The Dallas Opera is happy to present three weekends of family-friendly programming guaranteed to introduce you and your loved ones to the big, beautiful world of opera. The Dallas Opera Educational/Family Series, part of The Perot Foundation Education and Community Outreach Programs, is presented by Texas Instruments and made possible with additional support from Lockheed Martin.
TDO will present its ever-popular thirty-minute opera by John Davies-a comical adaptation of the familiar tale ofJACK AND THE BEANSTALK-on Saturday, October 26th starting at 2:00 p.m. and featuring tenor Jonathan Yarrington as Jack, mezzo-soprano Emily Hueske as Mother/Wife and Bass Travis McGuire as Giant/Trouble. The cast will be accompanied by TDO's Music Director for Education and Family Programming, Mary Dibbern.
This entrancing children's tale was brought to life by Dallas Opera Production Designer Tommy Bourgeois. Nancy Schaeffer, Dallas Children's Theater's Education Director, staged the work for the Dallas Opera.
The C. Vincent Prothro Lobby of the Margot & Bill Winspear Opera House in the AT&T Performing Arts Center will open at 12:30 p.m. for a host of hands-on crafts and activities, as well as an encore of our new TDO Kids Book Club, hosted by popular Dallas/Fort Worth area actor and director B. J. Cleveland reading Paco and the Giant Chili Plant and The Giant and the Beanstalk.
Single tickets for this event are on sale now for just $5 apiece!
We're also proud to announce the Dallas Opera's exciting new partnership with the North Texas Food Bank.
Did you know there is a need for nearly 300,000 nutritious meals a day to feed the hungry people in North Texas? Did you know the NTFB provides nearly 175,000 nutritious meals per day, enough to fill the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington nearly 6 times over! Well, the Dallas Opera is going to do its part to combat hunger in North Texas by hosting a peanut butter drive.
Here's how it works: simply bring one (1) unopened jar of peanut butter to the October 26th performance of Jack and the Beanstalk and receive a "Buy One, Get One for Half-Off" coupon for a ticket to that day's performance.
What could go down smoother than that?
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On Sunday, November 3rd the Dallas Opera will host a fun-filled afternoon of free arts-related activities starting at12:30 p.m. in the C. Vincent Prothro Lobby of the Winspear, and concluding with the Dallas Opera Family Concert at2:00 p.m. featuring soprano Joanna Mongiardo. TDO Artistic Director Jonathan Pell after seeing her audition this summer was prompted to blog: "Miss Mongiardo was quite impressive, but has not yet sung in Dallas. I hope that she will now." She will perform alongside mezzo-soprano Emily Fons, who "showed striking maturity as the Muse/Nicklausse, singing with an elegant mezzo tone-well earning Nicklausse's often-cut violin aria-and consistently alive to the comedy as Hoffmann's confidante," according to Lawrence A. Johnson of the Chicago Classical Review.
These rising stars and the Dallas Opera Orchestra will perform under the baton of Maestro Anthony Barrese, former Assistant Conductor of the Dallas Opera.
Ms. Fons will be performing Jacques Offenbach's aria "Dites-lui" from La Grande Duchesse de Gérolstein. Ms. Mongiardo will be performing Jacques Offenbach "Les oiseaux dans la charmille" followed by the duet "Barcarolle" fromLes Contes d'Hoffmann. Both Ms. Mongiardo and Ms. Fons will perform selections from Mozart's Così fan tutte, along with some notable works from Léo Délibes opera Lakmé.
Don't miss out on this tremendous (and perfectly priced) program!
Just $5 per ticket! Buy online, 24/7, at dallasopera.org or call 214.443.1000. What better chance to introduce the extraordinary music, the magic, and the incredible excitement of opera to your children, grandchildren or loved ones!
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On Saturday, November 9th a Family Matinee performance of our newest production, a hilarious, fully-staged one-act opera about a young man who hopes to win the heart of his true love, with the help of one Doctor Dulcamara and his mysterious potion! Gaetano Donizetti's THE ELIXIR OF LOVE, at the Margot & Bill Winspear Opera Houselocated at 2403 Flora Street, Dallas 75201. Tickets for the 2:00 p.m. performance are family budget-priced at $5 apiece! Contact the Dallas Opera at 214.443.1000 or purchase online at dallasopera.org. Tickets will also be available at the door.
The SMU cast of THE ELIXIR OF LOVE features soprano Audra Methvin as Adina, tenor Jeawook Lee as Nemorino, baritone Njabulo Mthimkhulu as Belcore, and bass Travis McGuire as Dulcamara.
The cast and the Dallas Opera Orchestra will perform under the baton of Maestro Anthony Barrese, former Assistant Conductor of the Dallas Opera.
The classic storybook set and costumes were designed by Production Designer Tommy Bourgeois. Joel Ferrell, Dallas Theater Center's Associate Artistic Director, has staged this beloved opera for the Dallas Opera. TDO's Music Director for Education and Family Programming, Mary Dibbern put together this newly abridged English-language version of this charming Donizetti romance.
Lobby activities for the kids will begin at 12:30 p.m., followed by the performance at 2:00 p.m.
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Subscriptions for the four mainstage productions of the Dallas Opera's 2013-2014 "By Love Transformed" Season are on sale now, starting at just $76, through the Dallas Opera Ticket Services Office. Single tickets begin at just $19. Call our friendly staff at 214.443.1000. If you prefer, you may also purchase conveniently online atdallasopera.org.
Student Rush, best-available tickets can be purchased at the lobby box office for $25 (one per valid Student I.D.) or $50 for orchestra level, ninety minutes prior to each performance.
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"JACK & THE BEANSTALK" KEY BIOS:
MARY DIBBERN (Music Director for Education and Family Programs)
The American pianist Mary Dibbern joined the Music Staff of The Dallas Opera as Music Director for Education and Family Programs in June 2012. She is an internationally known specialist in the field of vocal coaching, recital accompaniment, recordings, University level master classes, Young Artists Program teaching, television and radio appearances in Europe, the United States and Asia. Dibbern was graduated summa cum laude from SMU with a Master of Music in accompaniment under the direction of Maestro Paul Vellucci. She then moved to Paris to work with the great French musicians Nadia Boulanger and Pierre Bernac. She resided in France from 1978 to 2009, where she was guest coach for the Opéra National de Paris (Bastille), and the operas of Nice, Bordeaux, Lyons, Toulouse, Dijon, Châtelet, the Opéra-Comique, the Festival de Radio France-Montpellier and in Europe at the Théâtre Municipal de Lausanne, the Círculo Portuense de Opera, the Lithuanian National Opera (Vilnius), the Latvian National Opera (Riga) and at the Shanghai Opera House where she was in charge of musical and language preparation for the first French-language productions. In the US, she was guest coach at Seattle Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Kentucky Opera, Opera Memphis and Hawai'i Opera Theatre. She was Head of Music at Minnesota Opera for three seasons, where she collaborated closely with composer Kevin Puts and librettist Mark Campbell on their world premiere "Silent Night" which subsequently won the Pulitzer Price for Music 2012. Mary Dibbern is the author of seven books on French music published by Pendragon Press and is the Editorial Consultant for Musik Fabrik's publications of works by French composer Jacques Leguerney She is a recording artist for Harmonia Mundi France, Claves and Maguelone.
NANCY SCHAEFFER (Stage Director)
Nancy Schaeffer has served Dallas Children's Theater since its founding in 1984, first as a teacher and actor and now as Director of all Education Programs and outreach activities. A graduate of Western Kentucky University, Ms. Schaeffer has directed numerous DCT productions including Junie B. Jones...; How I Became a Pirate; don't u luv me?; Madeline's Christmas; EAT (It's Not About Food); Goodnight Moon; The Secret Life of Girls; Stuart Little; If You Give a Mouse a Cookie; The Island of the Skog; Honk!; Babe, the Sheep-Pig; Jack & the Giant Beanstalk; The Wonderful Wizard of Oz; Bunnicula; Lyle the Crocodile; Miss Nelson is Missing (1999 &2010); Miss Nelson is Back!; If You Give a Moose a Muffin and If You Give a Pig a Party (both of which she adapted for the stage); and twelve productions of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever! Ms. Schaeffer also directed DCT's highly successful touring production of The Stinky Cheeseman and Other Fair(l)y (Stoopid) Tales which toured the US and then traveled to Shanghai, China playing at the 2006 Shanghai International Children's Culture and Arts Expo. As Education Director, Ms. Schaeffer oversees numerous programs including: DCT Academy, which offers year-round classes to more than 1,800 young people, ages 3 through 18; Curtains Up On Reading, an in-school residency program that integrates drama, literature, language arts, social studies, and history; After School and Summer Drama Classes that benefit "at-risk" youth through eight after-school satellite arts programs, and DCT's Teen Scene, which nurtures the theater audiences and professionals of tomorrow by opening communication between teens, theater professionals and the community at large. She is also the primary contact with area Educators and District Leaders as well as other Education Directors from area cultural institutions. She also recently directed Shared Stories- a museum theater project with the 6th floor museum being created as a part of the upcoming programs honoring the 50th anniversary of the death of President John F. Kennedy.
TOMMY BOURGEOIS (Production Designer)
Tommy Bourgeois has been associated with The Dallas Opera for over 25 years. He has been an integral part of our Costume Shop and is the Head of the Properties Department. Mr. Bourgeois has designed costumes and scenery for Ballet Austin, including Romeo and Juliette, The Nut Cracker and an original production of Taming of the Shrew commissioned by the Kennedy Center. Other costume designs include Six Flags over Texas' Christmas Show, Jazz land in New Orleans and Dixie Stamped in Tennessee. In addition to designing costumes for various theatres in Dallas, Tommy served as Master Carpenter and Costumer for the Lyric Opera Of Dallas for 4 years from 1986- 1989. He is currently the set designer for the Order of the Alamo Coronation that takes place in San Antonio every spring during Fiesta. Tommy earned a MA in Theatre Design and Dramatic Criticism at Southwest Texas University and went on to earn an MFA at Southern Methodist University where he studied with Bill and Jean Eckhart. In New York, Mr. Bourgeois was the assistant to Beni Montressor on ballets and operas in New York, NY and abroad and worked in the Fashion industry for Joseph Abboud and Emanuel Ungaro.
"JACK & THE BEANSTALK" CAST:
JONATHAN YARRINGTON (Jack)
Last season with the Dallas Opera, tenor Jonathan Yarrington made his main stage debut as the Messenger in Aïda although he has previously sung in our Education and Community Outreach production as Pasquin/Silvio/Doctor Miracle in Bizet's Doctor Miracle. This season he will be singing the role of Jack in John Davies' Jack and the Beanstalk. Mr. Yarrington is a doctoral candidate at the University of North Texas where he has sung Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Jeník in The Bartered Bride, William Marshall in Regina, Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte, and the Stage Manager in Our Town. He has appeared in concert with the Plano Civic Chorus, the Dallas Chamber Orchestra, the Fort Worth Baroque Society, the Texas Camerata, and the South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. He has also been an apprentice with the Utah Festival Opera. He won the Nebraska District of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
LAURA BEGLEY (Mother/Wife)
Laura Begley graduated from Colorado State University in May 2010 with a B.M. in Vocal Performance where she studied with tenor Dr. Todd Queen. She was named 2009 Singer of the Year at Colorado State University. At CSU, her roles included Female Chorus in Britten's The Rape of Lucretia, Meg Page in Verdi's Falstaff, Mrs. Jones in Weill's Street Scene, Angelina in Rossini's La Cenerentola, Zwei Dame in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, The Mother in Menotti's Amahl and the Night Visitors, Prince Orlofsky in Strauss' Die Fledermaus with CSU Opera Theatre, and Nanette in No, No, Nanette with Opera Fort Collins and the CSU Graduate Conducting Program. Laura began her graduate studies at the University of North Texas in 2010. Laura was selected by composer Jake Heggie to perform in a concert of his works. Laura was a finalist in the NOA Scholarship Competition in Memphis and was a Division Winner in Tulsa, OK for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
"ELIXIR OF LOVE" KEY BIOS:
ANTHONY BARRESE (Conductor)
Anthony Barrese is the recipient of the 2007 Georg Solti Foundation U.S. award for young conductors. He served as Assistant Conductor for the Dallas Opera during our 2006-2007 Season and subsequently returned to conduct out student matinees of Tosca in 2008. He has led several productions with Sarasota Opera (Lakmé, Le nozze di Figaro, Hansel and Gretel), and with Opera Southwest (Le nozze di Figaro, Die Fledermaus, La cenerentola) where he is Artistic Director and Principal Conductor. In recent seasons Mr. Barrese made debuts with Boston Lyric Opera (Don Giovanni), Mercury Opera, Edmonton (Il tabarro) and DePaul Opera Theater (Ned Rorem's Our Town). He made his operatic conducting debut in Milan with La bohème and recorded Roberto Andreoni's quattro luci sul lago with "I Solisti della Scala" (a chamber group made up of the first chair musicians of the La Scala Philharmonic) for broadcast on Italian National Radio (RAI 3). Among his 2011-12 performances, Mr. Barrese conducted Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi with Opera Southwest and returned to Sarasota Opera for Lucia di Lammermoor. In the 2012-2013 Season Mr. Barrese will conduct L'elisir d'amore with Opera North, Rossini's Otello Opera Southwest and he will make his Opera Theatre of St. Louis debut with Smetana's The Kiss.
JOEL FERRELL (Stage Director)
Joel Ferrell is Associate Artistic Director at DTC, where his directing/choreography credits include:Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat;Cabaret; A Christmas Carol (2005-2009, 2011, 2012). DTC directing credits include: Red; God of Carnage; Dividing the Estate; reasons to be pretty; The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later; and Cotton Patch Gospel (starring its creator Tom Key). DTC choreography credits include: It's a Bird... It's a Plane... It's Superman; A Midsummer Night's Dream; The Who's Tommy; and My Fair Lady. DFW credits include:Grease (Casa Mañana); Proof (Plano Rep); Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and The Baltimore Waltz (Stage West); Pygmalion (Fort Worth Shakespeare); the premiere of Huck Finn (Classical Acting Company). Mr. Ferrell is a former Artistic Director of Casa Mañana Musicals Inc. in Fort Worth, Texas. He served for two years on the selection committee for the National Alliance of Musical Theatre's New Works Festival in New York City and has worked extensively around the country for Portland Center Stage, Papermill Playhouse, Ford's Theatre and North Shore Music Theatre among others.
TOMMY BOURGEOIS (Production Designer)
Tommy Bourgeois has been associated with The Dallas Opera for over 25 years. He has been an integral part of our Costume Shop and is the Head of the Properties Department. Mr. Bourgeois has designed costumes and scenery for Ballet Austin, including Romeo and Juliette, The Nut Cracker and an original production of Taming of the Shrew commissioned by the Kennedy Center. Other costume designs include Six Flags over Texas' Christmas Show, Jazz land in New Orleans and Dixie Stamped in Tennessee. In addition to designing costumes for various theatres in Dallas, Tommy served as Master Carpenter and Costumer for the Lyric Opera Of Dallas for 4 years from 1986- 1989. He is currently the set designer for the Order of the Alamo Coronation that takes place in San Antonio every spring during Fiesta. Tommy earned a MA in Theatre Design and Dramatic Criticism at Southwest Texas University and went on to earn an MFA at Southern Methodist University where he studied with Bill and Jean Eckhart. In New York, Mr. Bourgeois was the assistant to Beni Montressor on ballets and operas in New York, NY and abroad and worked in the Fashion industry for Joseph Abboud and Emanuel Ungaro.
"ELIXIR OF LOVE" CAST BIOS:
AUDRA METHVIN (Adina)
Soprano Audra Methvin recently won third place in the Dallas Opera Guild Competition where critics said "her version of the quiet and heartbreaking Adieu, notre petite table from Massenet's Manon left us hesitant to break the spell with applause" and was quoted as having " an amazing demonstration of breath and vocal control". In the same competition she placed in the top ten the previous two years, and was the first place winner at the 2012 Vocal Artistry Art Song Competition in Albuquerque. Ms. Methvin's growing list of professional credits include two years in Central City Opera's Young Artist Studio, and performances with the WTAM University Orchestra, Southwest Symphony, Caprock Pro Musica, Roswell Symphony Orchestra, Denver Lyric Opera Guild, University of Denver Orchestra, Boulder Symphony Orchestra, Pro Musica Colorado Chamber Orchestra, Colorado Ballet and St. John's Cathedral of Denver. Audra received her BM in Vocal Performance from Eastern New Mexico University, where she won the Friends of Music Competition in 2011, and was a top finalist in 2012. Her vocal and musical talents have also earned her a number of other awards that include the Ross L. Tyler award at Central City Opera, sixth place in the Denver Lyric Opera Competition, and a Grant Award from Allied Arts of Denver. This February, she appeared in Puccini's Suor Angelica in the title role with ENMU Opera. She joined the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria for summer 2013, and will begin her studies in the Performer's Diploma program at Southern Methodist University this fall.
JEAWOOK LEE (Nemorino)
Tenor, Jeawook Lee, received the Bachelor of Music degree from Seoul National University in August of 2009. He entered the Performance Diploma program in 2011 and in that same year, Jeawook was a Finalist in the Regional Competition of the National Association of Teachers of Singing. In summer 2012, he sang the role of Tamino in The Magic Flute in Amalfi Coast Music Festival production in Naples, Italy. Jeawook sang the role of Don Basilio in the SMU Opera Theater productions of The Marriage of Figaro in 2012, and in the February 2013 production ofAlbert Herring, he performed the role of Mayor. Jeawook has been a Finalist in the Dallas Opera Guild Competition and in the National Opera Association Competition. He completed the Performance Diploma in May 2013 and will begin study in the Masters Degree program next fall at SMU.
NJABULO MTHIMKHULU (Belcore)
Njabulo Mthimkhulu makes his TDO2Go and Student Performances @ the Winspear debut with these performances. He has sung Marullo inRigoletto and de Bretigny in Manon with the Cape Town Opera and was a soloist for Handel's Messiah, Haydn's Missa Cellensis, Mozart'sCoronation Mass and Schubert Mass in G. His repertoire includes the title role in Don Giovanni, the Count in Le Nozze di Figaro, and Rambaldo in La Rondine. He made his European debut in Sweden as Jean in Boesman's Julie. Upcoming engagements include the Count in Le Nozze di Figaro with Southern Methodist University. Mr. Mthimkhulu is currently working on his Artist Diploma at Southern Methodist University.
TRAVIS MCGUIRE (Dulcamara)
Travis Wiley McGuire graduated from Southern Methodist University with an M.M. in Voice Performance, studying under Virginia Dupuy, Martha Gerhart, and Simon Sargon. His B.A. Degrees in Music and Biblical Text are from Abilene Christian University, where he studied under Julie Pruett. In Abilene, he appeared as Bartolo in Le Nozze di Figaro, as Gianni Schicchi, and as Frank Maurrant in Kurt Weill's Street Scene. He also sang with the Abilene Opera Association as the Imperial Registrar in Madama Butterfly, as Sonora in La Fanciulla del West, and as Smee inPeter Pan. McGuire's appearance as Prison Warden Frank in the Abilene Tri-Collegiate Opera's Die Fledermaus was described in the Abilene Reporter News as displaying a "well-developed comedic bent" and "great vocal abilities." In 2008, McGuire participated in the Los Angeles-based program, OperaWorks! where he worked with noted coach, Ann Baltz. He has also recently appeared in several of the the SMU Opera Ensemble's "Opera Free for All" series concerts, in addition to appearances as the Narrator in The Old Maid and the Thief, the Sorceror in Dido and Aeneas, Alcindoro in La Boheme, Grandpa Moss in an award-winning production of Aaron Copland's The Tender Land, and the Learned Judge in Gilbert and Sullivan's Trial by Jury.
"FAMILY CONCERT" KEY BIOS:
ANTHONY BARRESE (Conductor)
Anthony Barrese is the recipient of the 2007 Georg Solti Foundation U.S. award for young conductors. He served as Assistant Conductor for the Dallas Opera during our 2006-2007 Season and subsequently returned to conduct out student matinees of Tosca in 2008. He has led several productions with Sarasota Opera (Lakmé, Le nozze di Figaro, Hansel and Gretel), and with Opera Southwest (Le nozze di Figaro, Die Fledermaus, La cenerentola) where he is Artistic Director and Principal Conductor. In recent seasons Mr. Barrese made debuts with Boston Lyric Opera (Don Giovanni), Mercury Opera, Edmonton (Il tabarro) and DePaul Opera Theater (Ned Rorem's Our Town). He made his operatic conducting debut in Milan with La bohème and recorded Roberto Andreoni's quattro luci sul lago with "I Solisti della Scala" (a chamber group made up of the first chair musicians of the La Scala Philharmonic) for broadcast on Italian National Radio (RAI 3). Among his 2011-12 performances, Mr. Barrese conducted Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi with Opera Southwest and returned to Sarasota Opera for Lucia di Lammermoor. In the 2012-2013 Season Mr. Barrese will conduct L'elisir d'amore with Opera North, Rossini's Otello Opera Southwest and he will make his Opera Theatre of St. Louis debut with Smetana's The Kiss.
JOANNA MONGIARDO (Soprano)
The internationally acclaimed soprano Joanna Mongiardo is recognized for her effortless coloratura and spellbinding charisma on stage, and is in high demand for both operatic and symphonic repertoire. Opera News gushes of her, "Petite, with a theater-filling smile, Mongiardo radiates warmth through her unforced, pearly-fresh timbre." In the 2011/2012 season, Ms. Mongiardo performed a last-minute Blonde in Die Entführung aus dem Serail for Grand Théâtre de Genève, and immediately reprised the role for both Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf and Opéra de Nice. She then performed Juliette in Roméo et Juliette for Dayton Opera and joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera for their new production of Manon. In 2012/13, Ms. Mongiardo returns to both Deutsche Oper am Rhein for Blonde and to Opéra de Nice to sing Erste Dame in Die Zauberflöte. She will also join the the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra for an evening of Italian arias under the baton of Marcelo Lehninger and she makes her debut in China at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in a concert of French arias with the Shanghai Opera Orchestra. During the 2010/11 season, Mongiardo scored a triumph with her Teatro Grattacielo debut at Lincoln Center as Rosalina in Giordano's Il Re. Opernwelt Jahrbuch 2011 deemed it one of the best individual performances of the year. Opera News praised her for "effortlessly negotiating the fiorature, extended trills and stratospheric high notes originally sung by Toti Dal Monte in 1929." Ms. Mongiardo has also become a favorite at Central City Opera since performing the title role in their 50th Anniversary production of The Ballad of Baby Doe. Because of her success, she was invited by Central City to return to perform Eurydice in Orpheus in the Underworld, Thérèse in Les Mamelles De Tirésias, and Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi. The American born soprano is of Italian, Greek and Armenian heritage. She is a 2003 Sullivan Award recipient and received a Master's Degree in music from Yale University.
EMILY FONS (Mezzo-Soprano)
American Mezzo-Soprano Emily Fons has made several exciting role debuts in recent seasons that have set her apart as a versatile, powerful, and engaging performer. In 2012 Miss Fons made her European debut in the role of Megacle in Vivaldi's L'Olimpiade with Garsington Opera. She was acclaimed as a mezzo to sway even the most ardent of countertenor devotees (The Arts Desk). She also appeared as Sesto in Michigan Opera Theatre's production of Giulio Cesare, a role she sang with passion and a performance that was deemed a major impact (Encore Michigan). Other notable debuts include company debuts with the Madison Opera, Madison Symphony, and Chicago Opera Theater. From 2010-2012 Miss Fons was a member of the Ryan Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. While in Chicago Emily had huge success in the role of Nicklausse in Les Contes d'Hoffmann. Fons was praised in the Chicago Tribune for her warm pliant mezzo in this breakout part. During her time in Chicago she was also noted for her portrayals of Fyodor in Boris Godunov, Mercedes in Carmen, and Peep Bo in The Mikado. The 2013/14 seasons bring an exciting role debut as Cherubino with the Santa Fe Opera, a return to the Lyric Opera of Chicago and company debuts in Atlanta and Dallas.
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