“From hope to despair, from love to hatred to forgiveness, the dramatic tension was relentless.” -Willard Spiegelman, Opera News July 2013.
“…a powerfully realistic thriller and an unabashedly honest commentary on the America of the 1960s and ‘70s.” -Edward Brown, Fort Worth Weekly May, 2013.
On behalf of Greensboro Opera’s Board of Trustees and Advisory Council, I welcome you to Glory Denied.
Greensboro Opera is especially proud to present Glory Denied by American composer Tom Cipullo (b. 1956). Based on American author Tom Philpott’s (b. 1951) true story of the longest-held Vietnam War POW, U.S. Army Colonel Jim Thompson, the opera Glory Denied has been produced by more than 40 opera companies and colleges across these United States. Its themes of war, captivity, memory, loss, and the long-lasting impact of conflict on survivors and their families are laid bare. A rare artistic team of artists, profoundly committed to their roles, brings this heartbreaking story to life for Greensboro Opera
Greensboro Opera is a community-based company dedicated to fostering the growth of opera and to presenting professional productions of the highest artistic caliber for the enjoyment, education, and enrichment of the Triad Region of North Carolina. I hope each of you is soul-stirringly moved by these performances of Glory Denied. Thank you for joining us!
Barbara Ann Peters President, Greensboro Opera
EMERGENCY EXIT INFORMATION
Patrons are encouraged to take note of exits located on all levels of the auditorium. In an emergency, please use the nearest exit, which may be behind you or different from the one through which you entered.
Letter From the General and Artistic Director
When I saw Dean Anthony’s and Steven White’s production of Glory Denied at Opera Roanoke in February 2023, I knew I wanted to bring it to our Greensboro Opera audiences. I think you will find this staging of Glory Denied compelling, challenging, and moving. We, at Greensboro Opera, love to say we are part of the “greatest storytelling on stage” through what we bring to our patrons and friends, and as I have watched our rehearsals, my initial impression of this unique and tranformative work has been reaffirmed and even strengthened.
Glory Denied has all of the themes of the great operas of the past: persecution, tragedy, struggle, faith, love, forgiveness and more. Our heroic veterans of the United States military have experienced these and more throughout their years of service. To any veterans who are in our audience, we wish to express our sincere gratitude for your sacrifices for and your service to our country - we can never repay the debt we owe to you. Please remain after today’s performance for the talk-back sessions with our cast and staff, which will take place right in the theatre.
Thank you for joining us for today’s performance. We are grateful for our patrons and donors who make what we do possible – we couldn’t do this without you.
Sincerely, David
David Holley General and Artistic Director
A special thanks to Jane and Richard Levy, Janet Hendley, Gene and Judy Campbell, and Jaclyn Surso and Ken Davis for providing accommodations for our artists. Special thanks to Cox Toyota for providing transportation for our visiting artists.
Educational Outreach
Greensboro Opera has a vibrant, constantly evolving educational program, designed to reach potential opera lovers of all ages within our diverse community. In keeping with Greensboro Opera’s vision, our educational outreach aims to redefine operatic experiences through innovation and interaction.
For over twenty years, our signature program for young people has been Opera at the Carolina, which brings every 5th-grade student in the Guilford County Schools to the historic Carolina Theatre in downtown Greensboro. Teachers receive material in advance to incorporate into lesson plans. Staged and introduced by our General and Artistic Director David Holley, the 45-minute condensed version of an opera from the standard repertoire never fails to delight, as well as educate, thousands of students every year. This program is funded by generous contributions from the school system, The Arts Council of Greater Greensboro, The Cemala Foundation, and The Tannenbaum-Sternberger Foundation.
An integral part of Opera at the Carolina is a ten-minute opera based on a story submitted by one of the students in the audience. The Barbara Ann Peters Write Your Own Opera contest was initiated by Barbara Peters in 2010 and renamed for her in 2017. Each spring, 4th-grade students are invited to submit stories, the winning entry is turned into a libretto by David Holley, and the music is composed by UNCG Faculty/Artist Composers, Mark Engebretson and Alejandro Rutty (in alternating years).
For twelve years Elvira Green, Metropolitan Opera veteran and Greensboro Opera’s diva in residence, led an Opera Camp for local pre-teens and teenagers. In June 2022, we reconstituted Opera Camp, partnering with Mt. Zion Baptist Church under the direction of Ms. Green.
The Adult Education Initiative is held at Well-Spring Life Plan Community and features lectures, demonstrations, and musical events related to the Greensboro Opera’s opera productions.
We invite you to keep up with future educational programming by accessing the Greensboro Opera website.
Greensboro Opera is a non-profit resident organization of the Greensboro Cultural Center, made possible by a significant in-kind contribution from Creative Greensboro, the City of Greensboro’s office for arts & culture.
Staff
David Holley, General and Artistic Director
Andrea Allen, Office Manager
Stephanie Langford, Marketing Associate
2025-2026 Board of Trustees
Executive Committee
Barbara Ann Peters, President
Pam Cash, Past President
Tom Wright, Treasurer
Jennifer Bryant Pedersen, Secretary
Garrett Saake, VP Artistic Advisory
James Rushe, VP Development
Hallie Hogan, VP Education
Tom Wright, VP Finance/Legal
Cliff Bridges, VP Marketing
Ben McIndoe, VP Nominating
Pam Cash, VP Personnel
Board of Trustees
Travis Alexander
Bill Allred
Steven Bingham
Deborah Bowers
Aimee De Poortere
Lenny Sue French
Gene Klann
Advisory Board
Janet Hendley, Chair
Anna Clare Allen
Jane Curtis
Keith Cushman
Bert Davis, Jr.
Jacquelyn Farlow
Carolyn Hall
Gerald Knight
Nicholas Lindsay
John L. Palmer
Brian Pulliam
Kenneth E. Sigmon, Jr.
Jaclyn Surso
Fred Lopp
Corrie Middleton
Mary Miller
Barbara Moran
Clyde Nolan
Kathryn Troxler
Nancy Walker
THE ARTS COUNCIL OF GREATER GREENSBORO
The ACGG is a proud supporter of Greensboro Opera and the difference they make in our community.
Bookmark The ACGG’s events calendar to plan your next night out!
VISIT THEACGG.ORG TO LEARN MORE.
When you start with care, you get a different kind of bank.
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The Jane Harris Armfield Award - Kathryn Troxler
The Jane Harris Armfield Award was established in 1996 to recognize individuals who have made a significant contribution to Greensboro Opera. The award is named in honor of the first President of Greensboro Opera, Jane Armfield.
Kathryn Troxler is the 2024 recipient of the Jane Armfield Award. Born and raised in California, Kathryn holds a BA in History from UC Berkeley and a Masters in Clinical Psychology from the Sonoma State College Humanistic Psychology program. While at UC Berkeley Kathryn sang with Collegia Musicum and was a church soloist for 15 years. In 1982, she and her husband and two daughters moved to Greensboro where they designed and built their home.
Kathryn has served on several local non-profit boards, the Guilford County Watershed Study Committee and many statewide environmental committees. She has sung with Bel Canto Company, New Garden Choir, Choral Society and Spiritual Renaissance Singers, both of Greensboro. Having co-founded the New Garden Poetry Group, Kathryn received a Five Star Reader’s Favorite rating and Silver Medal in 2017 for her collection of poems, Tuning. After taking classes and workshops in art, Kathryn had a solo show at The Artery Gallery in Greensboro in 2018. From 1992-2016, she practiced psychotherapy and clinical hypnotherapy. She served on Greensboro Opera’s board from 2016-2022 and as VP of the Nominating Committee from 2017–2022. Kathryn currently serves on Greensboro Opera’s Advisory Council. “What an amazing, committed group of people the Opera Board is; I am honored to have my name added to the list of notable members.” Visit her website: kathrynbeamtroxler.com
PAST RECIPIENTS OF THE JANE HARRIS ARMFIELD AWARD
For Distinguished Service to Greensboro Opera
2024 - Kathryn Troxler
2023 - Andrea Allen
2022 - Charlene Marchant
2021 - Porter Aichele
2020 - Elvira Green
2019 - Keith Cushman
2018 - Mary Miller
2017 - Michiko Stavert
2016 - Lollie Lake White
2015 - Judy Wright Jolly
2014 - Marnie Ruskin
2013 - Bert Davis, Jr.
2012 - Janet Hendley
2011 - David Holley
2010 - Anna Clare Allen
2009 - Mike Bianco
2009 - J. Glen Grayson
2009 - Claire Kelleher
2008 - David and Nancy Bray
2007 - Emma and Clay Poindexter
2006 - Jane Curtis
2005 - Jacquelyn Farlow
2004 - Jerome Ruskin, MD
2003 - Jeanne Hassell
2002 - Sallie Nolan
2001 - Peggy Johnson
2000 - A. Kelly Maness, Jr., MD
2000 - Lynn Karmel
1999 - Alice Pearce
1998 - Laura Deane Gresham
1997 - Jane Armfield
Piedmont Opera welcomes Interim Artistic Director
JOSEPH MECHAVICH
MOZART’S REQUIEM
Maria Valdes SOPRANO
Stephanie Foley Davis MEZZO-SOPRANO
Zachary Taylor TENOR Kerry Wilkerson BASS-BARITONE
Greensboro Symphony Master Chorale
Chelsea Tipton, Principal Guest Conductor
SAT, MAY 17 | TANGER CENTER
MOZART Ave verum corpus | MOZART Exultate, jubilate
MOZART Requiem
SPONSORED BY RIVER LANDING AT SANDY RIDGE
Synopsis
Act 1
Captain Thompson (Jim), America’s longest-held prisoner of war, recalls episodes of his nine-year ordeal which includes escape attempts, torture, the overwhelming loneliness of five years in solitary confinement, and being forced to sign a propaganda statement. He finds strength to survive in memories of his family, letters from his wife (Alyce) about their home and children, and thoughts of his elaborate plans to build his dream house.
Pregnant with their fourth child and only son, Alyce receives the news that Jim’s plane has been shot down. Denied any reliable information about his status or whereabouts, she soon begins a relationship with another man (Harold, whom we never meet), eventually moving with him to Massachusetts and telling her children that their missing father is dead. Alyce refuses to have Jim’s name released to the public as Missing in Action, or inscribed on a P.O.W. bracelet, a popular solidarity symbol at the time and consults a lawyer in an effort to have her husband legally declared dead. Thompson, in captivity, finds comfort in the 23rd Psalm.
*** Intermission ***
Act 2
A number of American P.O.W.s are released and Jim returns home, but the Pentagon honors another man, Everett Alvarez, as the longest-held prisoner. With the signing of the Paris Peace Accords, Jim receives a letter from President Richard Nixon welcoming him back and suggesting that “some things about America may appear to have changed” since his departure. Alyce greets Jim at his homecoming and confesses her new relationship. She offers to go away if that is what he prefers, but Jim wants to reconcile. He notes how life has changed during his nine-year captivity, and soon the couple begins to fight with Jim complaining that Alyce is not the wife he left behind. Alyce asserts her independence and describes what her life has been like during his absence. Jim, considered a local hero, is asked to give a sermon at the church where he and Alyce were married, and he recalls his idealized family life. However, Alyce has moved on.
The years pass and Jim, having suffered a stroke, lives alone, estranged from his family, struggling with all that has occurred.
~ Courtesy of Opera Roanoke
Program Note - Glory Denied
Glory Denied tells the heartbreaking story of Colonel Jim Thompson, the longest-held American prisoner during the Vietnam War. Thompson survived nearly nine years of torture and deprivation as a POW before he was released. His family hoped for his return but imagined him dead. His wife Alyce gave birth to their fourth child soon after he was captured. After his release from captivity in 1973, he returned home to find everything irrevocably changed.
Tom Cipullo composed the chamber opera’s music and co-wrote the libretto with Tom Philpott. He drew material for Glory Denied from Philpott’s collection of interviews of returning veterans and people who knew Thompson’s family back home. The four characters consist of Younger and Older Thompson and Younger and Older Alyce. Cipullo tells the story as a dialogue between past and present. The characters traverse the opera’s complex landscape through hope, despair, love, hate, courage, and forgiveness. Both characters are painfully isolated in prisons real or imaginary, both are bewildered by events beyond their control, both are trying to survive the trauma of loss. Glory Denied is at once intimate and epic.
The music of Glory Denied is complex, layered, intense, sometimes jagged, occasionally lush. Cipullo’s riveting, remarkably varied score maintains a sense of dramatic urgency from start to finish. The music vividly expresses the characters’ mental states. The musical idiom is for the most part propelled by driving Leonard Bernstein-like syncopation. Thompson’s music often has a dissonant edge, while Alyce’s is more lyrical. Older Thompson’s listing of the changes in American culture that he confronted in 1973 is the opera’s centerpiece.
Glory Denied, which premiered in 2013, is one of the most frequently performed 21st-century operas. The opera has received widespread critical acclaim. As a reviewer of the St. Louis production observed, “Glory Denied brilliantly captures the evolution of the two characters in a chamber opera that successfully weaves their disparate but intimately related stories, emotionally and musically. And the musical approach is spectacularly inventive and effective.” Greensboro Opera is proud to present Glory Denied.
Keith Cushman
Glory Denied
Music by Tom Cipullo
Libretto by Tom Cipullo and Tom Philpott
Sung in English with English supertitles
Produced by permission of ECS Publishing Group, St. Louis, MO
Sole Agent for E. C. Schirmer Music Company, Publisher and Copyright Owner
Cast
Younger Col. Jim Thompson .................................................... John Riesen
Older Col. Jim Thompson.............................................Peter Kendall Clark
............................................................................................ Brooke Dunlap ................................................................................................ Elijah Brown
Production Scenery provided by Knoxville Opera
Costumes provided by Wardrobe Witchery
This production of Glory Denied was made possible with funding from The Arts Council of Greater Greensboroand the NC Arts Council, a division of the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
Meet the Artists
Peter Kendall Clark (Older Col. Jim Thompson) is a seasoned baritone who performs opera, theater and concert works. He enjoys working with living composers and created the title roles in Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Garden Of The FinziContinis and Ted Rosenthal’s Dear Erich with New York City Opera. He also played the poet Mìklos Radnotì in Tom Cipullo’s The Parting with Chelsea Opera (NY premiere). This season he collaborated with Jorge Martín-Buján on the revival of The Interlopers at Opera Company of Middlebury and sang under the baton of Eric Whitacre in his opera The Gift Of The Magi at Carnegie Hall. A true ‘crossover’ baritone, he has played Fredrik Eggerman, Sweeney Todd, Henry Higgins, King Arthur, and Harold Hill in productions around the country. Earlier this season he played El Gallo in the “boy meets boy” version of The Fantasticks at Tri-Cities Opera in Binghamton. This production is his sixth as Older Thompson in Glory Denied, having played the role with Chelsea Opera, Union Avenue Opera, Opera Company of Middlebury and Opera Roanoke. Beginning in May of 2020, his nightly stoop concerts in Brooklyn garnered global media attention (“the hottest ticket in town”- New York Post); as the ‘Brownstone Baritone,’ he continues to give his cabaret style concerts regularly in Brooklyn Heights and around the country (see www.songsfromtheledge.com).
Hailed for her “mezzo-tinted lower register rising to a wonderful warm top,” (The Washington Post) American soprano Colleen Daly (Older Alyce) skillfully balances engagements on both the concert and opera stages. This season, she premiered excerpts from Kverndokk and Wiik’s Babette’s Feast with the Denyce Graves Foundation at the National Gallery of Art and the French Embassy (Washington, D.C.) and looks forward to appearing as Micaëla in Maryland Opera’s mainstage presentation of Carmen. Recent engagements include Britten’s Turn of the Screw with Opera Baltimore, Mozart’s Così fan tutte with Opera Delaware, Baker’s Wife in Annapolis Opera’s Into the Woods, and joining Baltimore Choral Arts for Carmina Burana. She has appeared with the National Philharmonic Chorale (Washington, D.C.) in Beethoven’s C Major Mass and Annapolis Opera for Cipullo’s Glory Denied. Other credits include the title role in Floyd’s Susannah (Baltimore Concert Opera), Micaëla in Bizet’s Carmen (Tulsa Opera), and Countess in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro (Annapolis Opera). An artist passionate about new opera, Colleen has worked with Beth Morrison Projects in their Prototype Festival, Boston New Music Festival, Urban Arias for a workshop of Cipullo’s Glory Denied, and joined White Snake Projects for the world premiere of Rev. 23. Colleen has enjoyed working under the auspices of Des Moines Metro Opera, Intermountain Opera Bozeman, Maryland Opera, Delaware Opera, Washington Concert Opera, and Charlottesville Opera, and has joined both Washington National Opera and New York City Opera as a cover artist. For more information, visit www.colleendaly.com
Meet the Artists (continued)
Hailed as “every inch the hero in stature and voice” ( Classical Voice North America ), award-winning American tenor John Riesen (Younger Col. Jim Thompson) is consistently impressing audiences with his “impassioned...and vibrant” voice ( Opera Today ). John’s growing career boasts a variety of roles in which he excels and includes significant work in opera, musical theatre, studio recording, and concert, both classical and Pops. He has released two albums: What You ’ d Call a Dream (2019) and Christmas at Home (2020) and several singles, including “Autumn Leaves” (2021), “What a Wonderful World” (2021), and “Maria” (from West Side Story, 2021), that have reached well over seven million streams on Spotify and Apple Music. John is also the head of Spotify promotion and PR for Emitha LLC, building an ecosystem for classical singers to be heard around the world. In the 2024-2025 season, John makes his Carnegie Hall début as tenor soloist in Carmina Burana with Oratorio Society New York under the baton of Mo. Kent Tritle. He also returns to Utah Opera in one of his favorite roles, Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd, makes his role debut as Don José in Carmen with Sioux City Symphony, and joins Las Vegas Philharmonic for Handel’s Messiah. Additionally, he appears in concerts with Shreveport Opera and at several private events. In the 2023-2024 season, he returned to Pacific Symphony in Mo. Carl St. Clair’s finale concert of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, which he also performed with the Southwest Michigan Symphony, and joined the Virginia Arts Festival with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra as Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd. He was also a featured soloist in Opera Las Vegas 25th anniversary gala, joined Portland Opera for an all-Puccini program, and returned to Opera Montana as Rodolfo in La bohème.
Meet the Artists (continued)
Praised for her “ravishing voice” and “compelling stage presence,” TurkishAmerican soprano Öznur Tülüoğlu (Younger Alyce) is establishing herself as a rising artist “destined for bigger things.” Recent highlights include her performances as the Young Woman in the world premiere of A.E. Reverie, Camila in Pepito, and Sandman in Hansel and Gretel as a Chautauqua Opera Apprentice Artist. She also appeared as the Soprano Soloist in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with the Chautauqua Symphony. This season, Öznur also performs as a soprano soloist in Orff’s Carmina Burana and Dolores White’s Give Birth to the Dream with the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic. Her latest season showcased her versatility with roles such as Gilda at Mobile Opera, Younger Alyce in Glory Denied at Annapolis Opera, Aspasia in Mitridate at Opera Neo, and Barbarina in Le Nozze di Figaro at Annapolis Opera. Ms. Tülüoğlu also premiered the role of The Pigeon in Carlos Simon’s new children’s operetta Don’t Let the Pigeon Sing Up Late! , alongside Renée Fleming and Mo Willems with Washington National Opera. Öznur has achieved recognition as a finalist in prestigious competitions such as the Jensen Foundation Competition, the Opera Mississippi John Alexander National Vocal Competition, and the Music International Grand Prix Competition. In 2022, she won 3rd place at the AIMS in Graz Vocal Competition and recently received the Encouragement Award from The Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. For more information, visit www.oznurtuluoglu.com
Artistic Staff
David Holley (Producer) is the General and Artistic Director of Greensboro Opera and has been the Director of Opera at the University of North Carolina Greensboro since 1992. His directing/ producing credits include Greensboro Opera mainstage productions of Porgy and Bess, Don Giovanni (in concert), La Fille du Régiment, Carmen, La Cenerentola, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Amahl and the Night Visitors, Hansel and Gretel, Pagliacci, La bohème, and Conte’s The Gift of the Magi, as well as Il Trovatore for Opera Roanoke. He conceived and directed the annual Eastern Music Festival/Greensboro Opera collaboration for over a decade. In 2009, he produced, directed and wrote the libretto for the world premiere of Picnic, an opera by American composer Libby Larsen, commissioned by the UNCG School of Music. His productions have won fifteen awards in the National Opera Association’s annual Opera Production Competition, including seven first place, five second, and three third place NOA awards since his arrival at UNCG. As a singer, Mr. Holley appeared throughout the US and Canada in a diversity of leading lyric tenor roles including Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Don José in Carmen, Tamino in The Magic Flute and the title roles in The Tales of Hoffmann and Roméo and Juliette . Notable engagements have included Cavaradossi opposite Angela Brown’s Tosca, Don José with Luretta Bybee and Herbert Perry (directed by David Morelock), as well as Pinkerton with Nikki Li Hartliep. Reviewing his performance in the title role in Der Vogelhändler, The American Record Guide said he was “a singing and acting delight.” Opera News has hailed him as “...that rare find, a tall tenor who can act.”
Dean Anthony (Stage Director) draws inspiration and expertise from a comprehensive career spanning over 40 years and innumerable turns as performer, director, educator, producer and administrator. Most recently, Mr. Anthony was named as Producing Director of Knoxville Opera along with his position as Director of Opera at the Janiec Opera Company of the Brevard Music Center. Frequently engaged as a stage director, Mr. Anthony’s artistic process is hallmarked by an energetic, gritty, and physical style. His portfolio stretches across the repertoire from Le Nozze di Figaro to Dead Man Walking and includes regular engagements at regional houses across the United States. In 2020, he received the Charles Nelson Reilly American Prize Stage Director Award for his work on Tom Cipullo’s world premiere opera, Mayo. Mr. Anthony’s recent projects include Gianni Schicchi and Glory Denied with Opera Roanoke, Into the Woods with Annapolis Opera, Gianni Schicchi & Cavalleria Rusticana with Opera Tampa, Le Nozze di Figaro with Omaha Opera and Opera Delaware, Sweeney Todd with Opera Tampa, and HMS Pinafore with Pensacola Opera. Knoxville Opera has seen his work in Glory Denied, The Merry Widow, The Pirates of Penzance and La bohème.
Artistic Staff continued
Music critics are effusive in their praise of Steven White (Conductor) and his ability to elicit inspired music-making from orchestras. Praised by Opera News as a conductor who “squeezes every drop of excitement and pathos from the score,” Steven White is one of North America’s premiere operatic and symphonic conductors. He made his acclaimed Metropolitan Opera debut in 2010, conducting performances of La traviata starring Angela Gheorghiu. Since then, he has conducted a number of Metropolitan Opera performances of La traviata, with such stars as Natalie Dessay, Hei-Kyung Hong, Plácido Domingo, Thomas Hampson, Dmitri Hvorostovksy and Matthew Polenzani. In the past several seasons he has returned to the Met to participate in critically fêted productions of Don Carlo, Billy Budd, The Rake’s Progress and Elektra. Of his 2016 performance with the Omaha Symphony, the Omaha World Herald said, “it would be hard to imagine a more complete performance of the ‘Symphonie Fantastique.’ Highly nuanced, tightly controlled and crisp, Steven White asked everything from his orchestra members and they were flawless. He led them out of the serene into the disturbing dissonance and even to the terrifying point of musical madness without ever losing control. It was insanely good.” Opera News declares, “White is amazing; he consistently demands and gets the absolute best playing from the orchestra.” Among the many orchestras Maestro White has conducted are the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Moscow Philharmonic, the Orchestra Métropolitain du Grand Montréal, the Mozarteum un Salzburg Kulturevereinigung Orchestra, the Spoleto Festival Orchestra, the New World Symphony Orchestra, and the Baltimore, Columbus, Charleston and Nashville Symphony Orchestras. He led the London Philharmonia Orchestra for the CHANDOS recording of arias featuring his wife, soprano Elizabeth Futral. His 2024-25 season includes leading productions at The Metropolitan Opera, Opera Omaha, The Janiec Opera Company (Brevard Music Center), and Opera Roanoke, where he serves as Artistic Director.
Artistic Staff continued
Malory Hartman (Lighting Designer/Onsite Projection Coordinator) is happy to be back with the Glory Denied company. Malory is a designer based in Washington, DC, as well as the Lighting Supervisor for Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, SC. Select design credits include Cracking Zeus (Spooky Action Theatre), Hoops (Company One), Marjorie Prime (Prologue Theatre), Glory Denied (Annapolis Opera), and Taming of the Shrew (Synetic Teen Company). Select assistant/ associate lighting design credits include Little Shop of Horrors (Ford’s Theatre), Jungle Book (Washington National Opera), Grounded (Washington National Opera), Fiddler on the Roof (Olney Theatre Center), and Clyde’s (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park). Check maloryhartman.com for other upcoming work.
Tláloc López-Westermann (Set Designer) is the founder of Light Conversations, LLC, a lighting and video design company based in New York City. He regularly collaborates with stage directors Crystal Manich, Copeland Woodruff, Dean Anthony, JJ Hudson, and James Marvel and has designed for directors Ned Canty, Timothy Nelson, Tomer Zvulun, Andrew Eggert, Beth Greenberg, Corinne Hayes, and Sarah Meyers. Tláloc has worked regularly for Seattle Opera, North Carolina Opera, Opera Louisiane, Toledo Opera, Utah Festival Opera, Todi Music Festival, Opera Roanoke, Opera Naples, and Shreveport Opera. In 2013, Tlaloc was chosen as the festival lighting designer for Lorin Maazel’s Castleton Festival and has been lighting designer in residence for the Janiec Opera Company in Brevard, North Carolina. He holds a BFA in Performance Production from Cornish College of the Arts, and an MFA in Design from NYU / Tisch.
Artistic
Staff continued
David Sebren (Technical Director) holds an MFA in Directing from Florida State University, a BFA in Acting from UNCG, and a certificate in Commedia dell’Arte from Antonio Fava. David is a proud member of Actors Equity Association and the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. He is an associate instructor with Dueling Arts International, and an Advanced Actor Combatant with the SAFD.
Mr. Sebren has worked professionally as an actor, director, designer, and fight director since graduating from UNCG in 2006 and has worked with companies from North Carolina to California. David currently serves on the faculty of Greensboro College and the University of North Carolina Greensboro.
Jeff Neubauer (Technical Consultant) has been involved with opera productions for over 20 years. His opera credits include Greensboro Opera’s productions of Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Carmen, La fille du régiment, La Cenerentola, Menotti’s Help, Help The Globolinks!, and The Will (Gianni Schicchi). Mr. Neubauer was the lighting designer and technical director for Greensboro Light Opera and Song’s production of The Pirates of Penzance tour to Roanoke Island Festival Park in 2012. He has also worked on productions of Hansel and Gretel, Amahl and the Night Visitors, Albert Herring, and The Mighty Casey, which was the first event on the Class A minor league Grasshopper field in downtown Greensboro in 2005. Jeff enjoys “out of the box” productions and loves the opportunity to expose his beautiful daughter Emily (a budding musical theatre actress) to the wonders of opera. Jeff comes from a varied background in technical production, equally at home in theatre and concert production. In his full-time job, he is the Production Director for Westover Church.
Artistic Staff continued
Ashley Ward (Costume Coordinator) has been a costume designer for 17 years. She designed and built the costumes for last October’s Greensboro Opera production of Don Giovanni and last month’s UNCG Opera Theatre production of The Dialogues of the Carmelites . She has costumed many productions of youth theatre, community theatre, commercials, college theatre, operas, and films. Ashley has been nominated for two Blumenthal Costume Awards for her work in The Producers and Ragtime and has a film a credit for Lizzie Borden. She loves the challenges of costume construction! Ms. Ward loves watching the magic of actors become their characters, when they slip on their costumes. In 2023, Ashley opened her own costume shop, Green Apple Costumes, and continues to remain busy on theatre productions. Ashley is a resident of Greensboro NC, where she lives with her husband of 28 years, Clyde, the baby of their 5 children, Penny, and their pets.
Tiffany Turley (Wig and Make-up Designer) is a North Carolina native who discovered her passion for hairstyling while interning at Des Moines Metro Opera in 2008. She earned her BFA in Wig and Makeup Design from University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2010 and has since worked on national tours (Les Misérables, The Bodyguard, Elf), Broadway productions (The Phantom of the Opera, Rock of Ages, Wicked), and numerous television shows. After five years in NYC, she returned to North Carolina and the opera community, working with NC Opera, Opera Carolina, and Piedmont Opera. She is excited to make her debut Greensboro Opera in this production of Glory Denied.
Artistic Staff continued
Eileen Downey (Performance and Rehearsal Pianist) is currently Vocal Coach and Distinguished Lecturer of Collaborative Piano at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, where she also works frequently with Knoxville Opera Company. She has been on the faculty of SongFest, AIMS in Graz, and the Brevard Music Center, and plays regularly for the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition and the Opera Birmingham Vocal Competition. During the fall of 2024, Ms. Downey performed at the College Music Society National Conference in Washington, D.C.and taught a residency at Vanderbilt University. Her spring 2025 engagements include performing in Jake Heggie’s Another Sunrise with Kentucky Opera, Tom Cipullo’s Glory Denied with Greensboro Opera, and Byron Au Jong’s Stuck Elevator with Knoxville Opera. Eileen is an alumna of the Merola Opera Program, Opera North, SongFest, Aspen Opera Theater Center, Project Canción Española, and the Opera Theatre and Music Festival of Lucca, Italy. Ms.Downey received a BM in Piano Performance and an MM in Collaborative Piano from Michigan State University.
Elana Deutch (Production Stage Manager) is excited to be Stage Manager for Greensboro Opera for this incredible production of Glory Denied. She has just moved back from Israel this year and is elated that she gets to be apart of a production with such heart. Some fun operas Elana has stage-managed are The Marriage of Figaro, Three Penny Opera, Man of La Mancha, Carmen, and La bohème, and these are just a few of Elana’s favorite Operas. She has a degree in Theater from Florida Gulf Coast University.
Artistic Staff continued
Brittany Carter (Assistant Stage Manager) has worked professionally as the Production Stage Manager for La bohème (Opera on the James), Three Sisters (Boston Conservatory), A Poet’s Love, Only An Octave Apart (Spoleto Festival USA), Galaxies In Her Eyes (Director Kristine McIntyre, presented at High Point University Planetarium), and Measure for Measure (Goodly Frame Theatre).
Ms. Carter was the Assistant Stage Manager for Omar (Spoleto Festival USA, Carolina Performing Arts), Frankenstein, A Christmas Carol, (Goodly Frame Theatre), and It’s A Wonderful Life and A Christmas Carol (Triad Stage). Her academic work includes stage managing Hear Our Voices, Feeding the Moonfish, Here We Go, and Urinetown for the UNCG School of Theater. Ms. Carter recently returned to her alma mater as Production Stage Manager for the UNCG Opera Theatre’s Dialogues of the Carmelites.
The UNCG School of Music presents hundreds of performances, lectures, and special events annually, most of which are presented free of charge!
Our concert and event calendar features large ensemble performances (bands, choirs, orchestras, jazz ensembles), faculty solo recitals, student solo recitals, chamber music, folk music, operas, a dynamic guest artist concert and lectures series, and much, much more.
Please visit music.uncg.edu for the full performance calendar and follow us on social media!
COMING EVENTS
Student Artist Competition Final Round
January 16, 2:00 , Tew Recital Hall
Music for Love: Jazz Ensemble I $ Fundraiser for Music for Love
January 19, 7:30 , UNCG Auditorium
Wind Ensemble Chamber Concert
Lindsay Kesselman, soprano
$ = ticket purchase required
Spartan Voices and Coro di Belle Voce
February 16, 7:30 , Tew Recital Hall
University Chorale and Chamber Singers
February 20, 7:30 , First Presbyterian Church
Wind Ensemble
Stephanie Ycaza, tuba
February 23, 7:30 , UNCG Auditorium
The UNCG School of Music presents hundreds of performances, lectures, and special events annually, most of which are presented free of charge!
February 1, 7:30 , Tew Recital Hall
Faculty Composers Concert
Jazz Ensembles I and II $
February 24, 7:30 , Tew Recital Hall
Our concert and event calendar features large ensemble performances (bands, choirs, orchestras, jazz ensembles), faculty solo recitals, student solo recitals, chamber music, folk music, operas, a dynamic guest artist concert and lectures series, and much, much more.
February 2, 7:30 , Tew Recital Hall
Symphonic Band
Eric Willie, percussion
Symphony Orchestra
February 5, 7:30 , Dana Auditorium
COMING EVENTS
Student Artist Competition Final Round
January 16, 2:00 , Tew Recital Hall
Music for Love: Jazz Ensemble I $ Fundraiser for Music for Love
January 19, 7:30 , UNCG Auditorium
February 27, 7:30 , UNCG Auditorium
Please visit music.uncg.edu for the full performance calendar and follow us on social media!
$ = ticket purchase required
Spartan ces and Coro di Belle Voce
February 16, 7:30 , Tew Recital Hall
University Chorale and Chamber Singers
February 20, 7:30 , First Presbyterian Church
Wind Ensemble Stephanie Ycaza, tuba
February 23, 7:30 , UNCG
Greensboro Opera Past Presidents
Jane Armfield 1981
La Traviata
Kelly Maness 1982
Lucia di Lammermoor
Laura Deane Gresham 1983, 1984
Rigoletto
Tosca
Kay Bryan Edwards 1985
The Barber of Seville
Carol Cone 1986
Madama Butterfly
David Bray 1987
Carmen
Sallie Nolan 1988
Don Giovanni
Kathleen Battle Recital
Lynn Karmel 1989
La Boheme
Anne Bodner 1990
Faust
Thomas Allen Recital
Pam Sprinkle 1992
Il Trovatore
Ann Snyder 1992
Tales of Hoffmann
White Agony
Bobbie Mann 1993
Aida
Lynn Karmel 1994
The Magic Flute
Julie Olin 1995
La Traviata
Jackie Farlow & Helen Irvin 1996
Falstaff
Judy Jolly 1997
Madama Butterfly
George House 1998
Carmen
Terry Geremski 1999
Tosca
Don Pasquale
Jerry Ruskin 2000, 2001
Un Ballo in Maschera
The Barber of Seville
Otello
Die Fledermaus
Harvey Dondero 2002
La Boheme
Jerry Ruskin 2003
Lucia di Lammermoor
Richard Hicks, Jr. 2004
An Evening of Metropolitan Opera Stars
G.W. (Trey) Aycock, III 2005, 2006
The Marriage of Figaro
Madama Butterfly
Frederick J. Smith 2007
Face on the Barroom Floor
Rigoletto
Barbara Ann Peters 2008
EMF: Night and Day: An Evening of ‘Delovely’
L’elisir d’amore
Philip Long 2009, 2010
The Telephone
Trouble in Tahiti
EMF: A Date with Oscar and Tony
La Traviata
EMF: Love, Life, Laughter
The Magic Flute
Bert Davis, Jr. 2011, 2012
EMF: Celebrating Anniversaries
GALA Got Opera?
EMF: Popular Operatic Arias
Anna Clare Allen 2013
EMF: Verdi to Broadway
GALA: Wine, Women and Song
Woodson E. Faulkner, II 2014
EMF: Phantoms of the Opera
GALA: GO to the Movies
Daughter of the Regiment (January 2015)
Anna Clare Allen 2015, 2016
EMF: Sing to Love
Cinderella
EMF: Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves
Carmen (January 2017)
Janet Hendley 2017, 2018, 2019
EMF: A Shave and a Haircut
The Barber of Seville
EMF: What I did For Love
Madama Butterfly
Hansel and Gretel
EMF: Send in the Clowns
Pagliacci
Amahl and the Night Visitors
Porter Aichele 2020, 2021, 2022
Summertime and the Livin’ is Easy (Live streamed)
EMF: Summertime and the Livin’ is Easier
Porgy and Bess
Pam Reeves Cash 2022, 2023
EMF: I love Paris
La Bohème
driving while black (dwb)
EMF: Yours Is My Heart Alone
The Gift of the Magi
Amahl and the Night Visitors
2024-25 Donors
Gifts from April 1, 2024 through March 31, 2025
Sincere Thank You To Our Donors
The Board of Trustees expresses its deep appreciation to all who have supported Greensboro Opera this year. We are sincerely grateful for each and every gift. We invite contributions to support our productions, GALAS and ongoing education programs.
Sponsors
Well-Spring, A Life Plan Community
JOLO Winery & Vineyards, LLC
Jewelry Authority
2024-2025 Donors
Corporate & Foundation Gifts
Guilford County Schools
North Carolina Arts Council
The Arts Council of Greater Greensboro
The Cemala Foundation
Thank you to the following individuals who provided financial support to the Greensboro Opera from April 1, 2024 through March 31, 2025. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of our Donor List. However, if you notice an error, please let us know so that we may correctly recognize your support.
Grand Benefactor ($5,000 and above)
Anonymous
Susan Petty
President’s Circle ($2,500 - $4,999)
Anonymous
Barbara Cone
Excelsior Payment Solutions
Janet Hendley
Rod & Linda Mortenson
Pamela Murphy
Tom & Sarah Wright
Benefactor ($1,500 - $2,499)
Bill & Alicia Allred
Deb & Greg Bowers
Nancy & David Bray
Bob Dixon & Sue French
David & Jeanne Holley
Barbara & Bill Moran
Barbara Ann Peters
Marnie & Jerry Ruskin
Nancy Sanquist
Nancy Walker & Tim Lindeman
Patron ($500 - $1,499)
Porter Aichele
Travis Alexander
Bob Beerman & Teresa Rasco
Steve Bingham
Susan Chappell
Keith Cushman & Deb Bell
Bert Davis, Jr.
David Karpook
Ken Keller
Gene Klann
Rascha & Robert Kriegsman
Bill Latture
Jane & Richard Levy
Bobbie & Bernard Mann
Corrie H. Middleton
Next Ascent
Samantha & Garrett Saake
Susan & Jerry Schwartz
Pam & David Sprinkle
Michiko Stavert
Kathryn & Chris Troxler
Friend ($250 - $499)
Jennifer Bryant Pedersen
Jim Exum, Jr.
Eloise & Robbie Hassell
Hallie Hogan
Rodna & David Hurewitz
Todd Lammert
Nick Lindsay
Mary & Gus Magrinat
Mary Miller
Dorothy & Robert Peters
Kathryn Ramsay
Melissa Wilson
2024-25 Donors Continued
Supporter ($100 - $249)
Meg Alden
Anonymous
Anna Clare Allen
Jill Amidon-Strickland
Edward Caress
Odell Cleveland
Georgetta Denhardt
Jacquelyn Farlow
Gloria Fuller
William O. Goode
Carolyn F. Hall
Gerald Knight
Terry Lammert
William Lindsey
Ellen Linton
Samuel Magill, Jr.
Mollie McIndoe
Mamie McIndoe
Carrie McIndoe
Clyde Nolan & Patricia Maine
Joan Poole
James Rushe
Jennifer Schaal & Fred Wilson
Cindi & Jim Schrum
Jaclyn Surso
Jeanne Tannenbaum
Barbara Teichman
Matthew Troy
Lollie White
Other
Lenny Sue French
Tim Hall
Channelle James
Shayla Sharpe
Matching Gifts
Johnson & Johnson
Honor and Memory Gifts
In Memory of Gloria Fuller
Janet Hendley
In Honor of Janet Hendley
Linda & Rod Mortenson
In Honor of David Holley
Jeanne Tannenbaum
In Memory of Alice Pearce
Janet Hendley
Susan Petty
Lollie White
In Memory of Ann Pender Snyder
Susan Petty
In Memory of Stuart Teichman
Barbara Teichman
Legacy Society
The following have included Greensboro Opera in their estate plans:
Janet Hendley
Marnie & Jerry Ruskin
In-Kind Gifts
Bill Allred
Gene and Judy Campbell
College Place United Methodist Church
Cox Toyota
Odell Cleveland
City of Greensboro
Creative Greensboro
Katherine Davey
Bert Davis, Jr.
Elvira O. Green
Greensboro Day School
Janet Hendley
Asheley & Marty Kotis
Jane & Richard Levy
Jennifer Bryant Pedersen
Julia Petersen
Barbara Ann Peters
Shayla Sharpe (Sharpe Pursuits, Inc.)
Steinway Piano Gallery
Jaclyn Surso and Ken Davis
University of North Carolina Greensboro
Susan Young
History of Greensboro Opera
The curtain went up on La traviata, the first production of Greensboro Opera, on October 16, 1981, starring June Anderson, who subsequently became a major star. A group of civic leaders and music lovers had laid the foundation of this venture the previous year. They had adopted the dual mission of presenting operatic productions of the highest professional standards while educating the community about opera. Greensboro Opera has grown steadily in the ensuing 40 years.
The backbone of Greensboro Opera has always been fully staged productions of major operas every year. Although sets and costumes are rented from across the country, the cast, staging, and combination of set and costumes are unique to each Greensboro Opera production. From 1981 to 1998, the company presented one production in the fall. Increasingly large audiences attended these operas. The operas that followed La traviata were Lucia di Lammermoor (1982), Rigoletto (1983), Tosca (1984), The Barber of Seville (1985), Madama Butterfly (1986), Carmen (1987), Don Giovanni (1988), and La bohème (1989). The first nine productions were limited to one Friday evening performance. Beginning in 1990, audience support enabled the presentation of both evening and matinee performances of Faust (1990), Il trovatore (1991), The Tales of Hoffmann (1992), Aida (1993), The Magic Flute (1994), La traviata (1995), and Falstaff (1996).
Madama Butterfly (1997) and Carmen (1998) both played to sold-out houses. That led to the decision to mount two productions every season. In the 1999-2000 season, Greensboro Opera staged Tosca and Don Pasquale. Un ballo in maschera and The Barber of Seville followed in 2000-2001, and during 2001-2003 the company staged Otello, Die Fledermaus, La bohème, and Lucia di Lammermoor. The company presented an exciting “Rising Stars from the Met” concert with the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra in the fall of 2004. Greensboro Opera produced The Marriage of Figaro in 2005, followed in 2006 by an adaptation of Gianni Schicchi, produced by the UNCG School of Music. The 2006-2007 season brought three productions to the stage: Madama Butterfly (2006), two sold-out performances of Hansel and Gretel (2007), and four sold-out performances of The Face on the Barroom Floor (2007) with composer Henry Mollicone conducting. Rigoletto (2007) was succeeded by L’elisir d’amore in 2008. In spring 2009 Greensboro Opera presented two American one-acts, Menotti’s The Telephone and Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti, as well as La traviata. In 2010, The Magic Flute returned to the Greensboro Opera stage.
In 2012 Greensboro Opera began a formal partnership/collaboration with UNCG Opera Theatre. The opera company contributes financially to UNCG Opera Theatre and in exchange, receives marketing, logistical, and production support. The highlights of the first years of this venture were fall Galas titled Got Opera?, Wine, Women, and Song, and GO to the Movies. The Galas featured UNCG alumni who were singing in major opera houses throughout the world. In 2013 David Holley, director of the opera program at UNCG, was hired as Artistic Director. (Subsequently his title became General and Artistic Director to reflect all the work he does for the company). Greensboro Opera once again began producing fully staged operas. In January 2015 the company presented The Daughter of the Regiment with a stellar cast featuring René Barbera and Ashley Emerson. At the time David Holley was President of the National Opera Association and was hosting the NOA’s annual convention in Greensboro. The Daughter of the Regiment was the exciting main event of the convention. Opera luminaries, Samuel Ramey, Stephanie Blythe, and Warren Jones attended the opening night performance. In 2015 Greensboro Opera staged Rossini’s La Cenerentola, followed by the nearly sold-out January 2017 production of Carmen and the 2018 production of The Barber of Seville. In 2018-2019 Madama Butterfly returned to the Greensboro Opera stage, and Hansel and Gretel became the first Greensboro Opera production to be staged in the new $12-million Virginia Somerville Sutton Auditorium at Well-Spring Life Plan Community. In 2019 the company for the first time presented Pagliacci, as well as Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors at Well-Spring before an audience that contained many children and grandchildren. The pandemic forced the Greensboro Opera production of Porgy and Bess, starring Rhiannon Giddens, to be rescheduled from November 2020 to January 2022. Porgy and Bess was the capstone to Greensboro Opera’s first forty years, followed by a critically acclaimed production of La bohème in 2022. The 2023-24 season was one of innovation and interaction, with a concert at the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum and productions of Susan Kander’s driving while black (dwb) and David Conte’s The Gift of Magi. Amahl and the Night Visitors, returned in December 2023 for performances at UNCG Auditorium and at High Point University, supported by the Randall Thomas Johnson guest Artist Program endowment. The 2024-25 season saw us produce Don Giovanni in an innovative semi-staged version at Greensboro College, as well as “Homecoming,” a concert with Sidney Outlaw and Warren Jones.
