PROGRAM: Highways and Valleys

25/26 SEASON | A MERICA @ 250 STA RS OF A M ER IC A N BALLE T / O C T 1 8 -19 DA N C E T H E AT R E OF H A RLE M / NOV 1 5 -16 HIGH WAYS A N D VALLE YS / DEC 07-1 3

Melissa Errico

Brandon Victor Dixon

U of M Musical Theater Seniors

Maxine Linehan

John Pizzarelli

Detroit Opera Resident Artists

SeaSon 2025-26

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Photography of front cover artwork by Tyree Guyton, "Cover Up" Mixed media, Courtesy of Cranbrook Art Museum Photo by Helmut Ziewers

TABLE OF CONTENTS 02

Board of Directors

02

Board of Trustees

05

A Message from Patty Isacson Sabee

P1

Program

11

Thank You to Our Donors

17

Detroit Opera Orchestra

18 Administration and Staff 20

General Information

Enrico DiGirolamo Maria C. Duey Marianne Endicott Fern R. Espino

BOARD OF TRUSTEES AS OF OCTOBER 1, 2025

Paul E. Ewing

Lourdes V. Andaya

Mary Ann Fontana

Naomi André

John W. Ingle III

Harold Mitchell Arrington

Barbara Kratchman

Bettye Arrington-Martin

Arthur C. Liebler

Barbra Bloch

Dexter Mason

Gene P. Bowen

Ali Moiin

Richard Brodie

Donald Morelock

Charles D. Bullock

Allan Nachman

Thomas Cohn

Ann Nicholson

Peter Cooper

Sara Pozzi

Shelly Cooper

Carrie Pryor

Ethan D. Davidson

Paul Ragheb

Gretchen Davidson

Irvin D. Reid

Kevin Dennis

Ethan D. Davidson

Evan D. Ross

Cristina DiChiera

VICE CHAIR

Nedda Shayota

Lisa M. DiChiera

Mary Kramer

Terry Shea

Shauna Ryder Diggs

VICE CHAIR

Matthew Simoncini

Enrico DiGirolamo

Denise J. Lewis

Richard A. Sonenklar

Kathleen DiGirolamo

VICE CHAIR

BOARD OF DIRECTORS AS OF OCTOBER 1, 2025 CHAIR

Lorna Thomas

Debbie Dingell

Don Manvel

Jesse Venegas

Mary Jane Doerr

PRESIDENT/CEO

Barbara Walkowski

Linda Dresner

Gary L. Wasserman

Maria C. Duey

Ellen Hill Zeringue

Kenneth Eisenberg

Patty Isacson Sabee SECRETARY

Gene P. Bowen TREASURER

Frances Eisenberg

DIRECTORS EMERITI

Marianne Endicott

Elizabeth Brooks

Mary Sue Ewing

Shelly Cooper

Margo Cohen Feinberg

Marjorie M. Fisher

Robert Feinberg

Herman Frankel

Carl Fontana

Naomi André

Dean Friedman

Mary Ann Fontana

Richard A. Brodie

Jennifer Nasser

Bharat C. Gandhi

Kevin Dennis

Charlotte Podowski

Lynn Gandhi

Lisa M. DiChiera

C. Thomas Toppin

Mara Ghafari

Shauna Ryder Diggs

Richard Webb

Yousif Ghafari

Bharat C. Gandhi IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR

R. Jamison Williams

2

Fern R. Espino Paul E. Ewing

Toby Haberman

Irvin D. Reid

Roberta Starkweather

Gregory Haynes

Pamela Trotman Reid

C. Thomas Toppin

John Ingle III

Evan Ross

Bernie Toppin

Tara Ingle

Kelsey Ross

Mary Lou Zieve

Patty Isacson Sabee

Anthony Rugiero

Jill Johnson

Sabrina Rugiero

Ellen Kahn

David Sabee

FOUNDING MEMBERS

Stephanie Germack Kerzic

Nedda Shayota

Lynn & Ruth Townsend*

Meredith Korneffel

Terry Shea

Avern & Joyce Cohn*

Mary Kramer

Thomas Short

John & Mardell* De Carlo

Barbara Kratchman

Matthew Simoncini

David DiChiera*

Michael Kratchman

Mona Simoncini

William Kupsky

Sheila Sloan

Karen VanderKloot DiChiera*

Ed Levy Jr.

Richard A. Sonenklar

Denise J. Lewis

Mary Ann Stella

Arthur C. Liebler

Lorna Thomas

Nancy Liebler

Jesse Venegas

Marian Loginsky

Yesenia Venegas

Stephan Loginsky

Amy Voigt

Mary Alice Lomason

Jeff Voigt

Don Manvel

Barbara Walkowski

Jack Martin

Gary L. Wasserman

Dexter Mason

Karen Williams

Benjamin Meeker

R. Jamison Williams

Ronald Michalak

Jeremy Zeltzer

Ali Moiin

Ellen Hll Zeringue

Antoinette Morelock Joy Nachman

TRUSTEES EMERITI

Linda Orlans

Augustin Arbulu

Myrna Partrich

Dodie David

Spencer Partrich

Larry David

Margaret Pehrson

Dede Feldman

Sara Pozzi

Dean Friedman

Waltraud Prechter

Aviva Friedman

Carrie Pryor

Mary Happel

Ted Pryor

Robert Klein

Amy Ragheb

Wally Klein

Paul Ragheb

Charlotte Podowski

John Rakolta

Charles Powdowski

Terry Rakolta

Marjorie Sandy

Allan Nachman

Aaron & Bernice Gershenson* Donald & Josephine Graves* Roman & Katherine Gribbs* John & Gwendolyn Griffin* Harry & Jennie Jones* Wade & Dores McCree* Harry J. Nederlander* E. Harwood Rydholm* Neil & Phyllis* F. Snow Richard & Beatrice Strichartz* Robert & Clara “Tuttie” VanderKloot* Sam & Barbara Williams* Theodore & Virginia Yntema* KEY *Deceased

DE T R OI T OPER A | 3

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A message from

Patty Isacson Sabee On behalf of Detroit Opera’s family of musicians and artists, staff and board, production crew and volunteers, I’m delighted to welcome you to the historic Detroit Opera House for our 25/26 season.

There is much to inspire in the rich world of opera and dance presentations that you have come to enjoy here. We also hope these presentations will inspire deeper conversations about issues that affect us all, and this season we invite you to journey along with us as we explore American identity, as the nation marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Each unique opera and dance production offers us an opportunity to participate in a dialogue around the question: Has America at 250 lived up to its promise?

At Detroit Opera, we remain committed to sharing the beauty and emotional depth of opera, which is the foundation of who we are. At the same time, by presenting diverse programming that celebrates the many ways music and culture can move us, we honor our city’s dynamic artistic spirit and open new doors for audiences to experience the wonder of live performance.

In addition, as our beautiful home enters its 29th year of hosting performances and events for the greater Detroit community, we hope you will join us for more opportunities to experience the vibrancy and variety of what we can bring to this stage.

If Bugs Bunny is what first introduced you to the magical world of opera, please bring family and friends and join us in April for a concert celebrating Bugs’s 85th birthday.

Classic Looney Tunes cartoons including “The Rabbit of Seville” and “What’s Opera, Doc?” will be projected on our big screen while the Detroit Opera Orchestra performs the original, iconic scores live!

Or if the magic of our dance presentations inspires you to get your groove on, head down to the Detroit Opera House on January 31 for Symphonic PFunk: Celebrating the Music of Parliament Funkadelic and enjoy the Detroit Opera Orchestra in collaboration with legendary funkmaster George Clinton, joined by special guests Nona Hendryx, Vernon Reid, and Bilal. Clinton’s unique PFunk style blends jazz, rock, pop, classical, and gospel, and this concert will be a once-in-a-lifetime chance to hear Clinton’s songbook with the grandeur of a full orchestra.

Whatever inspires you to join us at Detroit Opera, we thank you for being here.

It is so important today for us all to be together, for the transformative power of performance to engage and connect us.

Patty Isacson Sabee President & CEO, Detroit Opera DE T R OI T OPER A | 5

Youth Chorus Detroit Opera Youth Chorus (DOYC) is a world class training program for singers ages 8 through high school seniors. Choristers learn from Detroit Opera professionals who skillfully build a solid foundation of artistic expression and music theory. Many of our DOYC alumni have gone on to prestigious conservatories and universities majoring in vocal performance or musical theater.

DOYC

Upcoming performances: FRI / NOVEMBER 07, 2025 / 8:00PM SAT / NOVEMBER 08, 2025 / 8:00PM SUN / NOVEMBER 09, 2025 / 3:00PM

Carmina Burana

with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra Tickets @ DSO.org

SUN / DECEMBER 14, 2025 / 2:30PM

A Winter Fantasy

at First Presbyterian Church Royal Oak Tickets @ DetroitOpera.org

SAT / M AY 02, 2026 / 2:00PM

Dean Burry’s

The Hobbit

Youth Opera at Detroit Opera House Tickets @ DetroitOpera.org

6

Sip & Stroll at the DOH Have you ever strolled by the Detroit Opera House and wanted to know what it looks like inside? Join us for a 90-minute “Sip & Stroll” experience at the Detroit Opera House. Tours offer participants the chance to see our beautiful, historic 1922 theater, designed by renowned architect C. Howard Crane, and include the mainstage and backstage areas, plus a visit to the rooftop for spectacular views of downtown Detroit from our SkyDeck (weather permitting). Sip & Stroll tours include a glass of premium red or white wine, bottled water, and snacks. Must be 21 years old with a valid ID.

Visit DetroitOpera.org for available dates and to purchase tickets.

DE T R OI T OPER A | 7

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Join Detroit Opera’s volunteer community and share your gifts and talents. Have fun and make friends while participating in a multitude of opportunities all supporting Detroit Opera’s mission.

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Hubbard Street Dance Chicago SAT / JA N 24 / 7:30PM

SUN / JA N 25 / 2:30PM

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, one of the most original forces in contemporary dance, was founded

by Lou Conte in 1977 with deep roots in theatrical jazz dance—a uniquely American artform. The Detroit program will feature works from top contemporary choreographers plus two works from Tony Award– winning Broadway choreographer Bob Fosse.

25/26

DANCE

Paul Taylor Dance Company SAT / A PR 11 / 7:30PM

SUN / A PR 12 / 2:30PM

Since its founding in 1954, the Paul Taylor Dance Company has been a groundbreaking force in American modern dance and has been described by The New York Times as “one of the most exciting, innovative and delightful dance companies in the entire world.” The program salutes the American dance icon with repertory that includes Company B, a seminal piece of Americana that recalls the turbulent era of the Great Depression through the hit songs of the Andrews Sisters, and a 50th anniversary presentation of Taylor’s masterpiece Esplanade described by The New Yorker as “a mythic dimension on ordinary aspects of our daily lives.”

FOR TICKETS, VISIT DETROITOPERA.ORG

director’s NOTE from Kaneza Schaal As we return to a wealth disparity the USA has not seen since the Gilded Age, I am honored to tend two mighty American operas about the many, not the few.

William Grant Still and Kurt Weill are two men who understood margins well. Both knew more than their share about exile. Weill fled Nazi Germany to find refuge in America, making a new home for himself and his music. Still’s life and music were born in the USA. In the 1940s, his Afro-American Symphony was the most frequently performed symphonic work by any American composer, yet Still was systematically excluded from the canon and barred from opportunities on the basis of race.

Both artists cared deeply for Americans—all Americans.

Down in the Valley draws on Weill’s Germanic compositional roots and interest in American folk music. Weill believed in his music reaching many people. He composed Down in the Valley for the radio in order to gather expansive audiences. This creates a unique demand in the score for intimate amplified speaking voices.

We lean into the aesthetics of this presentational structure, using both the logic of the recording studio and the folk tradition of quilting to frame the music. Flatness in folk craft is not about the absence of depth—it is about the presence of relation. It is about surfaces that hold history, touch, and communal order; one that values material truth over illusion.

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Weill’s collaborations with Bertolt Brecht have been widely celebrated.

While the two artists understood the theatrical idea of “alienation” differently, they were both inspired by traditions that valued ways of telling stories that privileged truth over illusion, looking toward traditions from early Yiddish theater to Chinese Opera to praise singing.

We tell the love stories you hear tonight through the transformative power embedded in African American quilting traditions: what was discarded made radiant; what was fragmented made whole; infinite histories of resistance and resilience, quilts as maps to safety and freedom, quilts as flags that protect and serve communities. The tapestry design includes echoes from the score, which call to mind Martin Luther King Jr.’s

“Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Alvin Ailey's Rainbow Round My Shoulder, the quilts of Winfred Rembert.

Highway 1, USA is also an American love story about working people.

It represents a pivotal moment in American history. On one hand, there is the American Dream: the dream of the 1940s, hard work, meritocracy, the promise of the road and the West, and the kinds of independence that signified for African Americans, indeed for all Americans. Then there is another model of success, a new possibility, when, for the first time, a university education became accessible for so many more folks, for Black folks, for soldiers through the GI Bill. This was another order of aspiration. William Grant Still and librettist Verna Arvey are thinking about this tension, which would eventually be the beginning of the end of the middle class.

Still’s music itself is reaching to build a new world; you feel it in every note. The mythological path of the Highway. Its road of dreams. Its promises. And the filling station to ignite and fuel the journey. Layered into this music are Still’s years studying with Edgard Varèse, W.C. Handy, and Harry Pace at Black Swan Records. Still is unparalleled in his capacity for integrating the polymathematics of music from the margins into the calculus of the canon.

While the libretto reads with the crisp clarity of a morality play, the music sends us into the complexity of thought in each character. We’re invited to consider the competing dreams and the different Americas they might birth. Mary begins the opera singing about the fox and

hare, invoking the African American folklore of Br’er Rabbit and Br’er Fox, trickster figures that journeyed across the Atlantic from Africa into African American traditions in the United States. These tricksters propel our stage and remind us to listen to these struggles beyond moralism.

The production is set in Still’s imagination, his own dream of what was possible for Americans, for music, for the future. The piece takes place in the cracks between when Still composed the opera in the 1940s and when it first premiered in the 1960s—that leaves us somewhere between the clean façade and dark underbelly of the 1950s. In that spirit of fracture, I looked at the works of James Rosenquist and Alma Thomas, two American painters, contemporaries of Still, who in very different ways address pieces and wholeness.

When I first listened to Highway 1, USA I kept getting swept off my feet into the strings, running around my mind in a film score. Then I remembered that falling is a familiar feeling—it’s the same swell and release of Wagner, or Verdi, or Puccini.

In fact, that film score in my mind, that sound, was built in studios in Hollywood by musicians who had played those works and fled in exile, like Weill, to dream a new world.

Tonight is a profoundly American night of music, birthed from layers of exile, war, and dreaming that are baked into the DNA of this country.

Let us remember our dreamers, our lovers, the artists who built new worlds, and who left us blueprints to keep imagining a healthy world for the many, not just the few.

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With his 1948 radio opera Down in the Valley, Kurt Weill aimed to advance an aesthetic agenda for American opera during a turbulent period in our country’s history.

By Naomi Graber Throughout his life, Kurt Weill was fascinated by the idea of “America.”

His European works depict America as a capitalist dystopia. But in 1935, as it became clear that Europe was no longer safe for the Jewish Weill, he set sail for the New World and his engagement with America shifted. From that point forward, most of his works concerned the idea of “America.”

This excerpt from scholar Naomi Graber’s Kurt Weill’s America examines his 1948 radio opera Down in the Valley, which became one of the most widely performed of his works in his lifetime.

On the 9 March 1941 episode of the NBC radio program I’m an American!, composer Kurt Weill waxed enthusiastic about the United States:

“I think it is this kinship of the spirit which brings America its new citizens from all lands. Those who come here seeking the freedom, justice, opportunity, and human dignity they miss in their own countries are already Americans before they come.”

Still, Weill worried about complacency, reminding listeners that “the greatest danger to the human race is indifference, and that people “are much too ready to forget what a precious thing it is to be able to live their own lives and they don’t know what they would lose if their way of life would be P4

destroyed.” To counter this impulse, he hoped to "show on the stage what it really means to be free” and to “show it in simple terms so that it can reach everybody.” Weill proposed to continue the aesthetic work he had begun in Germany, suggesting that the “musical play,” which he defined as "a form of theater which combines the elements of drama, musical comedy, ballet and opera," was best suited to this purpose.

Kurt Weill lived through a turbulent period in U.S. history. From afar, he witnessed the free-wheeling 1920s give way to the devastation of the Great Depression. When he arrived, the United States was beginning to recover from the stock-market crash. The war years saw the nation unite against European fascism, and industrial production rose to meet the demands of the armed forces, ending the Depression.

By September 1945 the war in Europe was over, and Weill and Federal Theatre Project playwright Arnold Sundgaard had written Down in the Valley, a twenty-five-minute piece based on the folk song of the same name. Weill and Sundgaard intended the piece as the first in a series of folk song-based operas for radio, a project instigated by Charles MacArthur and New York music critic Olin Downes.

But the program did not get picked up, and the piece went on the shelf until Hans Heinsheimer of Schirmer Publishing (formerly of Universal Edition, Weill’s European publisher) contacted Weill in 1947 to request a “school opera.” Weill obliged with an expanded version of Down in the Valley, which by 1950 was licensed to nearly three hundred schools. On 14 January 1950, NBC broadcast a television performance with Marion Bell, making it the most widely performed of Weill’s works during his lifetime.

Both Downes and Weill hoped that Down in the Valley would shape the national psyche to better serve the democratic ideals of the postwar United States. The story is remarkably similar to Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!, which premiered on Broadway in 1943. Both Weill and Downes admired Oklahoma! but thought that it was too commercial to be considered the foundation of American opera. Down in the Valley presented their musical response.

Down in the Valley and Oklahoma! share many similarities. Both concern the question of who will take the girl to the dance. Brack, like Oklahoma’s Curly, is an everyman figure, rough around the edges but a good match for the wholesome farm girl. Bouché is a combination of the rival suitor in

the two love triangles in Oklahoma!: Jud, and the peddler Ali Hakim (Will Parker’s rival for Ado Annie in Oklahoma!), two characters who are linked through their status as outsiders.

In Oklahoma! the dance scene shows the community overcoming their differences, not always willingly. The community of Down in the Valley cannot live in peace. If, in Oklahoma! the community that dances together can be a state together, in Down in the Valley, the community that cannot dance together is destined for tragedy.

In Down in the Valley, the possibility of Brack’s innocence renders the ending even more tragic, and speaks to a more uncertain environment in the early postwar era, when issues of guilt and innocence dominated both national and international politics. In wartime, the difference between heroes and villains was clear. In the era of McCarthyism, de-Nazification, and the nascent Cold War, those lines were becoming blurrier by the day. Weill understood that the “city on a hill” was fragile, and that constant vigilance was required to maintain that “light unto the nations.”

Dr. Naomi Graber is Assistant Professor of Musicology at the Hugh Hodgson School of Music, University of Georgia. She is the recipient of the Rhonda A. and Robert Hillel Silver Award from the Carolina Center for Jewish Studies as well as fellowships to study at the Library of Congress, the Arnold Schönberg-Centre in Vienna, the Kurt Weill Foundation, and the Willson Center for the Humanities at the University of Georgia.

Excerpted from Kurt Weill’s America (Oxford University Press, 2021).

Reprinted with permission.

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William Grant Still & Kurt Weill in the

By Dr. Austin T. Richey William Grant Still: Shaping Black Sound on Record Before becoming a leading symphonic composer, Still worked as an arranger, instrumentalist, and musical fixer for Black Swan Records, the first nationally distributed Black-owned record label, based in Harlem. His arrangements for some of the era’s top artists and ensembles helped define the label’s polished, cosmopolitan sound—an intentional counter to the stereotypes dominating the early recording industry.

Still arranged and performed on several early Black Swan discs, including: • Ethel Waters, “Down Home Blues” (1921)—Still’s refined orchestral touches helped elevate Waters’ breakout hit.

• Nora Holt’s recordings (1921– 22)—Though many are now lost, Still’s orchestrations were central to Holt’s polished studio sound.

• Sammi Bryant Orchestra sides (1922)—Still contributed arrangements that blended blues idioms with a more formal instrumental palette.

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Still’s recordings showed him in command of every aspect of popular and classical idioms. His arrangements raised production standards for Black artists on record, helped launch major careers (especially Waters), and pushed mainstream labels to pay closer attention to Black musical excellence.

Kurt Weill: A Composer Built for the Age of Recording Weill rose to international prominence just as electrical recording transformed the industry. His music—lean, rhythmic, and theatrically direct—translated unusually well to 78-rpm discs and radio broadcasts, giving him a reach far beyond the theater.

Key early discs that shaped Weill’s reputation include: • Berlin cast recording of Die Dreigroschenoper (1930)— A major commercial success; its version of “Die Moritat von Mackie Messer” (“Mack the Knife”) became one of the era’s most circulated tracks.

• American cast albums: Street Scene (1949) and Lost in the Stars (1949)—These studio albums preserved Weill’s amalgam of Broadway-operatic styles and helped cement his legacy in the U.S.

• Recordings from Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny (Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny) and Happy End— Widely broadcast on European radio, both recordings helped establish the Weill-Brecht sound as a cultural force.

Weill was one of the first modern composers to fully embrace the commercial recording landscape.

His works circulated through radio, theater discs, and cast albums, allowing his music to cross borders and genres. From Berlin cabaret to Broadway, Weill helped define how theatrical music could live— and thrive—on record.

Austin T. Richey is Detroit Opera’s Storyteller and Digital Media Manager. He recently joined the faculty at College for Creative Studies, where he teaches Introduction to Material Culture and African Visual Narration.

He is an ethnomusicologist whose research explores diasporic African music’s role in social movements, identity, and resistance—particularly in Zimbabwe and Detroit.

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Synopsis

Down in the Valley The action begins in a jail and is told in flashback form. As the opera opens, the chorus sings “Down in the Valley” and the Leader tells the story of Brack Weaver, who “died for the love of sweet Jennie Parsons.”

A flashback reveals the moment when Jennie and Brack met for the first time at a prayer meeting. As he walks her home, Brack asks Jennie to accompany him to a dance that weekend. Jennie happily agrees. When she arrives home, her father’s business associate, Thomas Bouché, also invites her to the dance. Jennie refuses the offer. Her father tells her that she may not attend with anyone else. Jennie, disobeying her father, goes to the dance with Brack, where Bouché appears with a knife in his hand.

A fight ensues and Bouché is killed. Brack is arrested.

At dawn, Brack surrenders.

From the jail cell, he sings a final verse of “Down in the Valley” and Jennie and the chorus sing a final reprise.

INTER MISSION P8

D E S I G N D E TA IL S B Y C H R I S T O P H E R M Y E R S

Brack Weaver is in prison awaiting his execution the next morning for killing his rival, Thomas Bouché. When the evening train does not bring a letter from his beloved Jennie, he breaks out of prison and rushes to find her. At Jennie’s home, she assures Brack of her undying love for him but tells him that her father has forbidden her to have any contact with him. Brack turns himself in to meet his fate.

Synopsis

Highway 1, USA Bob and Mary live in a small home connected to a filling station, where Bob earns a living to support them and his brother, Nate.

Bob and Mary have worked hard and made sacrifices in order to put Nate through college. Mary dreams of the life they will have once Nate’s education is completed. Bob explains that according to his mother’s deathbed wish, they must support Nate until he has established himself financially. Mary tells Aunt Lou, Bob and Mary’s friend and neighbor, of her hatred for Nate. After finishing his education, Nate remains idle for a year, living with Bob and Mary and contributing nothing.

One morning Bob expresses his doubt that Nate will ever get a job. Nate comes in after Bob has left and commences to woo Mary. Mary laughs at him and confirms her love for Bob. Nate becomes enraged and stabs her. Mary’s screams bring Bob running. Thinking that Mary is dead, Bob takes the blame, in order to protect his brother. Mary regains consciousness and names Nate as her assailant. As he is led away, Nate pleads with Bob to help him. Ignoring his pleas, Bob kneels by Mary and promises a brighter future.

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These performances of Down in the Valley/Highway 1, USA are presented by

With support from

Kaneza Schaal (Director) is generously sponsored by Denise J. Lewis Nicole Heaston (Jennie / Mary) is generously sponsored in part by The Hon. Jack & Dr. Bettye Arrington Martin Davóne Tines (Thomas Bouché / Bob) is generously sponsored by Barbara Walkowski Victor Ryan Robertson (Brack Weaver / Nate) is generously by Carl & Mary Ann Fontana

Lawrence Mitchell-Matthews (Sheriff / Preacher) is generously sponsored by Lorna Thomas, MD Babatunde Akinboboye (Leader) is generously sponsored by Ali Moiin & William Kupsky

Costume materials provided in part by Carhartt

Support of the chorus of Down in the Valley is provided by the Kurt Weill Foundation for Music, Inc.

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D E S I G N D E TA IL S B Y C H R I S T O P H E R M Y E R S

Rehanna Thelwell (Aunt Lou) is generously sponsored by Dr. Lourdes V. Andaya

PROGR AM

DOWN IN THE VALLEY C O M POS ER: Kurt Weill

LIBR E T T O: Arnold Sundgaard W O RLD PR E M IER E: July 15, 1948, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana

New production world premiere at Detroit Opera

by Kaneza Schaal: December 7, 2025 DU R AT IO N: 35 minutes IN T ER M I SSIO N: 25 M IN U T E S

HIGHWAY 1, USA

C O M POS ER: William Grant Still

LIBR E T T O: Verna Arvey W O RLD PR E M IER E: May 12, 1963, University of Miami Festival of American Music, Coral Gables, Florida

A production of Los Angeles Opera.

DU R AT IO N: 60 minutes

S U N / D EC 07 / @ 2:30P M

PR E- PERFO R M A N C E TALK @1:3 0P M W I T H R OBER TO K ALB, K A NE Z A S C H A AL, N AT H ALIE D OUC E T T H U / D EC 11 / @7:30P M

PR E- PERFO R M A N C E TALK @6:3 0P M W I T H DR. N AO MI A NDR É SAT / D EC 13 / @7:30P M

PR E- PERFO R M A N C E TALK @6:3 0P M W I T H DR. N AO MI A NDR É

No photography or video is allowed during the performance.

Please silence all phones.

RU N T I M E: 2H RS W I T H IN T ER M I SSIO N

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production DIR EC T O R

Kaneza Schaal P R O DU C T IO N D E SIG N ER

A SS O CI AT E DIR EC T O R

Christopher Myers

Tyler Thomas

S C ENIC D E SIG N ER

A SS O CI AT E LIG H T IN G D E SIG N ER

Amy Rubin C OS T U M E D E SIG N ER

Charlese Antoinette LIG H T IN G D E SIG N ER

Pablo Santiago C H O R EO G R A P H ER

Kiara Benn F IG H T C H O R EO G R A P H ER

Jen Pan W IG/M A K EU P D E SIG N ER

Joanne Middleton-Weaver

Joey Guthman C H O R US DIR EC T O R

Katherine Kozak R EP E T I T EU R

John Etsell S TAG E M A N AG ER

Nan Luchini A SSI S TA N T S TAG E M A N AG ER S

Kaila Madison Hailli Ridsdale

D O W N IN T H E VALLE Y

A production of Detroit Opera Set construction by MiddleBrain, LLC Costumes by Detroit Opera and Los Angeles Opera Costume Shops HIG H WAY 1, USA

A production of the Los Angeles Opera Set construction by CBS Television City, Los Angeles Costumes by the Los Angeles Opera Costume Shop

Wig and Makeup Crew: Erika Broderdorf (crew leader), Carol Taylor (wig styling assistant).

Crew: Dayna Winalis, Mallory Maxton, Shea Schoenberg, Vanessa Cassidy, Esther Soto, Cedasha Randolph, Kaitlyn Denzler. Swing: Carol Taylor

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CONDUCTOR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Roberto Kalb

DOWN IN THE VALLEY JENNIE PARSONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicole Heaston BRACK WEAVER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Victor Ryan Robertson THOMAS BOUCHÉ. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Davóne Tines LEADER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Babatunde Akinboboye PREACHER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lawrence Mitchell-Matthews MR. PARSONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brian Marable* GUARD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cameron Barrett Johnson* PETERS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dean Joyce* MAN 1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jovan Osborne* MAN 2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brett Thompson* WOMAN 1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Didi Cooper* WOMAN 2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kiara Glekler*

HIGHWAY 1, USA MARY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicole Heaston BOB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Davóne Tines NATE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Victor Ryan Robertson AUNT LOU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rehanna Thelwell SHERIFF. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lawrence Mitchell-Matthews CHORUS BIT ROLES. . . . . . . . . . . Matthew Konopacki, Riley Buck,

Lily Belle Czartorski, Cameron Barrett Johnson, Didi Cooper, Kimberley Sanders, David Magumba HARE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nekai Abriol FOX.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kiara Benn DANCERS.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kiara Benn, Nekai Abriol,

Andrew Cribbett, Kara Roseborough Detroit Opera debut * Spoken roles DE T R OI T OPER A | P1 3

C A S T / P R O D U C T IO N

cast

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D E S I G N D E TA IL B Y C H R I S T O P H E R M Y E R S

CHORUS

DETROIT OPERA CHORUS Detroit Opera cast and chorus are represented by the American Guild of Musical Artists

CHORUS DIRECTOR........................................ Katherine Kozak CHORUS....................................................... Nathalie Alcime

Amour Bethea Eliza Beutler Riley Buck Didi Cooper Lily Belle Czartorski Marko Farion Delaney Finn Michael Fowler Kurt Frank Kiara Glekler Anna Hart Rose Iannuzzi Richard Jackson, Jr. Cameron Barrett Johnson Dean Joyce Matthew Konopacki Victoria Korovljev David Magumba Leslie Ann Naeve Jovan Osborne Paolo Pacheco Kristina Riegle Kimberley Sanders Kevin Starnes Terrence Stewart Brett Thompson Christopher Williams

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DOWN IN THE VALLEY ORCHESTRA Detroit Federation of Musicians, Local #5, of the American Federation of Musicians V IOLIN I

BA SS

T RU M PE T

Interim Concertmaster

Principal

Principal

Daniel Stachyra* Yuri Popowycz*

Acting Assistant Concertmaster

Bryan Johnston* Mallory Tabb Anna Bittar-Weller* Courtney Lubin Andrew Wu* V IOLIN II

Derek Weller* Clark Suttle* Jean Posekany Alex Zajdel

Andrea Velasquez*

Dustin Nguyen*

Daniel Fletcher

T I M PA NI

Acting Principal

Eric Stoss*

Henrik Karapetyan* Solveig Geenen* David Ormai Molly Hughes* Jennifer Berg

Principal

Velda Kelly*

Acting Principal

Beth Kirton* Jenny Wan* Judith Teasdle Sonja Bosca-Harasim C ELLO

Ivana Biliskov* Principal

Benjamin Maxwell* Andrea Yun* Robert Paddock Sabrina Lackey Robert Reed

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T RO M BO N E Principal

Emelyn Bashour*

V IOLIN III

Derek Lockhart

Jordan Dove*

FLU T E

OBOE

Principal

David Ammer*

Principal

Eli Stefanacci* CL A R IN E T

PER C USSIO N

John Dorsey* Principal

Roi Karni*

David Taylor

Ryan King

PI A N O

Principal

BA SS OO N

Daniel Fendrick* Principal

John Etsell GUI TA R

Chuck Newsome

ALT O SA XO PH O N E

James Hughes

T EN O R SA XO PH O N E

Jeffrey Heisler HORN

Colin Bianchi* Principal

Natalie Sweasy*

* Detroit Opera Core Orchestra Members Members of the violin sections occasionally rotate.

O PR C OH GE RS AT MR A

HIGHWAY 1, USA ORCHESTRA Detroit Federation of Musicians, Local #5, of the American Federation of Musicians V IOLIN I

C ELLO

CL A R IN E T

Interim Concertmaster

Principal

Principal

Daniel Stachyra* Yuri Popowycz*

Acting Assistant Concertmaster

Bryan Johnston* Mallory Tabb Anna Bittar-Weller* Courtney Lubin Andrew Wu* Velda Kelly* Beth Kirton* Sonja Bosca-Harasim V IOLIN II

Emelyn Bashour* Principal

Henrik Karapetyan* Solveig Geenen* David Ormai Molly Hughes* Jennifer Berg Jenny Wan* Judith Teasdle V IOL A

Scott Stefanko* Acting Principal

Jacqueline Hanson* Chloé Thominet* James Greer Joseph Deller Cathy Franklin

Ivana Biliskov*

Roi Karni*

Benjamin Maxwell* Andrea Yun* Robert Paddock Sabrina Lackey Robert Reed

Ryan King Shannon Orme

BA SS

BA SS OO N

BA SS CL A R IN E T

Shannon Orme

Derek Weller*

Daniel Fendrick*

Principal

Principal

Clark Suttle* Jean Posekany Alex Zajdel

Peter Ecklund* HORN

HARP

Principal

Juan Riveros* Principal

FLU T E

Colin Bianchi* Natalie Sweasy* Susan Mutter Jake Nowell

Andrea Velasquez*

T RU M PE T

Daniel Fletcher

Principal

Acting Principal

David Ammer* Derek Lockhart

PIC C OLO

Daniel Fletcher

T RO M BO N E

OBOE

Principal

Eli Stefanacci*

Jordan Dove* Dustin Nguyen

Principal

Yuki Harding

T I M PA NI

EN GLI S H H O R N

Principal

Yuki Harding

Eric Stoss* PER C USSIO N

John Dorsey* Principal

* Detroit Opera Core Orchestra Members

Members of the violin sections occasionally rotate.

David Taylor P17

DOWN IN THE VALLEY KURT WEILL | C O M POSER Born: Dessau, Germany, March 2, 1900 Died: New York City, April 3, 1950

In the 1940s, Weill established himself as a new and original voice in the American musical theater. Weill composed shows that introduced a new level of narrative complexity and cultural significance to the Broadway stage. He worked with Ira Gershwin on the original film musical Where Do We Go from Here? (1945), and adapted Elmer Rice’s Pulitzer-Prize winning drama Street Scene (1946) on Broadway as an American opera, featuring lyrics by the Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes. Weill’s folk opera Down in the Valley (1948) received hundreds of productions in schools and communities throughout the nation. Weill’s last Broadway piece was the musical tragedy Lost in the Stars (1949), adapted by playwright Maxwell Anderson from Alan Paton’s novel Cry, the Beloved Country. Weill’s best-known stage works—some composed in Europe, others after he immigrated to the United States—showcase a diverse range of musical influences and include The Threepenny Opera, Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, The Pledge, The Seven Deadly Sins, Street Scene, Lost in the Stars, and Lady in the Dark.

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D E S I G N D E TA IL B Y C H R I S T O P H E R M Y E R S

Kurt Julian Weill was the third of four children of Emma Ackermann and Albert Weill, a cantor in the synagogue of Dessau. He began studies at the Berlin Hochschule in 1918, and studied with composer and pianist Ferruccio Busoni at the Arts Academy of Berlin. By the time Weill’s first opera, The Protagonist, was performed in April 1926, he was an established composer. But he had already decided to devote himself to the musical theater, and his works with the playwright Bertolt Brecht soon made him famous. A commission from the Baden-Baden Music Festival in 1927 led to the creation of Weill and Brecht’s Mahagonny (Ein Songspiel). During the 1920s the composer had begun working with Austrian soprano Lotte Lenya, who became his muse and preferred performer. They married in 1926, divorced in 1933, and remarried in 1937. Weill’s 1931 opera Die Bürgschaft and 1932 play-with-music Der Silbersee outraged the Nazis, and riots broke out at several performances and carefully orchestrated propaganda campaigns discouraged productions of his works.

In March 1933, Weill fled Germany, immigrating to the United States in 1935.

Born: Saint Paul, MN, October 31, 1909 Died: Dallas, TX, October 22, 2006 Arnold Sundgaard was an American playwright, librettist, and lyricist whose work appeared on Broadway and in opera houses across the U.S. He is best known for collaborating with Kurt Weill on Down in the Valley; with Fritz Kreisler and John Latouche on the 1944 operetta Rhapsody, for which he co-wrote the book with Leonard Louis Levinson; and with Victor Ziskin on the short-lived Broadway play The Young Abe Lincoln. Sundgaard wrote librettos for operas including The Lowland Sea by Alec Wilder (1952), and Giants in the Earth by Douglas S. Moore, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1951. For the theater, he wrote the plays The First Crocus (1942), The Great Campaign (1947), and Everywhere I Roam, a collaboration with playwright Marc Connelly (1938-39). In 1938, the Chicago Federal Theater Project produced his play Spirochete, about the spread of the disease syphilis, as part of its “Living Newspapers” series, which created a sensation in Chicago. He wrote articles for publications including The New Yorker and Atlantic Monthly.

With illustrator Eric Carle, he wrote the children’s book The Lamb and the Butterfly; he also wrote The Bear Who Loved Puccini, illustrated by Dominic Catalano.

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A R T I S T P R O F IL E S

ARNOLD SUNDGAARD | LIBR E T T IST

HIGHWAY 1, USA WILLIAM GRANT STILL | C O M POSER Born: Woodville, Mississippi, May 11, 1895 Died: Los Angeles, CA, December 3, 1978

Among Still’s numerous “firsts” as a Black composer: he was the first African American to have a symphony performed by a major American orchestra (the “Afro-American” Symphony, with the Rochester Philharmonic, in 1931); the first to have an opera produced by New York City Opera (Troubled Island, 1949); and the first to conduct a major orchestra (the Los Angeles Philharmonic, 1936). Still composed more than 150 works, including nine operas, five symphonies, and numerous other works for solo instruments, choral ensembles, and small and large orchestral groups. In the 1930s, Still arranged popular music for two NBC radio shows: Willard Robison’s “Deep River Hour” and Paul Whiteman’s “Old Gold Show.” Still's music fuses classical, blues, and spiritual elements, reflecting his experiences as a Black man in early-20th-century America. He drew inspiration from a wide range of musical styles, creating a unique musical voice that was ahead of its time. His compositions feature intricate rhythms, lyrical melodies, and rich harmonies, and he often used his music to address political and social issues of the day. Still’s legacy paved the way for future generations of African American musicians.

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D E S I G N D E TA IL B Y C H R I S T O P H E R M Y E R S

William Grant Still has been described as the Dean of African American Composers, known for all the firsts he managed to achieve, despite facing significant racial barriers and prejudice. The composer, arranger, conductor, and pioneer of early-20th-century classical music was born in Mississippi and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas. He initially enrolled in Ohio’s Wilberforce University to pursue a bachelor of science degree, but left to study violin, composition, and music theory at Oberlin Conservatory of Music. After serving in the Navy in 1918–19, he moved to New York City, where he performed with and arranged music for blues great W.C. Handy. He worked with artists such as Artie Shaw and Sophie Tucker and performed in Broadway pit orchestras, including for Eubie Blake’s smash hit 1921 Shuffle Along, which brought jazz to Broadway for the first time. In 1929, he was hired to arrange music for Paul Whiteman’s celebrated orchestra.

Born: Los Angeles, CA, February 16, 1910 Died: Los Angeles, CA, November 22, 1987 Verna Arvey was an American librettist, pianist, and writer best known for her musical collaborations with her husband, William Grant Still. The daughter of Russian-Jewish immigrants, Arvey began her career as a pianist accompanying dance rehearsals and recitals. She enjoyed a brief career as a concert pianist, including performances as a soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Arvey first met Still in 1930 in Los Angeles, and the two married in 1939, after Still's divorce from his first wife. They had to marry in Tijuana, Mexico, because interracial marriage was illegal in California at the time. Their marriage lasted until Still’s death, in 1978, and they had two children together. Throughout Still’s lifetime, Arvey performed and promoted his music and served as librettist for numerous songs and operas. Arvey’s first opera collaboration with Still came when Langston Hughes, the original librettist for his opera Troubled Island, left the country before the project was completed. Arvey wrote the lyrics for three arias: “In Childhood Together,” “This Land, This Dark Land,” and “Love Calls.”

Arvey also wrote the librettos to Still's subsequent operas, which include A Bayou Legend, Minette Fontaine, and Highway 1, USA, as well as the scenarios to ballets such as Miss Sally's Party and several art songs. Verna Arvey had a distinguished career as a writer and journalist, and contributed articles to publications including The New York Times, Musical America, Musical Courier, and Opera. Her 1984 book In One Lifetime is a biography of William Grant Still, and her book Choreographic Music: Music for the Dance was published in 1941.

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A R T I S T P R O F IL E S

VERNA ARVEY | LIBR E T T IST

KANEZA SCHAAL DIR EC TOR

Kaneza Schaal is a New York City–based artist working in theater, opera, and film. Her work has shown in divergent contexts—from New York galleries, to courtyards in Vietnam, to East African amphitheaters, to European opera houses, to U.S. public housing, to rural auditoriums in the U.A.E. By creating art that speaks many formal, cultural, historical, aesthetic, and experiential languages, she seeks expansive audiences.

Kaneza received a 2025 Doris Duke Artist Award; 2024 LA Opera Stern Artist Award; 2023 Project & Evolving Democracy Fellowship; 2021 Guggenheim Fellowship, and Herb Alpert Award in Theatre; 2019 United States Artists Fellowship, Soros Arts Fellowship, Joyce Award, and LMCC Alumni Award; 2018 Ford Foundation Art for Justice Bearing Witness Award; 2017 MAP Fund Award; and 2016 Creative Capital Award. She was also an Aetna New Voices Fellow at Hartford Stage.

In her commitment to artist-centered institutions, Kaneza co-founded the Gihanga Institute for Contemporary Art in Kigali, Rwanda, and The Collective Practice, a resource-sharing structure for theater makers, and served on the board of P.S. 122/Performance Space New York and the leadership council for the artist-employment and guaranteed-income initiative Creatives Rebuild New York. She is currently a co-director of Under the Radar Festival in New York City.

Kaneza is an arts-in-education advocate. She created arts-exchange platforms at three prisons in upstate New York and a program for New York State’s maximum-security facility for girls. Kaneza’s education work has spanned from universities to community centers to public high schools, and from workshops for professional artists, to professional-development training for teachers, to intergenerational collaborations between elders and teens. Kaneza taught an Atelier course at Princeton University with Elevator Repair Service and has lectured at Yale University, Wesleyan University, New York University, University of the Arts, and Xavier University of Louisiana. She taught a course at Harvard University on theater and social practice and served as the 2021 Denzel Washington Endowed Chair in Theatre at Fordham University.

Kaneza’s work has also been supported by OPERA America, Onassis Foundation, New England Foundation for the Arts, Baryshnikov Arts Center, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Nathan Cummings Foundation, Foundation for Contemporary Arts, a FACE Foundation Contemporary Theater grant, Theatre Communications Group, and a Princess Grace Foundation George C. Wolfe Award. Website: kanezaschaal.com

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C ONDUC TOR

Mexican-born conductor Roberto Kalb has served as Music Director of Detroit Opera since 2022. He conducted Detroit Opera’s performances of Rinaldo in February– March 2025, La traviata in October 2024, The Cunning Little Vixen in May 2024 and two concerts featuring the Detroit Opera Orchestra and Resident Artists in the fall of 2023. He conducted Yuval Sharon’s new production of La bohème at Detroit Opera in 2022. Additional 2023–24 season performances for Roberto included house debuts at Santa Fe Opera (L’elisir d’amore) and Atlanta Opera (Rigoletto), concerts with the Kansas City Symphony and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and Cavalleria rusticana/Pagliacci at Lyric Opera of Kansas City. Season highlights in 2022–23 included performances at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, San Diego Opera, and San Francisco Opera.

In 2019, Roberto concluded a five-year tenure as resident conductor and head of music at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL), where he led the world premiere of Tobias Picker’s Awakenings (2022); he also conducted OTSL’s critically acclaimed run of Rigoletto (2019) in collaboration with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. Roberto has also conducted at companies including Opéra Orchestra National Montpellier, Florida Grand Opera, Kentucky Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Opera Maine, and Tulsa Opera.

He has conducted performances with the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México, Orquesta Carlos Chavez in Mexico City, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Palm Beach Symphony, and the Orquestra Sinfonica da USP in São Paulo, Brazil.

This season, he will conduct El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego at Lyric Opera of Chicago (March–April 2026), and he makes his Metropolitan Opera conducting debut with La bohème in April 2026.

Roberto holds degrees from the University of Michigan and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and in 2021 was awarded the prestigious Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award. He is married to soprano Mané Galoyan. Website: robertokalb.com

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A R T I S T P R O F IL E S

ROBERTO KALB

NICOLE HEASTON

JENNIE / M A RY

Nicole Heaston completed her master’s degree in voice at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and received her undergraduate degree in music at the University of Akron.

She is a distinguished graduate of Houston Grand Opera’s Butler Studio. In the 2024–25 season, the soprano returned to the role of Claire Devon in the North American premiere of Mazzoli/Vavrek’s The Listeners at Opera Philadelphia. A native Chicagoan, she headlined Lyric Opera of Chicago’s spring 2025 performances in her company debut. With the National Symphony Orchestra, she sang the title role in Samuel Barber’s Vanessa. Other engagements included a Christmas program with Houston’s Mercury Chamber Orchestra, and the fiery role of Armida in Detroit Opera’s production of Handel’s Rinaldo. A richly varied 2023–24 season included Nicole’s returns to Los Angeles Opera, as Mary in Still’s Highway 1, USA, and Houston Grand Opera, as Alice Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff. During the spring, she made her title-role debut in Massenet’s Thaïs with Utah Opera. Nicole began the 2022–23 season with the long-awaited world premiere of The Listeners at Den Norske Opera, and concluded it with her first career performances of Vanessa. Since her debut at the Metropolitan Opera as Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Nicole has appeared several times with the theater, singing Ilia in Mozart’s Idomeneo, Pamina in Die Zauberflöte (conducted by James Levine), and Echo in Ariadne auf Naxos. Nicole recently sang Despina in Così fan tutte and Countess Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro with San Francisco Opera; Countess Almaviva with Boston Lyric Opera; and Musetta in La bohème with the Fort Worth Opera and Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and for her debut with New York City Opera alongside Rolando Villazon. She made her debut at the Glimmerglass Festival in New York as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, performing the same role at the Wolf Trap Opera. Nicole has a long-standing relationship with Houston Grand Opera. She debuted with the title role in Roméo et Juliette and has since been heard as Mimì in La bohème, Liù in Turandot, Adina in L’elisir d’amore, Gilda in Rigoletto, Susanna, and Pamina. Instagram: @katy_operamom

DAVÓNE TINES

T HO M A S B OUC HÉ / B O B

Davóne Tines, heralded as an artist “changing what it means to be a classical singer” (The New Yorker) and “[one] of the most powerful voices of our time” (Los Angeles Times), is a pathbreaking artist whose work encompasses a diverse repertoire while exploring the social issues of today. A creator, curator, and performer at the intersection of many histories, cultures, and aesthetics, he is engaged in work that blends musical genres to tell a deeply personal story of perseverance connecting to all of humanity. Davóne is a musician who takes full agency of his work, devising new programs and pieces. He reflects this ethos in his Recital No. 1: MASS, an examination of the liturgy, comparing Western European, African American, and 21st-century traditions, as well as in his orchestral creations Concerto No. 1: SERMON, a work he premiered with the Philadelphia and BBC P 24

VICTOR RYAN ROBERTSON

BR AC K W E AV ER / N AT E

Victor Ryan Robertson is an American musical artist distinguished by the compass and color of his tenor voice.

He navigates the classical, contemporary, pop, and Broadway genres to deliver inspiring and thrilling performances on both opera and theatrical stages. His discography includes the soundtrack of the Netflix original film Rustin, music

by Branford Marsalis, Verdi’s La traviata as Alfredo with Victory Hall Opera, Carly Simon’s Romulus Hunt with Nashville Opera on the Lexicon Classics label, and Anthony Davis’s X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X as Elijah/Street, recorded for commercial release by Boston Modern Orchestra Project and nominated for a 2023 Grammy Award. Victor made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Raoul in their new production of The Merry Widow, and in the same year he made his Broadway debut as Piangi in The Phantom of the Opera. Last season he returned to the Met as Elijah/Street in Anthony Davis’s groundbreaking and influential opera X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X—a role he previously performed for Detroit Opera and Opera Omaha. This season, he joins Seattle Opera as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, Fort Worth Opera as Ramiro in La Cenerentola, and Opera Theatre of St. Louis as Uncle Percy in the world premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon and Lynn Nottage’s This House. He will also be heard in recitals for Seattle Opera, the University of Michigan, and Sun Valley Opera and Broadway.

Instagram: @victorryanrobertson

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Symphony Orchestras, and Concerto No. 2: ANTHEM, premiered with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Davóne has also premiered operas by today’s leading composers, including Terence Blanchard, Matthew Aucoin, and, most recently, John Adams, whose El Niño he sang at the Metropolitan Opera. His concert appearances include performances of works ranging from Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony to Kaija Saariaho’s True Fire. Davóne’s first studio album, ROBESON, was released on Nonesuch Records in September 2024. He is Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Artistin-Residence and Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale’s first-ever Creative Partner. He recently served as Artist-in-Residence at Detroit Opera, performing the title role of Anthony Davis’s X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. Davóne is featured on the Grammy-nominated world-premiere recording of the opera released on BMOP/sound in 2022. Davóne is a member of AMOC and co-creator of The Black Clown, a music-theater experience commissioned and premiered by American Repertory Theater. He is Musical America’s 2022 Vocalist of the Year, a winner of the 2020 Sphinx Medal of Excellence, a recipient of the 2018 Emerging Artists Award from Lincoln Center, and a recipient of the 2024 Chanel Next Prize. He is a graduate of The Juilliard School and Harvard University, and the recipient of the prestigious 2025 Harvard Arts Medal. Instagram: @alsoanoperasinger

BABATUNDE AKINBOBOYE

LE A DER

Babatunde Akinboboye, a Nigerian American baritone, is celebrated for his diverse talents, enthralling stage presence, and innovative approach. He has graced prestigious stages, including the Los Angeles Opera, Portland Opera, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, and Utah Opera. Babatunde’s notable debuts include portraying Niimki in The Industry’s world premiere production of Sweet Land and captivating audiences as Matias Reyes in the Pulitzer Prize-winning opera The Central Park Five. Recent highlights include his performances as Valentin in Detroit Opera’s Faust and Escamillo in Pacific Opera Project’s Carmen. Babatunde remains dedicated to promoting art song and operatic works

by African and African American composers, headlining notable events such as the Lagos Chamber of Commerce & Industry awards, where his fusion of opera and traditional African music mesmerized audiences. He has also been a featured performer at esteemed gatherings, including the National Association of Negro Musicians Annual Conference and the African American Art Song Alliance Conference, championing the diversity and richness of classical music. Babatunde’s honors include being a Regional Finalist of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and a finalist in the International Eisteddfod Vocal Solo Competition in Llangollen, Wales. In December 2018, Babatunde made waves with a viral video that garnered over 10-million views, introducing the world to his groundbreaking fusion genre of classical opera and hip-hop, Hip Hopera. This innovative work caught the attention of respected platforms such as Time.com, Classic FM, MSN.com, and more. In addition, Babatunde released the acclaimed EP Della Citta, expanding his influence and propelling him to social media stardom as “Babatunde_Hip Hopera.” Embracing his role as an opera influencer, he consistently captivates audiences and enlightens listeners about the beauty and intricacies of the art form from his unique perspective. Instagram: @babatunde_hiphopera

LAWRENCE MITCHELL-MATTHEWS

PR E AC HER / SHER IFF

Baritone Lawrence Mitchell-Matthews was the first-place prize winner of the Thomas Wilkins Young Artist of Tomorrow Award, named after the African American conductor in residence for the Detroit Symphony. He sang solo excerpts from Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra, as well as the Singapore Symphony Orchestra with conductor Tsung Yeh. Lawrence performed with the Ezio Pinza Council for the American Singers of Opera program in Oderzo, Italy, under the direction of Claudia Pinza. He was awarded first prize in Dr. J LanYe’s 3rd American Spiritual Collegiate Solo Voice Competition. Lawrence performed with the Chautauqua Symphony under the baton of Metropolitan Opera conductor Steven Osgood. He received the Jon Vickers Distinguished Award and the Jessye Norman Most Promising Singer Award. Lawrence performed in the world premiere of the opera As You Like It by Roger Steptoe, based on Shakespeare’s play with Notre Dame Opera. Lawrence’s voice has been described as rich, honey-toned, and crystal clear by the Charleston Herald. Lawrence loves to share his gift and the healing power of music with all. Instagram: @_mrlawrencemm P 26

Mezzo-soprano Rehanna Thelwell is quickly becoming known for her magnetic performances and expressive vocal power in a wide variety of repertoire. After completing the Washington National Opera Cafritz Young Artists program, she made a notable mainstage debut in the title role of Carmen at the Kennedy Center, with Parterre Box describing her performance as “stupendous.” In the upcoming season, Rehanna will return to several leading opera companies across the country, starting at Detroit Opera with her portrayal of Aunt Lou in Highway 1, USA, then joining Opera Philadelphia to perform the world premiere of Tony Award–winning playwright Michael R. Jackson’s Complications in Sue. She rounds out the season at Atlanta Opera singing Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro. Future seasons will bring exciting house debuts across the globe for Rehanna including a highly anticipated production at Le théâtre royal de la Monnaie in Belgium. Last season, Rehanna returned to Opera Philadelphia to sing Angela Rose in the American premiere of The Listeners, a piece she previously workshopped with Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek. She also performed as Mother Goose at Opera Omaha in The Rake’s Progress, made her debut with Portland Opera as Quickly in Verdi’s Falstaff, and joined Nashville Opera and New Orleans Opera as Kendra in The Cook-Off, working alongside the musical duo of Shawn E. Okpebholo and Mark Campbell. Moreover, Rehanna recently performed at San Francisco Opera as Katie Ellen/The Caller and covered Fatima in Omar, made her debut with Atlanta Opera as Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, joined Detroit Opera as the Forester’s Wife/Owl in The Cunning Little Vixen, and appeared at Finger Lakes Opera as Julia in Two Corners by composer B.E. Boykin and librettist Jarrod Lee. Rehanna began her studies in 2009 at Northern Arizona University under the tutelage of Deborah Raymond. She was accepted into the graduate program at the University of Michigan in 2014, where she joined the studio of Nadine Washington, and returned in 2016 for her specialist degree. Instagram: @rehannathelwell

BRIAN MARABLE

M R. PA R S O N S

Detroit Public Theatre: Detroit ’67, Skeleton Crew, Pipeline; Baltimore Center Stage: Detroit ’67; The Old Globe and People’s Light: Skeleton Crew; Performance Network Theater: The Mountaintop (Martin Luther King, Jr.), The Piano Lesson (Boy Willie); Purple Rose Theatre Company: Superior Donuts (Franco); Steppenwolf Theatre Company: The Book of Grace. Film/TV: Have a Little Faith (Hallmark), The Citizen (Monterey Media), Low Winter Sun (AMC), Standing in the Shadows of Motown (James Jamerson). Education: Howard University, Wayne State University.

Instagram: @brian.marable.100

DE T R OI T OPER A | P 27

A R T I S T P R O F IL E S

REHANNA THELWELL

AUN T LOU

CHRISTOPHER MYERS

PR O DUC T IO N DE SIG N ER

Christopher Myers is a multimedia artist, author, and playwright from New York City born in 1974. He earned his BA in art-semiotics and American civilization with a focus on race and culture from Brown University in 1995 and participated in the Whitney Museum of American Art Independent Studio Program in 1996. His work has been exhibited throughout the United States and internationally at venues including MoMA PS1; Art Institute of Chicago; The Mistake Room, Guadalajara, Mexico; Akron Art Museum; Contrast Gallery, Shanghai; GoetheInstitut, Accra, Ghana; Kigali Genocide Memorial, Rwanda; Sàn Art, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; and Studio Museum in Harlem. His work is in the permanent collections of institutions including the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Brooklyn Museum, New York; Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Lucas Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Mead Art Museum, Amherst, Massachusetts; Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina; and Studio Museum in Harlem. Christopher’s work across disciplines is rooted in storytelling. He delves into the past to build narratives that speak to the slippages between history and mythology. His diverse practice spans textiles, performance, film, and sculptural objects, often created in collaboration with artisans from around the globe. He has worked with traditional shadowpuppet makers in Jogjakarta, silversmiths in Khartoum, conceptual video artists in Ho Chi Minh City, young musicians in New Orleans, woodcarvers in Accra, weavers in Luxor, metal workers in Kenya, and textile printers in Copenhagen.

These collaborations are driven by his interest in understanding how globalization is intimately intertwined with notions of self and community. Christopher won a Caldecott Honor in 1998 for his illustrations in the book Harlem: A Poem, and a Coretta Scott King Award in 2016 for illustrating Firebird by Misty Copeland.

Website: kalyban.com Instagram: @kalyban

AMY RUBIN

SE T DE SIG NER

Amy Rubin is a designer of environments for theater, opera, and dance. She is thrilled to be back at Detroit Opera, collaborating once again with Kaneza Schaal. Recent designs include Macbeth (Boston Lyric Opera), Omar (BLO, LA Opera, San Francisco Opera, Spoleto), Romeo and Juliet (American Repertory Theater), Highway 1, USA (LA Opera), Orpheus Descending (Theater for a New Audience), Lucy (Audible Theater), The Snowy Day (Houston Grand Opera), Blue (Detroit Opera), Aging Magician (New Victory Theater), Most Happy in Concert (Williamstown Theatre Festival), Octet (Signature Theatre), Cyrano with music by The National (The New Group), Thom Pain (based on nothing) (Signature Theatre), Gloria: A Life (Daryl Roth Theatre, ART), Miles for Mary (Playwrights Horizons), and Acquanetta (Prototype Festival).

P 28

Charlese Antoinette is a Los Angeles–based costume designer known for her work on the two-time Oscar-winning film Judas and the Black Messiah, which earned her a Costume Designers Guild Award nomination. Charlese strives in transcending the wardrobe of real people in stories told on screen. She designed The Instigators, produced by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, as well as Air, which chronicles the launch of Nike and the creation of the first Air Jordan sneaker. In addition, she designed Highway 1, USA for the Los Angeles Opera, which opened in March 2024. Her work can next be seen in Children of Blood and Bone, directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood and based on the novel by Tomi Adeyemi. Website: charleseantoinette.com Instagram: @charleseantoinette

PABLO SANTIAGO

LIG H T ING DE SIG NER

Pablo Santiago is an award-winning lighting designer working in both live performance and digital film. Originally from Chiapas, Mexico, Pablo creates evocative visual landscapes that amplify the emotional core of a piece and transport audiences beyond the stage. His work has been recognized with the Kinetic Lighting Award for distinguished achievement in theatrical design, the Henry Award, the Richard E. Sherwood Award, the Stage Raw Award, and multiple Ovation Award nominations. Pablo has designed for leading opera companies and orchestras, including the Kennedy Center, Santa Fe Opera, LA Opera, Opera Philadelphia, Detroit Opera, San Francisco Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Theatro Municipal de São Paulo (Brazil), and Los Angeles Philharmonic. His theater credits include Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Goodman Theatre, Arena Stage, Mark Taper Forum, Geffen Playhouse, BAM Harvey Theater, and the Hollywood Bowl. Through his lighting, Pablo strives to shape powerful images that spark the imagination and elevate storytelling—bringing light not only to the stage but also to the emotional journey of the audience. Pablo obtained a BA in visual arts at the University of California San Diego (Phi Beta Kappa national honor society) and an MFA in lighting design at UCLA, where he graduated magna cum laude and won the Cirque du Soleil Scholarship. Website: pablosantiagodesign.com Instagram: @pablosdesign

DE T R OI T OPER A | P 29

A R T I S T P R O F IL E S

CHARLESE ANTOINETTE

C OS T U M E DE SIG NER

KIARA BENN

C H O R EO G R A PHER / DA N C ER

Kiara Benn is a movement artist and creative producer committed to expanding access to the performing arts. She has collaborated with production companies, artists, and cultural organizations to develop impactful projects in museums, theaters, and community spaces. As project manager at For Freedoms, she helped to produce initiatives like Hear Her Here, a series of murals, programs, and salons highlighting Black femme visions in partnership with Converse. As a choreographer and performer, she contributed to opera productions like Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels’s 2022 opera Omar, which was directed by Kaneza Schaal and staged at venues including Spoleto Festival USA, LA Opera, San Francisco Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, and Carolina Performing Arts—an experience that led to her role as studio producer on Schaal’s team. Alongside her artistic practice, Kiara serves as assistant curator of performance at Wesleyan University’s Center for the Arts. Instagram: @kiaramcb

JEN PAN

F IG H T C H O R EO G R A PH ER

Jen Pan (she/they) is an Ypsilanti-based fight and intimacy director, stage combat teaching artist, and stunt performer passionate about cultivating inclusivity and sustainability in the performance arts. Their work has recently been seen at Detroit Public Theatre (Fat Ham, Clyde’s), Obsidian Theatre Festival (Black Santa, The Sisters Grey, The Golden Loc, Crooked Parts), Croswell Opera House (Parade, Newsies, The Play That Goes Wrong), The Dio (Misery), University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance (Julius Caesar), Eastern Michigan University (The Rocky Horror Picture Show), Oakland University (Pipeline), and other regional theaters. They are a Certified Teacher with the Society of American Fight Directors (SAFD) and have taught stage combat classes across the country, including in southeast Michigan, Seattle, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Houston, and Chicago. She is a co-founder and lead instructor at Theatrica Gladiatoria—a year-round academy in Ypsilanti, Michigan, for stage and film combat—and co-coordinator of the Mitten Mayhem Stage Combat Workshop held annually in October. Website: theatricagladiatoria.com/about-jen-pan

JOANNE MIDDLETON-WEAVER

W IG / M A K EUP DE SIG N

Born in England, Joanne Middleton-Weaver came to the United States in the late 1980s. She began apprenticing with Elsen Associates at what was then Washington Opera, now Washington National Opera. Joanne has since designed at many opera companies throughout the U.S. during her 30-year career: Glimmerglass Opera, Sarasota Opera, Palm Beach Opera, and Des Moines Metro Opera, to name a few. She has designed for Detroit Opera since 1995. Her credits there include La bohème, The Passenger, Frida, Margaret Garner, Cyrano, Faust, and make-up design for X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. P 30

Katherine Kozak became Detroit Opera’s Chorus Director and Music Administrator with the start of the 2025–26 season. Previously, Katherine served for three years as Head of Music, Chorus Director, and Principal Coach of Arizona Opera’s Pullin Opera Studio. She has worked on staff at the Glimmerglass Festival for 14 summer seasons, eight of them as Chorus Director. Her work at the Glimmerglass Festival can be heard on Château du Versailles Spectacles’ 2021 multimedia recording of John Corigliano and William M. Hoffman’s opera The Ghosts of Versailles, for which she also performed on celesta and piano. Katherine has worked as chorus director, pianist, and coach at U.S. companies including Florida Grand Opera Chorus, where she prepared approximately 20 productions. She has served as head coach, rehearsal pianist, recitalist, supertitle caller, recitative accompanist, assistant conductor, and administrator at the Dallas Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Opera Colorado, and Central City Opera, among others. She has assisted many conductors, notably Richard Bonynge, Joseph Colaneri, John DeMain, and George Manahan. In addition to working with many top-ranked Young Artist programs, she has also worked with singers at The Juilliard School as associate coach, and at Florida’s University of Miami as visiting assistant professor. Katherine earned her Master of Music degree in vocal coaching and accompanying from the University of Illinois, where she was a student of John Wustman. She has enjoyed collaborating with singers since age 11, when she began accompanying and touring with the Singing Angels, based in her hometown of Cleveland, Ohio.

DE T R OI T OPER A | P 31

A R T I S T P R O F IL E S

KATHERINE KOZAK

C H O R US DIR EC T O R

P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F L A O P E R A / C O R Y W E AV E R

Detroit Opera Needs You! Because of your dedication and support, Detroit Opera continues to provide meaningful artistic experiences for our community and inspires audiences of the future.

Please consider a gift to Detroit Opera this season. Your generosity will ensure that our community has access to the highest caliber of opera productions like Highways and Valleys for years to come!

Charitable contributions generate a significant portion of our overall funding and are investments in the future of performing arts in our community. Without donations, opera and dance cannot thrive in southeast Michigan.

Thank you for all the ways you support us!

US E T H E Q R C O D E T O D O N AT E N O W!

V I SI T US AT D E T ROI T O P E R A.O RG/D O N AT E O R GI V E US A C ALL AT 31 3.2 37.3 4 2 6

Thank you to our donors Contributors to Detroit Opera

Detroit Opera gratefully acknowledges the generous support of our corporate, foundation, government, and individual donors whose contributions were received between July 1, 2024, and August 31, 2025. Your generosity is essential to sustaining Detroit Opera as a vibrant cultural resource for our community.

Foundations, Corporate & Government Support

$1,000,000+ William Davidson Foundation The State of Michigan

$500,000-$999,999 John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

$250,000-$499,999 Ford Foundation Mellon Foundation

$100,000-$249,999 J. Addison Bartush and Marion M. Bartush Family Foundation Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan Ford Philanthropy General Motors Gilbert Family Foundation Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation

$50,000-$99,999 Max M. & Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation Milner Hotels Foundation

$25,000-$49,999 Applebaum Family Philanthropy Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation Hudson-Webber Foundation Kresge Foundation MGM Grand Detroit National Endowment for the Arts The Karen & Drew Peslar Foundation Rattner and Katz Charitable Foundation Matilda R. Wilson Fund Kurt Weill Foundation For Music

$10,000-$24,999 DTE Energy Foundation Geoinge Foundation Masco Corporation Oliver Dewey Marcks Foundation OPERA America Penske Corporation Ralph L. and Winifred E. Polk Foundation Ida and Conrad H. Smith Endowment for MOT The Mary Thompson Foundation

$5,000-$9,999 C&N Foundation Co-Ette Club, Inc. Aaron Copland Fund for Music Gerson Family Foundation, Inc. James and Lynelle Holden Fund Honigman LLP Louis and Nellie Sieg Fund Donald R. and Esther Simon Foundation Somerset Collection Charitable Foundation Strum Allesee Family Foundation The Samuel L. Westerman Foundation

$1,000-$4,999 ABM Janitorial Services John A. & Marlene L. Boll Foundation Joyce Cohn Young Artist Fund Detroit Children’s Choir Marjorie & Maxwell Jospey Foundation Josephine Kleiner Foundation Elmira L. Rhein Family Foundation Warsh-Mott Funds

DE T R OI T OPER A | 11

Individual Support

The National Circle

Introduced in 2024, the National Circle unites Detroit Opera’s foremost supporters at a pivotal moment in our history. With annual contributions of $25,000 or more, these visionary donors affirm their belief in the transformative power of live performance to inspire meaningful change—both in our city and across the nation.

$100,000+

$25,000-$49,999

Richard & Mona* Alonzo Ethan & Gretchen Davidson Linda Dresner & Ed Levy Jr. David & Christine Provost Matthew & Mona Simoncini Richard Sonenklar & Gregory Haynes Barbara A. Walkowski

Lisa A. Applebaum Alex Erdeljan Carl & Mary Ann Fontana Jane Iacobelli Michael & Barbara Kratchman Denise J. Lewis Nancy & Bud Liebler The Hon. Jack & Dr. Bettye Arrington Martin Susanne McMillan Allan & Joy Nachman Philanthropic Fund Ann & James B. Nicholson Ebbie Parsons III & Ayana Parsons Mrs. Ruth F. Rattner* Barbara Van Dusen

$50,000-$99,999 Enrico & Kathleen Digirolamo Patricia Isacson Sabee & David Sabee Mary Kramer Mrs. Phyllis Funk Snow* Lorna Thomas, MD Jesse & Yesenia Venegas R. Jamison & Karen Williams

KEY

* Deceased

The DiChiera Society DiChiera Society members honor the legacy and vision of our founder, David DiChiera, while advancing Detroit Opera’s future as one of the nation’s most significant and innovative opera and dance organizations. Their commitment supports our ongoing focus on community engagement, accessibility, and bold artistic exploration under the leadership of Barbara Walkowski Artistic Director Yuval Sharon.

$10,000-$24,999

$5,000-$9,999

Gene P. Bowen

Ms. Christine Ammer

Mr. Thomas Cohn

Nina Abrams

Lisa DiChiera

Dr. Lourdes V. Andaya

Dr. Raina Ernstoff & Mr. Sanford Hansell

Dr. Harold M. Arrington

Maxine & Stuart Frankel Foundation

Gregory & Mary Barkley

Bharat & Lynn Gandhi

Wayne Brown & Brenda Kee

Toby Haberman

Sue Cutler & Jeff Fessler

Jody & Tara Ingle

Walter & Lillian Dean

Ali Moiin & William Kupsky

Maria & David Duey

Ms. Mary C. Mazure

Nell Duke & David Ammer

Donald & Antoinette Morelock

Marianne Elrick & Kenneth Myers

Mr. Cyril Moscow*

Joseph Fontana & Nada Jurisich-Fontana

William & Wendy Powers

Ralph & Erica Gerson

Dr. & Mrs. Samir M. Ragheb

Beverly Hall Burns

Dr. Irvin D. Reid & Dr. Pamela Trotman Reid

Ms. Carole Hardy

Evan & Kelsey Ross

William Hulsker & Aris Urbanes

$3,000-$4,999

Salome E. Walton

Addison & Deborah Igleheart

Sandra & Doug Bitonti Stewart

Prof. Michael Wellman

Mary B. Letts

Paul & Lee Blizman

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Ellen Hill Zeringue

Andy Levin & Mary Freeman Don Manvel Mrs. L. William Moll Van Momon & Pamela L. Berry Robert & Susan Morris Mr. George & Mrs. Jo Elyn Nyman Joshua & Rachel Opperer Ms. Linda Orlans Sara A. Pozzi, Ph.D. Waltraud Prechter Carrie & Ted Pryor Janice Ross Mrs. Rosalind B. Sell Terry Shea & Seigo Nakao Michael & Stacey Simmons Christopher Stavrou Ned & Joan Winkelman

Bob & Rosemary Brasie

Dr. Glendon M. Gardner & Leslie Landau

George & Nancy Nicholson

Dr. & Mrs. Ronald T. Burkman

Ann Katz

Brock & Katherine L. Plumb

Albert & Janette Cassar

Max Lepler & Rex Dotson

Lois & Mark Shaevsky

Carolyn Demps & Guy Simons

John & Arlene Lewis

Susan Sills-Levey & Michael Levey

Marla Donovan

Stephan & Marian Loginsky

Susan A. Smith

Fern Espino & Tom Short

Ms. Mary McGough

Frank & Susan Sonye

James & Margo Farber

Sharon Tevis Finch

Sally & Michael Feder

Benjamin Meeker & Meredith Korneffel, MD

Ms. Laurie R. Frankel

Brian & Lisa Meer

Joseph & Rosalie Vicari

Mr. Lawrence Glowczewski

Ms. Evelyn Micheletti

Stanley Waldon

Mr. & Mrs. Robert & Christine Hage

Phillip Minch

Dr. John Weber & Dr. Dana Zakalik

Barbara Heller

Brian Murphy & Toni Sanchez-Murphy

Bret & Susanna Williams

Roberto Kalb & Mane Galoyan

Geoffrey Nathan

Dr. Lucia Zamorano

Buzz Thomas & Daniel VanderLey

Friends of Detroit Opera

Every gift helps ensure that opera and dance continue to flourish in our community, bringing to life the indescribable magic that begins when the curtain rises. Friends of Detroit Opera— among our most loyal and essential supporters—sustain this work through annual contributions of $500 or more & enjoy exclusive benefits in recognition of their generosity.

$1,000-$2,999

Gregory Knas Thomas & Gretchen Anderson William & Jean Kroger Jennifer Lindsay Kott D.L. Anthony, Ph.D. Mrs. Marsha Lynn Ms. Geraldine Atkinson Ms. Vera C. Magee Mr. Jason Batke Mr. Loreto A. Manzo Martin & Marcia Baum Ms. Janet Groening Marsh Mr. Stanislaw Bialoglowski Patrick & Patricia McKeever Ms. Nicole A. Boelstler Eugene & Lois Miller Mrs. Marlene L. Boll Mary F. Miller Constance Bodurow Ms. Maryanne Mott Marsha Bruhn Iuliana & Ovidiu Niculescu Ilse Calcagno Ms. Pamela Patton-Cone Harriet Clark Margaret Pehrson John & Doreen Cole Mark & Kyle Peterson Tonino & Sarah Corsetti Ms. Irene Piccone Ms. Mary J. Doerr Ankur Rungta & Murray & Alice Ehrinpreis Mayssoun Bydon Ms. Judith Ellis Prof. Alvin* & Burke & Carol Fossee Mrs. Harriet Saperstein Carol Gagliardi & Mary Schlaff & David Flesher Sanford Koltonow Marcelo Ganasevici Kingsley & Lurline Sears Arline Geronimus Anthony & Theresa Selvaggio Allan Gilmour & Eric Jirgens John Snyder Mr. Nathaniel Good Ms. Theresa Spear & Robert & Ann Greenstone Mr. Jeff Douma Kimberly Hastie Gabriel & Martha Stahl Fay & Allen Herman Ms. Mary Anne Stella Adriana Herrera Dr. Andrew James Stocking Julie & Peter Hollinshead Andrew J. Sturgess Joel Howell Manuel Tancer & Claire Stroker Mary Ellen Hoy & Jim Keller Mr. Jon Teeuwissen Paul Jednak & Tim Kasunic Dr. Jewlee Weah Tweh Richard & Involut Jessup Jeff & Amy Voigt Marc Keshishian & Gary L. Wasserman & Susanna Szelestey Charles A. Kashner Erica White Mr. & Mrs. Gerd H. Keuffel Katina Zaninovich Sam Logan Khaleghi

$750-$999

Kimberly Johnson

Eric Alonas

Ms. Lee Khachaturian

Frank & Jenny Brzenk

Justin & Joanne Klimko

Carol Johnston

Ms. Cynthia Kratchman

Vincent & Kathy Scanio

Mary Jane & Jeff Kupsky

Robert & Janet Swanson

Albert Kurt

Dennis & Jennifer Varian

Robert & Mary Lou Labe

$500-$749

Dr. & Mrs. Kenneth Levin

Antonia Abbey & James Lee

John & Arlene Lewis

David A. Agius

Mr. John Lovegren & Mr. Daniel Isenschmid

Wallace Ayotte Ms. Allison Bach & Mr. Michael Cool

John & Kimi Lowe

Ms. Mary Anne Barczak Ms. Kanta Bhambhani

Dr. Anne Missavage & Mr. Robert Borcherding

Marceline Bright

Jane Panikkar

Ms. Susan Burns

Elaine & Bertram Pitt

Stephen Calkins & Joan Wadsworth

Garry Post & Robert Hill

Mrs. Marsha Lynn

Susan Cameron Paula Lisa Cole Gerald Davis Cristina DiChiera & Neal Walsh

Shawn Rieschl Johnson & Christian Kirby Adam D. Rubin, M.D, Lakeshore Professional Voice Center Mr. Richard Lee Ruby

Mr. John R. DiLodovico

Mr. Rodney Michael Rusk

Manisha Dostert

Charles & Pamela Schiffer

Daniel H. Ferrier

Demetrius Shields

Yvonne Friday & Stephen Black

Catherine Strumbos

John Gierak & Dona Tracey Joseph & Lois Gilmore

Clara Sumeghy Mr. Bruce Tackett

Gil Glassberg & Sandra Seligman

Frank Tenkel

Philip & Martha Gray

Ms. Janet Beth Weir

Ms. Rosemary Gugino Beth Hoger & Lisa Swem

Meredith Weston-Band & Jeffery Band

Ms. George-Ann Howell

Ms. Richelle Wojtczak

Lawrence John & Lilian Lai

Elliot & Dr. Susan Zeltzer

Dr. Gretchen Thams

DE T R OI T OPER A | 1 3

Gifts in Tribute

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to those who have made generous gifts to Detroit Opera in honor or in memory of loved ones. The names of those being honored or remembered are listed in bold below.

IN HONOR OF Armando Delicatio Judith Gordon & Lawrence Banka Lisa DiChiera Mrs. Ruth F. Rattner* Carl & Mary Ann Fontana Mrs. Nina Dodge Abrams Paul & Orvilla Ashely Thomas E. Barron Michael J. Bartoy Beverly Anne Bloomberg Andre Boulanger Wilson Curle Mary Jo & Donald Dawson David Feeny Pamela Fontana Cynthia Gitt Peter Gude Patricia Isacson Sabee & David Sabee Theresa Johnson Mary Kramer Allen A. Lewis James Peggs & Margaret Talburtt Sarah Siwek Teresa Taranta Sara Valenti Rick Warner Robert Wittenberg Patricia Isacson Sabee William Austin Juliano Bitonti Stewart Katrina Fasulo Angela Nelson-Heesch Brenda Kee Dr. Ali Moiin & Dr. William Kupsky Mrs. Ruth F. Rattner* Dr. Ali Moiin & Dr. William Kupsky David Kupsky Law Group, LLC Mary Jane & Jeff Kupsky Mrs. Mary Jane Kupsky William & Elizabeth S. Kupsky Household Shane Pliska & Karl Lievense Dr. Ali Moiin & Dr. William Kupsky

14

Brett Scott Marcelo Ganasevici Jon Teeuwissen Manisha Dostert Lorna Thomas, MD Paul & Lee Blizman Barbara Walkowski Neal S. Goren

IN MEMORY OF Wickam Allen Beth Buzzelli Carlson Armando Delicatio Patricia Bentley Jacqueline Shuster Carol DeVore Mr. Mark S. DeVore David DiChiera Louis & Nellie Sieg Fund Sandy Duncan R. Jamison & Karen Williams Grant Eldridge Tracy Barr Drs. Julie B. Finn & Bradley Rowens Heather Gehring Shawn Rieschl Johnson & Christian Kirby Al Lucarelli R. Jamison & Karen Williams George & Ann Marisl Thomas Dickson & Carol Dick Ruth Rattner Jody & Gary Astrein David & Nancy Barbour Household Ms. Lori Cohn Elle Elder Marianne Elrick & Kenneth Myers Beth & Earle Erman Ann Fishman Amy Folbe Richard & Eleanore Gabrys Marilyn Goldberg Mrs. Marilyn Goldberg

Renee Handelsman David & Rose Handleman Barbara Heller Patty Isacson Sabee & David Sabee Richard Katz Ann Katz Mrs. Barbara Kratchman Michael & Barbara Kratchman Victor Lebovici Dr. Jay Levinson Nancy & Bud Liebler Howard Luckoff Alex & Lisa MacDonald Household Ali Moiin & William Kupsky Angela Nelson-Heesch Bluma Schechter Mrs. Bluma Schechter Ms. Lisa Schwartz Grace Serra Martha Siefman Mr. Mark Sussman Mr. William Volz Gary L. Wasserman & Charles A. Kashner Rick & Karen Williams Sharon Zimmerman Suzann Kaye Ripple Ms. Catherine Pappas Miss Alison Piech Gladys Santiago Angeline Rooks Maria McMullen William Sandy Julie & Peter Hollinshead Tamara Whitty Phyllis Osler Every effort has been made to accurately reflect donor, honoree, and memorial names for gifts received between July 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025. Should you find an error or omission please contact Angela Nelson-Heesch at anelsonheesch@detroitopera.org or 313.237.3438.

Avanti Society Members Setting the Stage for Tomorrow

Found throughout Italian opera, the word avanti means “ahead” or “forward.” The Avanti Society— Detroit Opera’s planned giving recognition program—honors a special group of donors whose generosity is guided by vision and foresight. By including Detroit Opera in their estate plans, members ensure that the transformative power of opera and dance will continue to inspire audiences in our community and across the nation for generations to come. With deep gratitude, we thank our Avanti Society members for shaping the future of Detroit Opera.

Douglas* & Sarah Allison Richard & Mona* Alonzo Dr. Lourdes V. Andaya§ Mr. & Mrs. Agustin Arbulu§ Chester* & Emilia Arnold§ Dr. Leora Bar-Levav Lee & Floy Barthel Brett & Veronica Batterson§ Richard & Gwen Bowlby Mrs. Doreen Bull Roy E.* & Ilse Calcagno§ Dr. & Mrs. Thomas & Dorothy* Carson Dr. & Mrs. Victor J.* & Katherine Cervenak Father Paul F. Chateau Mary Christner Mr. Gary L. Ciampa Prof. Kenneth Collinson Douglas & Minka Cornelsen Dr. Robert A. Cornette§# Mr. Thomas J. Delaney Walter & Adel Dissett Ms. Mary J. Doerr§ Mrs. Helen Ophelia Dove-Jones Maria Dudlar Marianne T. Endicott§# David & Jennifer Fischer Herbert & Betty Fisher§ Mrs. Barbara Frankel* & Mr. Ronald Michalak§# Mr. & Mrs. Herman Frankel§# Byron & Marilyn Georgeson§ Albert & Barbara Glover Robert Green Mr. Ernest Gutierrez Stephen & Aline Hagopian Mr. Lawrence Hall§ Jerome & Margot Halperin§ Heather Hamilton Charlene Handleman Preston* & Mary Happel Mr. Kenneth E. Hart§ Eugene & Donna Hartwig§ Dr. & Mrs. Gerhardt A. & Rebecca P. Hein Fay & Allen Herman Derek & Karen* Hodgson Andrew & Carol Howell Dr. Cindy Hung§ Eleanor & Alan Israel Ms. Kristin R. Jaramillo§ Don Jensen & Leo Dovelle§ John Jickling Patrick J.* & Stephanie Germack Kerzic

Josephine Kessler Edward & Barbara Klarman Robert & Wally Klein# Erwin H. & Suzanne Klopfer§# Myron & Joyce LaBan Paul Lavins* Max Lepler & Rex Dotson Linda Dresner & Ed Levy Jr. Mr. Hannan Lis Florence LoPatin Stephen Lord Ms. Denise Lutz Laura & Mitchell Malicki Ms. Jane C. McKee§ Bruce Miller Orlando & Dorothy Miller§ Ms. Monica Moffat & Mr. Pat McGuire Drs. Stephen & Barbara Munk Harold Munson & Libby Berger Tiffany Nance Mr. Jonathan F. Orser Ms. Julie Owens Mr. Dale J. Pangonis§ Charles A. & Mary Parkhill Daniel Valentino Peacock Allison Prost Mr. Richard M. Raisin§# Ms. Deborah Remer Dr. Joshua Rest James & Marguerite S. Rigby§ Mr. Bryan L. Rives Ms. Patricia H. Rodzik§ David & Beverly Rorabacher Dulcie Rosenfeld Professor Alvin* & Mrs. Harriet Saperstein Bashar Sarraf Ms. Susan Schooner§ Mark & Sally Schwartz Arlene Shaler§ Ms. Ellen Sharp Ms. Edna J Pak Shin Harold & June Siebert Mrs. Loretta Skewes Ms. Anne Sullivan Smith Ms. Betsy R. Spratt Richard* & Roberta Starkweather§# Ms. Mary Anne Stella Stanford C. Stoddard Ronald F. Switzer§ & Jim McClure Lillie Tabor Peter & Ellen Thurber

Alice* & Paul Tomboulian Jonathan* & Salome E. Walton Susan Weidinger Mr. Andrew Wise Larry* & Mary Lou Zangerle We express profound thanks to these Avanti Society members whose planned gifts to Detroit Opera have been realized.

Robert G. Abgarian Robert & Margaret Allesee# Serena Ailes Stevens Mr. & Mrs. J. Addison Bartush§# Mr. & Mrs. Mandell Berman Margaret & Douglas Borden Charles M. Broh Milena T. Brown Charlotte Bush Failing The Gladys L. Caldroney Mary C. Caggegi Allen B. Christman Miss Halla F. Claffey Ms. Virginia M. Clementi Hon. Avern Cohn & Ms. Lois Pincus Robert C. & RoseAnn B. Comstock Mrs. Mary Rita Cuddohy Marjorie E. DeVlieg Nance Dewar James P. Diamond Dr. David DiChiera Mrs. Karen V. DiChiera Nina S. Drolias Charles & Mary Jane Duncan§ Mr. Wayne C. Everly Dr. Evelyn J. Fisher Mrs. Anne E. Ford Ms. Pamela R. Francis§ Mrs. Rema Frankel Barbara Lucking Freedman Edward P. Frohlich The Priscilla A.B. Goodell Freda K. Goodman Priscilla R. Greenberg, Ph.D. §# Maliha Hamady Ms. Nancy B. Henk Mary Adelaide Hester Ms. Patricia Hobar Gordon V. Hoialmen Carl J. Huss Mr. John Jesser H. Barbara Johnston

Maxwell & Marjorie Jospey Mrs. Josephine Kleiner Misses Phyllis & Selma Korn§# Mr. & Mrs. Arthur Krolikowski§ Leslie Lazzerin Mr. Philip Leon Dores & Wade McCree Vivien McDonald Lucie B. Meininger Helen M. Miller Ella M. Montroy Ronald K. Morrison Ruth Mott Clarice Odgers Percox Elizabeth M. Pecsenye Thomas G. Porter Magdalena Predeteanu Mrs. Ruth F. Rattner Mitchell Romanowski Ms. Joanne B. Rooney Concetta Ross Mr. & Mrs. Giles L. & Beverly Ross Ms. Merle H. Scheibner Drs. Heinz & Alice Platt Schwarz§ Ms. Laura Sias Mrs. Marge Slezak Ms. Phyllis Funk Snow§ Edward L. Stahl Dr. Mildred Ponder Stennis Mary Ellen Tappan Margaret D. Thurber Mr. & Mrs. George & Inge Vincent§# Herman W. Weinreich J. Ernest Wilde Mrs. Ruth Wilkins Helen B. Wittenberg Mr. & Mrs. Walter & Elizabeth Work§ Joseph J. Zafarana George & Pearl Zeltzer§

KEY § Founding Members # Touch the Future donors

* Deceased Membership in the Avanti Society is open to all who wish to declare their intention for a planned gift to Detroit Opera. Call Demetrius Shields to learn more, 313.309.8255.

Detroit Opera Honor Roll

Detroit Opera gratefully acknowledges these distinguished donors for their lifetime giving. Their extraordinary generosity has shaped the history of our company— from its founding in 1971 by Dr. David DiChiera as Michigan Opera Theatre, to the opening of the Detroit Opera House in 1996, and to our bold transformation into Detroit Opera in 2022 under the leadership of Barbara Walkowski Artistic Director Yuval Sharon.

Their visionary support sustains the vitality of Detroit Opera today, making possible world-class opera and dance performances as well as acclaimed community programs that inspire and engage audiences throughout our region.

$10,000,000+

$1,000,000+

The William Davidson Foundation

Richard & Mona* Alonzo

Ford Motor Company Fund

AT&T

The State of Michigan

Bank of America

$5,000,000+

Mandell L. & Madeleine H. Berman Foundation

Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan

Mr.* & Mrs. John A. Boll Sr.

General Motors John S. & James L. Knight Foundation The Kresge Foundation Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

$2,000,000+ Mr. & Mrs. Douglas* & Sarah Allison Mr. Lee & Mrs. Floy Barthel Marvin, Betty & Joanne Danto Dance Endowment & Marvin & Betty Danto Family Foundation Mr. & Mrs. Herman & Sharon Frankel Lear Corporation Linda Dresner & Ed Levy Jr. Masco Corporation McGregor Fund The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation The Skillman Foundation R. Jamison & Karen Williams

Compuware Corporation Robert & RoseAnn Comstock Joanne Danto & Arnold Weingarden Ethan & Gretchen Davidson DTE Energy Foundation The Fred A. & Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation Mrs. Margo Cohen Feinberg & Mr. Robert Feinberg Max M. & Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation Mrs. Barbara Frankel* & Mr. Ronald Michalak Mr. & Mrs. Samuel Frankel* Hudson-Webber Foundation JPMorgan Chase Paul Lavins National Endowment for the Arts Matthew & Mona Simoncini Richard Sonenklar & Gregory Haynes Dr. & Mrs. Sam B. Williams* Matilda R. Wilson Fund

KEY

* Deceased 16

Every effort has been made to accurately reflect donor names and gift levels. Should you find an error or omission, please contact Angela Nelson-Heesch at anelsonheesch@detroitopera.org or 313.237.3438

Orchestra

Detroit Federation of Musicians, Local #5, of the American Federation of Musicians

V IOLIN

BA SS

BA SS CL A R IN E T

Daniel Stachyra

Derek Weller

J. William King

Yuri Popowycz

Clark Suttle

Interim Concertmaster Acting Asst. Concertmaster

Emelyn Bashour

Principal

Principal Second Violin

HARP

Anna Bittar-Weller

Juan Riveros

Solveig Geenen Molly Hughes Bryan Johnston Henrik Karapetyan Velda Kelly

Principal

FLU T E

Collin Stavinoha Principal

Andrea Velasquez

Beth Kirton Jenny Wan

PIC C OLO

Andrew Wu

Andrea Velasquez

V IOL A

OBOE

John Madison

Eli Stefanacci

Jacqueline Hanson

Mark Doerr

Principal

Principal

Scott Stefanko Chloé Thominet

EN GLI S H H O R N

Mark Doerr C ELLO

Ivana Biliskov Principal

Benjamin Maxwell Andrea Yun

BA SS OO N

Daniel Fendrick Principal

Peter Ecklund HORN

Colin Bianchi Principal

Natalie Sweasy T RU M PE T

David Ammer Principal

T RO M BO N E

Jordan Dove Principal

Dustin Nguyen T I M PA NI

Eric Stoss Principal

CL A R IN E T

Roi Karni Principal

J. William King

PER C USSIO N

John Dorsey Principal

DE T R OI T OPER A | 17

Administration & Staff LEADERSHIP

DEVELOPMENT

Patty Isacson Sabee, President & CEO

Juliano Bitonti Stewart, Director of Development

Yuval Sharon, Barbara Walkowski Artistic Director Roberto Kalb, Music Director Andrew Berg, Chief Development Officer Daniel T. Brinker, General Manager, Detroit Opera House & Parking Center Shawn Rieschl Johnson, Chief Programming & Production Officer Jon Teeuwissen, Artistic Advisor for Dance Samantha Teter, Chief Marketing Officer Ataul Usman, Senior Director of Human Resources

ADMINISTRATION William Austin, Executive Assistant

ARTISTIC DEPARTMENT Nathalie Doucet, Head of Music & Director of Detroit Opera Resident Artist Program

Chelsea S. Kotula, Director of Institutional Giving Katrina Fasulo, Director, Individual Giving & Donor Engagement Angela Nelson-Heesch, Director, Data Analytics & Operations Valentino Peacock, Manager of Data & Operations Demetrius Shields, Manager of Individual Giving

EDUCATION Branden Hood, Director of Education Alaina Brown, Program Coordinator: Education & Community Programs Eliza Beutler, Program Administrator

FACILITIES

Elizabeth Anderson, Artistic Administrator

Vanessa Boyd, Facilities Manager

DANCE

Juan Benavides, Building Engineer

Kim Smith, Dance Administrator

DETROIT OPERA YOUTH CHORUS

Kevie Crumb, Facilities & Event Technician

FINANCE

Twannette Nash, Chorus Administrator

Kimberley Burgess, Accountant

Jane Arvidson Panikkar, Preparatory Chorus Conductor

Rita Winters, Accountant

Rebecca O-G Eaddy, Principal Chorus Conductor Maria Cimarelli, Preparatory Chorus Accompanist Joseph Jackson, Principal Chorus Accompanist

HUMAN RESOURCES Denver Harvey, Human Resources Coordinator

MARKETING/COMMUNICATIONS Leah Hill, Director of Marketing Anna Herscher, Lead Graphic Designer Jennifer Melick, Communications & Media Relations Manager Deirdre Michael, Website Administrator Position is supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Austin Richey, Digital Media Manager & Storyteller Arthur White, Director of Community & Audience Engagement

18

MUSIC DEPARTMENT

SAFETY AND SECURITY

Katherine Kozak, Chorus Director & Music Administrator

Rock Monroe, Director of Safety & Security

Molly Hughes, Orchestra Personnel Manager Jean Posekany, Orchestra Librarian

PRODUCTION

Lieutenant Lorraine Monroe Sergeant Demetrius Newbold Officer Gary Cabean Officer A.M. Hightower

Elizabeth Anderson, Production Coordinator

Officer Michelle Johnson

Kathleen Bennett, Production Finance Administrator

Officer Terrence Hunter

Jeff Beyersdorf, Technical Director

Officer Khalil Nalis

Eden Cope, Assistant Technical Director Brian Dambacher, Production Manager Monika Essen, Property Master Suzanne Hanna, Costume Director Kaila Madison, Technical Assistant

Officer Vernon Smith

TICKETING & BOX OFFICE Amy Brown, Director of Ticketing and Booking Stephanie Stoiko, Box Office Manager

Brodrick Whittley, Assistant Technical Director

Evan Carr, System Administrator

COSTUMES Suzanne Hanna, Costume Director

Alex Robinson, Box Office Associate

Michaela Tanskley, Wardrobe Supervisor

Ellen Smith, Group Sales Associate

Patricia Sova Jr., First Hand

VENUE OPERATIONS

Mary Ellen Shuffett, Fitting Assistant

Holly McDermott, Box Office Associate Chris Simpson, Box Office Associate

Eileen Thorna, Tailor

Alexis Means, Director of Operations & Patron Experiences

Maureen Abele, Paul Moran, Lupe Vazquez, Stitchers

Holly Clement, Senior Manager of Events & Rentals

WIGS & MAKEUP Erika Broderdorf, Wig & Makeup Crew Coordinator

Jennifer George-Consiglio, Manager of Venue Operations

STAGE CREW John Kinsora, Head Carpenter

Kathie Booth, Volunteer Coordinator

Jerome Bowie, Head Electrician Pat McGee, Head Propertyman Chris Baker, Head of Sound Pat Tobin, Head Flyman Dee Dorsey, Surtitle Operator Mary Ellen Shuffett, Head of Wardrobe IATSE Local #38 Stage Crew IATSE Local #786 Wardrobe

Michael Hauser, Curator of History & Architecture

USHERS Max Aghili, Christine Berryman, Ellen Bishop, Kathie Booth, Lori Burkhardt, Randall Davis, Erin Doakes, Suzanne Erbes, Pamela Fergusson, Jo-Ann Hale, Sue Hargrave, Myrna Mazure, Ennis Mcgee, Steven McReynolds, Heddie O’Connor, Bill Ried, Kimberly Ried, Edna Rubin, Ida Vance, Sheryl Weinan-Yee

DE T R OI T OPER A | 1 9

IN CASE OF EMERGENCY Please observe the lighted exit signs located throughout the theater. In the event of an emergency, remain calm and walk, do not run, to the nearest exit.

Ushers and security personnel are trained to assist. An emergency medical technician (EMT) is on-site during most events. Contact an usher or staff member if you need medical assistance.

GUEST SERVICES­: Vincent Lobby and Broadway Lounge There are a variety of amenities for your comfort and use located in both guest services locations. Wheelchairs, booster seats*, earplugs, assisted listening devices, feminine hygiene products, basic first aid items, and more are complimentary and available for your convenience. Coat check is also available.

The Vincent Lobby is located on the Madison Street side of the building and the Broadway Lounge is located on the Broadway Street side of the building. *Limited quantity

PHOTOGRAPHY, RECORDING, AND CELL PHONE USE Photography and/or recording during any performance is strictly prohibited.

Photographs taken in the lobby areas, before or after a performance, and during intermission are welcome. As a courtesy to all guests, please turn off all electronic devices and refrain from use during the performance.

RESTROOMS Women’s restrooms are located off the Ford Lobby (Broadway Street entrance) and down the stairs, and on third floor (Madison Street entrance).

Men’s restrooms are located under the Grand Staircase and on the third floor (Broadway Street side). There are two sets of elevators or stairs available to access all third-floor restrooms. All third-floor restrooms are wheelchair accessible (women’s restroom, press 3R in the elevator). There are single-use unisex wheelchair accessible restrooms on the first floor of the Broadway Street side of the building and the Madison Street side of the building. There is also a wheelchair accessible women’s restroom on the Broadway Street side of the building.

NO SMOKING The Detroit Opera House is a non-smoking facility.

This includes e-cigarettes, vapes, and other “smokeless” products.

USHERS Ushers are stationed throughout the building to assist patrons as needed.

Please direct questions, concerns, and feedback to them during your visit.

Enjoy volunteering? Please go to guest services or the Detroit Opera website, DetroitOpera.org/support/volunteer, for information on becoming a volunteer.

LOST AND FOUND During the performance, lost and found is located in guest services.

Unclaimed items are logged and taken to the Safety and Security office after each performance. To inquire about a misplaced or lost item, please call 313.961.3500. Items left over 30 days will be discarded or donated.

RECORDING IN PROGRESS Entry and presence on the event premises constitute your consent to be photographed, filmed, and/or otherwise recorded, and to the release, publication, exhibition, or reproduction of any and all recorded media for any purpose whatsoever in perpetuity in connection with Detroit Opera and its initiatives. By entering the event premises, you waive and release any claims you may have related to the use of recorded media of you at the event.

20

DETROIT OPER A HOUSE, IN ASSOCIATION WITH CHE W ENTERTAINMENT, PRESENTS

Featuring George Clinton with Nona Hendryx, Vernon Reid, and Rahsaan Patterson AND THE DETROIT OPER A ORCHESTR A CONDUCTED BY R AY CHEW

January 31, 2026

Celebrating The Music of Parliament Funkadelic Symphonic PFunk: Celebrating The Music of Parliament Funkadelic