
Ms McCusker covered the role of Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni for Glyndebourne Festival Opera in their 2000 season and, at very short notice, sang the second performance to the delight of the conductor Sir Andrew Davis and a very enthusiastic audience. In 2001 she had great success singing the role of Tirsi in Covent Garden Festival's production of Handel's Clori, Tirsi e Fileno.
At the beginning of the 2001/2 season Kathryn returned to Australia to perform the role of the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro for the West Australian Opera. This performance was widely acclaimed and resulted in an invitation to return to Australia to sing the lead role in a new opera "Rendezvous" by the Australian Composer Lindsay Vickery.
In the 2001/2 season she made her debut for English National Opera covering the role of Ginevra in their revival of Ariodante and had a great success when she went on to sing the role in the final performance. This resulted in an immediate re-invitation to work on a new opera by Ian Wilson for the ENO Studio.
Other recent engagements have included Marie de Nostradame in Nostradamus for the West Australian Opera, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni for Holland Park Opera and Ginevra in Ariodante for Freiburg Opera. In 2003 she had a great success performing Isotta in Strauss's Die Schweigsame Frau for Garsington Opera and was immediately reinvited to perform Rosalia in Rossini's L'Equivoco Stravagante for their 2004 season. Kathryn recently performed the role of Iphise in Rameau's Dardanus for Pinchgut Opera, Sydney which was recorded for the ABC.