36 | cast&creative
DEMETRIUS SAMPSON CRABMAN ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT
Tenor, Demetrious Sampson is making his debut with the Atlanta Opera he is a sophomore vocal performance major at the Georgia State School of Music where he has performed the role of Vanderdender in Candide and Reverend Pollard in The Village Singer. He will sing the role of Sam in Susannah in April with the GSU Opera Theater. He would like to thank his past teachers Theressa HammSmith and Sarah Benjamin for instilling in him his love and passion for correct vocal technique and health. He would also like to thank his current voice professor, Kathryn Hartgrove for the work they have done together. He also would like to extend his thanks to the Georgia State School of Music Director, Dr. Nick Demos, and Dean of the College of the Arts, Wade Weast.
Jouelle Roberson hails from Washington, D.C. She began her musical studies at the Duke Ellington School for the Arts. Following graduation, she was accepted into the vocal studies program at Morgan State University where she graduated with both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in vocal performance studying with Marquita Lister. On the operatic stage, she has performed the role of Marenka in Bedrich Smetana’s The Bartered Bride with the Bethesda Summer Music Festival. Following her successful performances as Marenka, she was invited by JOUELLE ROBERSON the AAMS Opera to perform the role of the Countess (excerpts) from Le nozze di Figaro in Ischia, Italy. With STUDIO ARTIST Opera at Morgan, she has performed in several scenes and STRAWBERRY WOMAN fully staged productions, including the 2018 production of Lyrics of Sunshine and Shadows by Steven M. Allen ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT where she portrayed the title role of Alice Ruth Moore. FRIDA, 2019 More recently, by request of the composer, she repeated her portrayal of Alice Ruth Moore in an Opera Showcase presented by CAAPA. She has advanced to the semifinals of the 2019 Annapolis Opera vocal competition, and she is the 2018 winner of the Emerging Young Artist Regional competition presented by the National Association of Negro Business Women and Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc. She is a member of Sigma Alpha Iota Music Fraternity.
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