Maestro Emmanuel Plasson Will Conduct Opening to Tulsa Opera's 69th Season

Tulsa Opera, one of the nation's most veteran regional opera companies and an historic incubator of rising operatic talent, announces that Maestro Emmanuel Plasson will take the podium for the opening production of its 69th Season, replacing Frèdèric Chaslin. Says Greg Weber, General Director and CEO of Tulsa Opera, "We are very excited to have Maestro Plasson conducting Tulsa Opera's production of Georges Bizet's early masterpiece, The Pearl Fishers. Maestro Plasson, one of the leading French conductors of his generation, brings to Tulsa his noted eloquence and panache for the French repertoire."

Maestro Plasson, replacing Frèdèric Chaslin who withdrew for personal reasons, is currently Music Director of the Opera Company of Middlebury (Vermont), for whom he has conducted Thais, L'Italiana in Algeri, La Traviata, La Rondine, and Eugene Onegin. Mr. Plasson made his North American debut in 1997, conducting the Royal Ballet Covent Garden on tour, including performances at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, which resulted in an invitation to join the Metropolitan Opera as an Assistant Conductor for productions of Manon and Carmen. He went on to become a frequent conductor of the New York City Opera, and has conducted at the Dallas Opera, Minnesota Opera, and Opéra de Montréal among many other North American opera houses.

Among Plasson's notable European opera conducting engagements are performances at the Teatro Massimo Bellini de Catania, the Royal Swedish Opera, the Hamburg State Opera, Théâtre du Capitole de Toulouse, the Royal Danish Opera House, and at Opera North in Leeds. In Australia, he has conducted for Opera Australia and Melbourne Opera as well as for New Zealand Opera.

In addition, the Russian baritone Aleksey Bogdanov replaces Jeremy Galyon as Nourabad in The Pearl Fishers. Tobias Picker, Artistic Director of Tulsa Opera says, "Tulsa Opera is proud to add yet another stellar artist to its distinguished roster. Aleksey has impressed audiences throughout the opera world with the beauty of his powerful, lyrical voice and with his commanding presence as a singing actor."

Aleksey Bogdanov, just finishing the role of Scarpia in Tosca at Opera North (New Hampshire) where ArtfulEdge describes his performance as one that "will never fade from my memory and will haunt my dreams," replaces Jeremy Galyon. Galyon withdrew from the production due to a scheduling conflict. Russian-American baritone Aleksey Bogdanov "commands a handsome dark quality wedded to a solid baritone" (Opera Today) that "rumbles rivetingly from top to bottom" (Opera News). Recent highlights include Sharpless in Madama Butterfly at The Glimmerglass Festival, Escamillo in Carmen with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and The Atlanta Opera, Eugene Onegin with Edmonton Opera, and Bass Soloist in Handel's Messiah at Carnegie Hall.

The Pearl Fishers has performances on October 21 and October 23, 2016 at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center. For tickets call 918-587-4811or 866-298-2530 (toll-free), or visit www.tulsaopera.com.

Now entering its 69th season, Tulsa Opera's mission is to produce professional opera of artistic integrity and enrich its region through innovative education and outreach programs. The company presents four productions annually at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center. Its presence at TPAC, its Young Artist Program (which draws young talent from across the U.S.), its accomplished Tulsa Youth Opera, as well as having the most extensive arts education program in Oklahoma, have established Tulsa Opera as a cornerstone arts organization in the southern central U.S. The company touches in excess of 30,000 people annually, drawing audiences from a five-state region. www.tulsaopera.com

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