APPRENTICE ARTIST PROGRAM

The Frank R. Brownell III APPRENTICE ARTIST

Des Moines Metro Opera's mission calls us to lead the way in developing the next generation of singers. We do that through an Apprentice Artist Program that is nationally recognized as one of the oldest and finest programs of its type. Through an intense seven-week training program, these young singers develop the tools needed to bridge the gap between their academic preparation and professional career in opera. Their daily schedules are filled with rehearsals, specialized training and coaching sessions, concerts, and scenes presentations. The Company has assembled a staff of talented conductors, coaches and directors to help guide each singer’s development. Michael Egel and Program Director Lisa Hasson work all year long to ensure that the Apprentice Artist Program remains a distinguished, in-depth learning and performing opportunity.

The roster for the 2021 Summer Festival includes young singers representing 22 states. Forty-two were chosen from nearly 1,000 applicants. For most, their journey to Iowa began in the fall of 2019 with auditions for the 2020 Summer Festival Season. When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of that season, the 42 singers, instead, participated in a rigorous eight-week virtual program that included digital scene performances, voice lessons, numerous weekly sessions with industry leaders, and culminated in a class by The Metropolitan Opera Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Each artist was paid their full fee for 2020 and offered a new, additional contract to return for the 2021 Summer Festival. Of the 42 artists, 35 were able to accept, and seven new artists were engaged to join the roster for the 2022 season.

Beginning this season the program will be named the Frank R. Brownell III Apprentice Artist Program thanks to a $1 million leadership gift. Frank has been the annual benefactor of the program for over ten years, and his support for and belief in the next generation of singers has enabled the program to continue to grow and excel. His support has secured the future of the program and allowed the company to increase access to singers across the nation by removing the financial barrier of audition fees while improving the stipend offered to selected singers, making such a transformative apprentice experience possible for many exceptionally talented artists who might not otherwise be able to be with us.

MANFRED ANAYA

Tenor, Los Angeles, CA Tchaplitsky (cover), The Queen of Spades DMMO DEBUT RECENT La Traviata, Dayton Opera Falstaff, University of Cincinnati-CCM Eugene Onegin, Independent OPERA SPONSORS Carol and Eric Weber BRANDON BELL

Baritone, Suffolk, VA General Arlie/Bartender, Hawkins Fuller (cover), Fellow Travelers Momus (cover), Platée RECENT The Tragedy of Carmen, Silent Night, Utah Opera Breaking the Waves,

West Edge Opera SPONSOR John Graether ELANA BELL

Mezzo-Soprano, New York, NY Juno (study cover), Platée DMMO DEBUT RECENT L’enfant et les Sortilèges,

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra The Bartered Bride, University of Cincinnati-CCM The Marriage of Figaro,

Music Academy of the West SPONSORS Dennis and Betty Keeney GEORGIA BELMONT

Soprano, New York, NY DMMO DEBUT RECENT L’enfant et les Sortilèges

Rice University Frida, Opera Steamboat The Ballad of Baby Doe,

Opera in the Ozarks SPONSORS Jane and Steve Bahls

PROGRAM

CARA BENDER

MOLLIE SHAPIRO ARTIST Soprano, Corning, NY Mascha (cover), The Queen of Spades DMMO DEBUT RECENT Postcard from Morocco,

New England Conservatory Hansel and Gretel,

Due Donne Productions La Calisto, New England Conservatory SPONSOR Dorothy Ely

ANTONIO CRUZ

Baritone, Tucson, AZ Prince Yeletsky (cover), The Queen of Spades DMMO DEBUT RECENT L’enfant et les Sortilèges,

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Pagliacci, El Paso Opera Carmen, Kentucky Opera SPONSORS Denise and John Wieland MICHAEL BUTLER

Tenor, Bowie, MD DMMO DEBUT RECENT Starry Night Concert of Arias, New York City Opera Das Land des Lächelns,

Washington Opera Society Bruscula the Magician,

Belcantanti Opera Company SPONSORS Patricia Barry and Bryan Hall

THADDEUS ENNEN

Baritone, Buffalo Center, IA Count Tomsky/Zlatagor (cover), The Queen of Spades RECENT Gianni Schicchi, LSU, Turner-Fischer Opera Center Madama Butterfly, Cedar Rapids Opera, Central City Opera SPONSOR Fred Crane CIERRA BYRD

ANNE LARSON ARTIST Mezzo-Soprano, Akron, OH Governess, The Queen of Spades DMMO DEBUT RECENT Mahler’s Symphony No. 3,

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Pride and Prejudice, Peabody Opera Theatre Hansel and Gretel, Opera Saratoga SPONSORS Melanie Porter and Wayne Halbur GABRIELLE CLUTTER

MARIA DIPALMA ARTIST Soprano, Indianola, IA RECENT Love in the Time Of,

Boston Opera Collaborative The Littlest Mermaid, OPERA Iowa The Turn of the Screw,

Boston Conservatory at Berklee SPONSORS Philip and Karen Langstraat

ASHLEY FABIAN

Soprano, Charleston, SC Johanna (cover), Sweeney Todd Prilepa (cover), The Queen of Spades DMMO DEBUT RECENT The Elixir of Love,

Indianapolis Opera Hansel and Gretel, Idomeneo,

Pittsburgh Opera SPONSORS Rose and Kurt Loth VÉRONIQUE FILLOUX

Soprano, Redwood City, CA Amour, La Folie (cover), Platée DMMO DEBUT RECENT Semele, Così fan tutte,

Pittsburgh Opera La damoiselle élue, Central City Opera SPONSOR Connie Wimer

DYLAN GREGG

Bass-Baritone, Salisbury, MD Judge Turpin (cover), Sweeney Todd RECENT L’enfant et les Sortilèges, Der Kaiser von Atlantis, Rice University The Magic Flute, OPERA Iowa SPONSOR Anastasia Polydoran SYMONE HARCUM

Soprano, Baltimore, MD Mascha, Lisa (cover) The Queen of Spades RECENT Trouble in Tahiti, Aïda, La Cenerentola,

Virginia Opera SPONSORS Emily and Jason Pontius NATHANIEL HILL

Baritone, Chicago, IL Senator Joseph McCarthy, Fellow Travelers DMMO DEBUT RECENT Mahagonny Songspiel, Prince of Players, The Florentine Opera Company Götterdämmerung, Lyric Opera of Chicago SPONSORS Alvin and Sue Ravenscroft CHRISTOPHER HUMBERT, JR.

Bass-Baritone, Columbus, OH Sourin & Narumov (covers), The Queen of Spades DMMO DEBUT RECENT Don Giovanni,

Opera Columbus I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Die Zauberflöte, Palm Beach Opera SPONSORS Terri Combs and Thomas Swartwood

GEORGIA JACOBSON

Mezzo-Soprano, Duluth, MN Mary Johnson (cover), Fellow Travelers DMMO DEBUT RECENT The Hours, Cincinnati Opera Fusion: New Works L’enfant et les Sortilèges, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Winner, Carolyn Bailey and Dominick Argento Vocal Competition, National Opera Association SPONSORS David and Joan Paulsrud KATE JOHNSON

Soprano, Omaha, NE DMMO DEBUT RECENT Serse, The Marriage of Figaro, Indiana University Little Women, University of Nebraska-Lincoln SPONSORS William and Pauline Niebur

CLAIRE LOPATKA

Soprano, State College, PA Lucy, Fellow Travelers DMMO DEBUT RECENT Partenope, The Magic Flute, Dinner at Eight, University of Cincinnati-CCM SPONSORS Bob and Ardene Downing QUINN MIDDLEMAN

Mezzo-Soprano, Vancouver, WA Countess & Governess (covers), The Queen of Spades RECENT Silent Night, La Traviata, Utah Opera The Ghosts of Versailles,

Chautauqua Opera SPONSORS Thomas G. and Rita Fisher CRAIG JURICKA

Baritone, Boston, MA Senator Charles Potter, Fellow Travelers RECENT The Play of Daniel,

Boston Camerata Die Fledermaus, MassOpera Cendrillon, Opera del West SPONSOR Betty Augspurger JORDAN KRACK

Baritone, Cincinnati, OH Anthony Hope (cover), Sweeney Todd DMMO DEBUT RECENT The Bartered Bride,

University of Cincinnati-CCM Romeo and Juliet, The Marriage of Figaro, Cincinnati Opera SPONSOR Cleon Rutherford Memorial Trust

MARIA MILLER

Mezzo-Soprano, Paducah, KY Mrs. Lovett (cover), Sweeney Todd DMMO DEBUT RECENT Dido and Aeneas,

Sarasota Opera Blind Injustice, Cincinnati Opera Amahl and the Night Visitors,

Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra SPONSOR Babette C. Brenton GEORGE MILOSH

Tenor, Aliquippa, PA Platée (cover), Platée DMMO DEBUT RECENT Cendrillon (Viardot), Pittsburgh Festival Opera Acis and Galatea, Central City Opera The Magic Flute, West Virginia University SPONSORS Robert G. and Kay J. Riley, Jr.

KELLIE MOTTER

Soprano, Atlanta, GA Thalie (cover), Platée RECENT The Magic Flute,

OPERA Iowa Carmen, L'isola disabitata,

Opera Naples SPONSORS Jerilee Mace and T.J. Johnsrud BRIANA MOYNIHAN

Mezzo-Soprano, Red Wing, MN Juno (cover), Platée RECENT The Magic Flute, Little Red's Most Unusual Day,

OPERA Iowa The Rape of Lucretia, Journey North Opera Company SPONSOR Jo Ghrist JOHN KUN PARK

Tenor, Los Angeles, CA Tchekalinsky (cover), The Queen of Spades Adolfo Pirelli & Beadle Bamford (covers), Sweeney Todd DMMO DEBUT RECENT Faust, Valley Opera Nabucco, West Bay Opera Die Walküre, Pittsburgh Festival Opera SPONSORS V.V. and Marilu Raman BRIDGET RAVENSCRAFT

Soprano, Hoffman Estates, IL DMMO DEBUT RECENT Hansel and Gretel, West Side Story, Florencia en el Amazonas, Indiana University Opera Theater SPONSOR Marylee Lankamer

EMMA ROTHFIELD

Soprano, Woodbine, MD DMMO DEBUT RECENT Dog Days, Béatrice et Bénédict, The Turn of the Screw,

Northwestern Opera Theatre SPONSOR Barbara Jackman ALEXANDER SCHEUERMANN

Tenor, Merritt Island, FL Timothy Laughlin (cover), Fellow Travelers DMMO DEBUT RECENT Glory Denied, Kentucky Opera, Fayetteville Opera Florencia en el Amazonas,

Pensacola Opera SPONSORS Ann and Michael Gersie KELLEN SCHRIMPER

Baritone, Des Moines, IA Un Satyr (cover), Platée Estonian Frank/Interrogator, Fellow Travelers RECENT The Magic Flute,

OPERA Iowa Candide, Des Moines Metro Opera Falstaff, Drake University SPONSOR Dr. James Rutherford AMANDA SHERIFF

NICOLE TROUT ARTIST Soprano, Houston, TX Miss Lightfoot, Fellow Travelers Amour & Clarine (covers), Platèe RECENT Signor Deluso, Trouble in Tahiti, Three Decembers,

Florida Grand Opera SPONSORS William L. Dawe, III and Sheila K. Tipton

CAMILLE SHERMAN

Mezzo-Soprano, Petaluma, CA Thalie, Platée Beggar Woman (cover), Sweeney Todd DMMO DEBUT RECENT Bajazet, La Finta Giardiniera, Portland Opera Romeo and Juliet,

Pensacola Opera SPONSOR Andrew Thomas JAMES STEVENS

Tenor, Saint Louis, MO Thespis, Platée DMMO DEBUT RECENT The Ghosts of Versailles, The Barber of Seville,

Chautauqua Opera Company Die Fledermaus, Opera in the Ozarks SPONSORS Deb Wiley and John Schmidt ANDREW TURNER

Tenor, Tacoma, WA Tchaplitsky, The Queen of Spades Tobias Ragg (cover), Sweeney Todd RECENT Trouble in Tahiti, Virginia Opera The Littlest Mermaid, The Magic Flute, OPERA Iowa SPONSOR Barbara Beatty MARIA VASILEVSKAYA

Mezzo-Soprano, Novosibirsk, Russia Milovzor (cover), The Queen of Spades DMMO DEBUT RECENT Hansel and Gretel, The Barber of Seville, Eugene Onegin, Palm Beach Opera SPONSORS Martha James and Michael Myszewski

RYAN WOLFE

Baritone, Arlington Heights, IL Sen. Potter’s Assistant/Bookseller/ Priest/Technician/Party Guest, Fellow Travelers Narumov, The Queen of Spades Cithéron (cover), Platée DMMO DEBUT RECENT L’enfant et les Sortilèges, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Die Zauberflöte, The Bartered Bride,

University of Cincinnati-CCM SPONSOR Susan Morris JASON ZACHER

Bass-Baritone, Livingston, NJ Jupiter (cover), Platée DMMO DEBUT RECENT The Marriage of Figaro, The Leader (World Premiere), Tosca, Opera in the Heights SPONSORS Peter and Rita Reed CADIE J. BRYAN pg. 85 PETER SCOTT DRACKLEY pg. 85 ANDREW GILSTRAP pg. 86 BRIAN WALLIN pg. 93