Cast & Creative

GRAMMY Award-winning conductor Michael Christie, newly appointed Music Director of the New West Symphony, is a thoughtfully innovative conductor, equally at home in the symphonic and opera worlds, who is focused on making the audience experience at his performances entertaining, enlightening, and enriching. Christie won a 2019 GRAMMY Award (Best Opera Recording) for the world premiere recording of Mason Bates’ The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs with The Santa Fe Opera (PENTATONE), and was featured in Opera News MICHAEL CHRISTIE in August 2012 as one of 25 people believed to “break CONDUCTOR out and become major forces in the field in the coming decade.” At Minnesota Opera, Christie led 24 productions ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT over eight years, six seasons as its first-ever Music Director (2012 through 2018). 2019-20 was Christie’s first full season as Music Director of the New West Symphony, and he lead operas with Indiana University Opera and Ballet Theater, San Francisco Opera, and Lyric Opera of Kansas City. Recent world premiere performances include An American Soldier by Huang Ruo with Opera Theatre of St. Louis in 2018 and The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs by Mason Bates with Santa Fe Opera in 2017. Christie’s conducting career, spanning more than 20 years, has included serving as Music Director of the Phoenix Symphony and Brooklyn Philharmonic and as Chief Conductor of the Queensland Orchestra in Australia, as well as guest appearances leading top orchestras around the world. Christie also served as Music Director of the Colorado Music Festival from 2000 to 2013. Michael Christie first came to international attention in 1995 when he was awarded a special prize for “Outstanding Potential” at the First International Sibelius Conductors’ Competition in Helsinki. Following the competition, he was invited to become an apprentice conductor with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra where he subsequently worked with Daniel Barenboim as well as at the Berlin State Opera. Christie holds a bachelors degree in trumpet from the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music. He lives in the Twin Cities with his wife, Alexis, a physician, and their two children. For more information, visit www.michaelchristieonline.com.

Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General & Artistic Director of The Atlanta Opera since 2013, Israeli born Tomer Zvulun is one of the leading stage directors of his generation, earning consistent praise for his creative vision and innovative interpretations. His work has been presented internationally and in the U.S., including The Metropolitan Opera, Washington National Opera, Seattle, Houston, Dallas, San Diego, Boston, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Montreal, Buenos Aires, and the festivals of Wexford, Glimmerglass and Wolf Trap, as well as leading educational institutes and universities such as The Juilliard School, Indiana University, TOMER ZVULUN and Boston University. He spent seven seasons on the directing staff at The Metropolitan Opera, where he directed CARL W. KNOBLOCH, JR. revivals of Carmen and Tosca and was involved with more GENERAL & ARTISTIC than a dozen new productions. He is a frequent guest DIRECTOR director at companies such as Seattle Opera (Semele, La bohème, Eugene Onegin, Lucia di Lammermoor), The Dallas STAGE DIRECTOR Opera (Die Fledermaus, La bohème), Houston Grand Opera ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT (The Flying Dutchman, Rigoletto), Wexford Festival (Silent Night, Dinner at Eight), Cincinnati Opera (The Magic Flute, THE FLYING DUTCHMAN, Don Giovanni, The Flying Dutchman), Wolf Trap (Falstaff, 2009 Don Giovanni), Israeli Opera (Dead Man Walking, Giulio Cesare) among others. His European premiere of Silent Night at the Wexford Festival received two Irish Times Awards and traveled from Ireland to Washington National Opera, The Glimmerglass Festival, and the opera companies of Atlanta, Austin, and Salt Lake City. He directed over 15 new productions at his home company in Atlanta, including Dead Man Walking, The Flying Dutchman, Soldier Songs, Silent Night, Maria de Buenos Aires, La bohème, Madama Butterfly, Lucia di Lammermoor, The Magic Flute, and Eugene Onegin. During Tomer’s tenure, the company’s fundraising has tripled, resulting in twice the number of productions presented annually. His focus on innovation has garnered national attention and resulted in a Harvard Business School case study chronicling The Atlanta Opera’s turnaround, an International Opera Awards nomination, an ArtsATL Luminary Award, and an invitation to deliver a TEDx Talk about innovation in opera.

Rebecca Herman is Artistic Producer of LOLA, Local Opera Local Artists in Austin, Texas as well as an operatic stage director. She is especially excited to be Associate Director for this new production with Austin Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and The Atlanta Opera. Last spring, she was the assistant director for Austin Opera’s production of Tosca at the Formula One Race Track’s Circuit of the America’s amphitheater and their Fall 2021 production of Le Nozze di Figaro. LOLA also got back into production in Fall of 2021 workshopping and recording two new operas: Lardo Weeping by Stopschinski, Galloway, and Nuud; REBECCA HERMAN and Good Country by Allegretti and Raker. Pre-pandemic highlights include: Dido and Aeneas (Director), LOLA and ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR Panoramic voices; La Finta Giardiniera (AD), Portland Opera; The Magic Bullets (Director) and Die Walküre, Act I ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT (Director), Queen City Opera; Otello (Director), Don Giovanni (Director) and The Daughter of the Regiment (Director), Austin Opera. She has directed Queer Opera’s weeklong workshops at Portland State University as well as their recent productions of The Old Maid and the Thief and The Breasts of Tiresias. Rebecca received an M.M. in Opera Direction from The University of Texas at Austin and both a B.A. in English Literature and a B.M. in Opera and Vocal Studies from Lawrence University.

Heralded as the “…embodiment of classical clarity” (Minnesota Star Tribune), Aaron Breid is rapidly garnering acclaim. His precise and passionate leadership has distinguished him as a sought-after guest conductor and an integral collaborator. Highlights among recent guest conductor engagements include Virginia Symphony Orchestra (debut), Opera Santa Barbara (Roméo et Juliette), Miami Music Festival (Cendrillon), Omaha Symphony (Music Mentors), Minnesota Opera (Resident Artist Program 20th Anniversary Concert), and Orchestra Seattle/Seattle Chamber Singers (Scheherazade). Currently AARON BREID in his fourth season as Cover Conductor for Washington National Opera and his first season with Los Angeles ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR Opera, Breid will collaborate with Robert Spano (Written ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT in Stone) and James Conlon (Tannhäuser). Known for his contributions to the German and French grand repertoire, recent performances include Cendrillon (Miami Music Festival), Wozzeck (Des Moines Metro Opera), Faust (Washington National Opera), Samson et Dalila (Washington National Opera and North Carolina Opera), Arabella (Minnesota Opera), Elektra (Des Moines Metro Opera), Der Freischütz (Virginia Opera), and Siegfried Act III in concert (North Carolina Opera). Breid has stepped in to conduct more than a dozen performances of Turandot, Carmen, Il trovatore, Gianni Schicchi, Suor Angelica, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Così fan tutte, and The Ballad of Baby Doe with Minnesota Opera, Central City Opera, Opera Santa Barbara, Opera Omaha, and Virginia Opera. Past seasons have seen Breid collaborate in productions with San Francisco Opera’s Merola Opera Program, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Sarasota Opera, and Palm Beach Opera; symphony highlights have included performances with Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Ithaca College Orchestra, Heartland Philharmonic, UNO Chamber Orchestra, Ocala Symphony, Golden Valley Symphony, Edina Chorale and Orchestra, and a collaboration with Charlotte Symphony.

Ricardo Aponte is delighted to return to The Atlanta Opera as assistant director, after choreographing Frida in 2019 and The Threepenny Opera and The Threepenny Carmen as part of the Big Tent Series in 2021. Ricardo is an Atlanta-based director and choreographer and a three time Suzi Bass Award winner, who’s work has been seen at The Alliance Theatre, Theatrical Outfit, Aurora Theatre, Actor’s Express, Atlanta Lyric Theatre, and Georgia Ensemble Theatre, among other productions around the country. He’s also the founder and artistic director of Theatre Platform Project, a theatre education nonprofit that serves underserved communities.

RICARDO APONTE

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT FRIDA, 2019

JACOB A. CLIMER

SCENIC & COSTUME DESIGNER

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE FLYING DUTCHMAN, 2017 Jacob A. Climer is a Scenic and Costume Designer for opera, theater, and special events. Based in New York City since 2005, Jacob has designed for renowned theaters and opera companies around the country. Highlights of his career include new musicals with John Kander and Sarah Ruhl, Orphée at Des Moines Metro Opera/ Portland Opera, The Flying Dutchman at The Atlanta Opera/Cincinnatti Opera/Houston Grand Opera, and the contemporized production of Les Misérables at the Dallas Theater Center. Originally from Dallas, Texas, Jacob grew up active in the music, dance, and performance community, playing violin and cello, training in dance, and as a mime. In high school, he started making costumes and designing for the theater. He studied Costume and Scenic Design and received a BFA from University of Evansville and an MFA from Carnegie Mellon University. Proud Member of United Scenic Artists 829

Robert Wierzel has worked in opera, theater, dance, museums, and contemporary music. Opera credits include productions with the opera companies of Paris Garnier, Tokyo, Toronto, Bergen, Norway, Glimmerglass Festival, Seattle, Boston Lyric, Minnesota, San Francisco, Houston, Virginia, Chicago Lyric, Opera Theatre of Chicago, Montreal, Vancouver, Portland, Wolf Trap, NYCO, and San Diego. His dance work includes the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company. Broadway credits include Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill starring Audra McDonald; Fela! (Tony ROBERT WIERZEL Award nomination), and David Copperfield’s Broadway LIGHTING DESIGNER debut, Dreams and Nightmares. Off-Broadway includes productions with the NYSF/Public Theater, The Signature ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT Theatre, Roundabout Theatre Company, and Playwrights LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR, 2011 Horizons. Robert’s extensive regional theater work includes productions at the Alliance Theatre (Atlanta); Goodman Theatre; A.C.T. San Francisco; Arena Stage (Washington, D.C.), Center Stage, Chicago Shakespeare Theater; Shakespeare Theatre (Washington, D.C.); Hartford Stage; Long Wharf Theatre; The Guthrie; Mark Taper Forum; Actors Theatre Louisville, and The Old Globe. He is adjunct faculty at N.Y.U.’s Tisch School and a guest lecturer at the Yale School of Drama.

MELANIE STEELE

WIG & MAKEUP DESIGNER

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE GOLDEN TICKET, 2011 Melanie Steele lives in Atlanta where she works with The Atlanta Opera, Fox Theatre, The Alliance Theatre, Atlanta Ballet, as well as working in film and television. Steele recently toured with the national Broadway tour of The Lion King. She has designed wigs and makeup for The Santa Fe Opera, Austin Opera, Central City Opera, Spoleto Festival USA, Baltimore Opera, Kentucky Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, Bard SummerScape, Opera Festival of New Jersey, Opera Pacific, Opera North Carolina, and Saratoga Springs Opera. Some of Steele’s work can be seen in Opera News, Makeup Artist Magazine, Seventeen, Time, Newsweek, Glamour, Voyage Atlanta, IMDB and Texas Monthly Magazine.

S. Katy Tucker designs video and projections for live performance internationally, working frequently in opera and collaborating with composers and musicians, including Paul McCartney, Helga Davis, Pamela Z, and Amanda Gookin. Her work has been seen around the world, including Broadway, Off-Broadway, and at New York City Ballet, Carnegie Hall, Park Avenue Armory, BAM, San Francisco Opera, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Dutch National Opera, Sydney Opera House, Houston Grand Opera, Washington National Opera, and S. KATY TUCKER the Canadian Opera Company. She began her career PROJECTIONS DESIGNER as a painter and installation artist, exhibiting her work at a variety of galleries, such as the Corcoran Museum, ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT Dupont Underground, the Dillon Gallery, and Artist’s THE ABDUCTION FROM Space in New York City. Recent productions include THE SERAGLIO, 2016 Eurydice and Verdi’s Requiem at The Metropolitan Opera, Florencia en el Amazonas at Lyric Opera of Chicago, Orpheus and Eurydice at Seattle Opera, and Come Home at Washington National Opera.

A frequent performer in both Europe and the United States, John Moore is garnering praise for his energetic performances and burnished baritone in both operatic and concert repertoire. He is a graduate of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Program. John Moore’s 2021-22 season features the rescheduled tour of The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs as he reprises the titular Steve Jobs with Austin Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and Atlanta Opera. He also returns to Seattle Opera as Marcello in La bohème, and joins New Orleans Opera as JOHN MOORE a soloist in their Gala Concert. In the summer of 2022, STEVE JOBS he returns to Des Moines Metro Opera as Jess in the world premiere of Kristin Kuster’s A Thousand Acres. ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT During the COVID-19 impacted 2020-2021 season, John THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO, Moore’s engagements included the title role in Eugene 2015 Onegin with his hometown company Minnesota Opera (cancelled), Handel’s Messiah with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra (postponed), the title role in The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs with The Atlanta Opera, Austin Opera, and Lyric Opera of Kansas City (postponed), Brahms’ Requiem with the San Diego Symphony, led by Edo de Waart (cancelled), and Conte Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro with New Zealand Opera (performed). Other recent highlights include performances with Seattle Opera as Steve Jobs in The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia, and the title role in Eugene Onegin, Achilla in Giulio Cesare with the Glyndebourne Festival, role debuts as Hannah Before in As One with Des Moines Metro Opera and Johannes “Pa” Zegner in Proving Up with Opera Omaha, his debut with San Diego Opera as the Count in Le nozze di Figaro, and he joined Opera Philadelphia for the world premiere of Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves to create the role of Jan.

Praised as “sizzling,” “riveting” and possessing a “plummy, ripe mezzo,” Sarah Larsen made her Metropolitan Opera debut in the 2016-17 season as Käthchen in Sir Richard Eyre’s production of Werther. A regular at The Met, this season she will be heard as The Second Lady in their holiday production of The Magic Flute. Other appearances include Flora in La traviata and being involved with productions of Le nozze di Figaro, Parsifal, The Merry Widow, and Cendrillon. Further performances this season include performances as Laurene Powell in SARAH LARSEN a new production by Tomer Zvulun of The (R)evolution LAURENE POWELL JOBS of Steve Jobs with Austin Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and The Atlanta Opera. Larsen performs regularly ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT around the United States with companies including Arizona Opera, Virginia Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, and The Glimmerglass Festival. An alumna of the Seattle Opera Young Artist Program, Ms. Larsen enjoys a long relationship with the company including performances as Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos, Hänsel in Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel, Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, and Maddalena in Rigoletto, among others.

Praised by the Huffington Post for his “ringing high notes,” Texas-born tenor Bille Bruley has garnered attention for his strength and versatility in operatic repertoire from baroque to contemporary. His recent engagements include Shining Brow (Louis Sullivan) and Riders of the Purple Sage (Bern Venters) with Arizona Opera and joining the roster of Lyric Opera of Chicago for Dead Man Walking to cover Father Grenville and Howard Boucher. Additionally, he made his New York recital debut singing Janácˇek’s The Diary of One Who Disappeared at the 92nd Street Y. Highlights from BILLE BRULEY previous seasons include Britten’s War Requiem with the STEVE WOZNIAK Tulsa Symphony, a program of Mozart arias with the Phoenix Symphony, and a return to The Santa Fe Opera for the world ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT premiere of Poul Ruders’ The Thirteenth Child (Benjamin). Upcoming engagements include debuts with Austin Opera, Atlanta Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and a return to Arizona Opera. Mr. Bruley has attended the young artist programs of The Santa Fe Opera, The Glimmerglass Festival, Central City Opera, Arizona Opera, and Virginia Opera where was seen in Christopher Alden’s provocative production of Sweeney Todd (Beadle Bamford), Robert Ward’s rarely heard opera The Crucible (Giles Corey), and Benjamin Britten’s The Prodigal Son (Tempter/ Abbot) and The Burning Fiery Furnace (King Nebuchadnezzar). He also covered in Candide (Governor/Vanderendur/Captain) directed by Laurent Pelly, and Doctor Atomic (Captain Nolan) directed by Peter Sellars at The Santa Fe Opera. Additional productions include roles in Così fan tutte, La traviata, Silent Night, Samson et Dalila, La fanciulla del West, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Lucia di Lammermoor, and The Seven Deadly Sins.

“Impressive coloratura soprano” (The New York Times) Elizabeth Sutphen has garnered praise for her sparkling voice and her ability to “soar deftly through stratospheric trills and arpeggios” (Financial Times). Praised as “Exquisite” by The Guardian, Sutphen’s 2021-22 season includes a return to Oper Frankfurt as new productions of Handel’s Amadigi (Oriana) and Schönberg’s Von Heute auf Morgen (Ehefrau), her house debut at the Bayerische Staatsoper as Blondchen in Die Entführing aus dem Serail, her Palm Beach Opera debut as Valencienne in The Merry Widow, and her debut with The ELIZABETH SUTPHEN Atlanta Opera as Chrisann Brennan in The (R)evolution of CHRISANN BRENNAN Steve Jobs by Mason Bates and Mark Campbell. Sutphen has performed leading roles in houses around the world, ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT including Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier with the Glyndebourne Festival, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos with both the Théâtre du Capitole de Toulouse and Oper Frankfurt, and Faustina in the world premiere of Tarik O’Regan and John Caird’s The Phoenix, and Gilda in Rigoletto with Houston Grand Opera. Most recently, Ms. Sutphen was praised by Schmopera for her “impeccable comedic delivery” and “ability to sing flawlessly ... with dexterity and finesse” for her Des Moines Metro Opera debut as the delightfully zany La Folie in Rameau’s Platée. On the concert stage, Sutphen has performed with the Saint Louis Symphony, the festival orchestra of the Tiroler Festspiele, the Vienna Boys’ Choir, Orchestre de Lille, and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.

American bass Adam Lau, praised as a “bass of real quality, with sonorous low notes,” continues a busy career in the 2021-22 Season. Returning to Utah Opera, Mr. Lau sang Don Basilio in The Barber of Seville. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut singing the Jailer in Tosca and the Second Armored Man in The Magic Flute. Following this, he returned to North Carolina Opera where he sang Colline in La bohème. Mr. Lau returned toThe Dallas Opera to sing the role of The Bonze in Madama Butterfly and Don Basilio in The Marriage of Figaro. Concluding his operatic ADAM LAU season, he makes his debut with The Atlanta Opera KO _ BUN CHINO OTOGAWA singing Ko –bun in The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, and returns to Opera Theatre of St. Louis as Sarastro in The ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT Magic Flute. Adam Lau won First Prize in the 2016 Jensen Vocal Competition and Top Prize in the 2015 George London Competition. He has appeared with such opera companies as, Dallas Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Portland Opera, the Wexford Festival, as well as with some of the nation’s leading summer programs including Merola Opera, Aspen Opera Theater, and Santa Fe Opera. In addition to opera, Mr. Lau maintains an active concert career. He has appeared with several leading symphonic organizations including Los Angeles Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony, San Diego Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica, and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.

Baritone Daniel Armstrong is an alumnus of LA Opera’s Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program. He made his company debut in Luisa Fernanda (2007), with many subsequent appearances including Starbuck in Moby-Dick (2015) During the 2016-17 season, he performed the roles of Schlemil in The Tales of Hoffmann, Sciarrone in Tosca and Yamadori in Madama Butterfly. In the 2017-18 season, he made his Dallas Opera debut as Marquis d’Obigny in La traviata and in 2019 appeared in El Gato Montes starring Placido Domingo with LA Opera. He has performed the DANIEL ARMSTRONG leading roles of the Jester in the West Coast premiere of PAUL JOBS Ernst Krenek’s The Secret Kingdom and Tarquinius in The Rape of Lucretia with the Colburn Orchestra, conducted ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT by James Conlon. Other performances include Bach’s Magnificat with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, under the baton of music director Jeffrey Kahane, and Berlioz’s L’enfance du Christ with the Anna Maria Island Concert Chorus and Orchestra.

Gretchen Krupp, lauded for her “ripe, round mezzo” (Opera News) and “searing delivery” (Opera Today), is gaining recognition in major competitions and festivals on the operatic scene. She most recently made her Atlanta Opera debut as Edith in The Pirates of Penzance. Last fall, she appeared as a featured soloist in concerts with Baltimore Concert Opera and The Dallas Opera. During the summer of 2021, she returned to Wolf Trap Opera as a Filene Artist where she performed in Bologne’s L’amant Anonyme and Viardot’s Cendrillon, in addition to her first performance GRETCHEN KRUPP of Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder and was a soloist in GLYNN STUDIO ARTIST concert with the National Symphony Orchestra. Her scheduled debut with The Dallas Opera in Don Carlo was TEACHER unfortunately canceled due to the pandemic. Gretchen was ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT the mezzo soloist in Beethoven@250 with the Cathedral THE PIRATES OF Choral Society at The National Cathedral in Washington PENZANCE, 2022 DC. Prior to the pandemic, she made her European debut at the Château de Versailles Spectacles as Samira in The Ghosts of Versailles, a role she earlier debuted at The Glimmerglass Festival. She was the recipient of the prestigious Georgina Joshi International Fellowship for vocal studies in Berlin. Other credits include the role of the Witch in Hansel and Gretel with Greensboro Opera, being a Grand Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions (newly renamed The Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition), and her Glimmerglass Festival debut singing multiple roles in Janácˇek’s The Cunning Little Vixen. Gretchen was also a finalist in the Houston Grand Opera 29th Annual Eleanor McCollum Competition. She is an alumna of programs at The Glimmerglass Festival, Wolf Trap Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Dolora Zajick’s Institute for Young Dramatic Voices. Gretchen holds degrees from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She is currently a Glynn Studio Artist.

Joseph is a sixth grader at David T. Howard Middle School in Atlanta, and he thrilled to perform with The Atlanta Opera. New to opera, Joseph loves community theater and classical music. Joseph has been a violinist since he was five years old, and in his spare time enjoys reading, playing soccer, and taking karate lessons.

JOSEPH WALLER

YOUNG STEVE JOBS

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT