Wolf Trap Vice President of Opera and Classical Programming
When I find theater at its most powerful, it’s often in one of two directions: either I gain insight into an alternate reality through a character whose life feels unlike my own, or I so strongly identify with a character that I see myself in their journey—both in their tragedies and triumphs. This season, I suspect many of us will, or will want to, see ourselves in this summer’s cast of characters.
Angelina, our Cinderella, tries to keep a sunny demeanor even when the cards are stacked against her, thanks to a rather clueless father and two horribly ridiculous stepsisters. When she finally finds her happily ever after, she takes the high road and forgives them, reminding us that grace can be its own triumph.
Eugene Onegin, by contrast, doesn’t realize what he wants until after it’s thoroughly slipped through his fingers. The archetype of a “superfluous man”—someone with wealth and privilege, but without larger aims beyond his own comfort—may not mirror our lives exactly. Yet the regret and profound loss born from self-centeredness and poor cosmic timing is something that many of us know all too well.
Tosca’s aria “Vissi d’arte" is sung in a moment of clarity. Faced with an impossible situation, Tosca calls out for strength, reflecting on a life devoted to art, love, and compassion. In her hour of desperate need, she reaches deep and finds the courage to continue to live for both art and love. When that is no longer possible, she sacrifices herself on that double altar.
Our artistic teams are making bold choices in the retelling of these stories. You may have seen Tosca before, but never like this. And as always, our emerging stars are truly not to be missed—they bring incredible excitement and passion to these role debuts.
Speaking of stars, we are fortunate to have two in our orbit this season. Our 2026 Filene Artist in Residence is Grammy-winning baritone Will Liverman, a WTO alumnus (’15, ’16) and artistic polymath. We also welcome back the incomparable Renée Fleming as Artist Development Advisor, whose name is synonymous with operatic excellence. Both Will and Renée will lead master classes this summer, offering a chance to see these outstanding artists mentor our 2026 cohort in action.
I hope you find a glimmer of yourself in these stories this summer. I look forward to seeing you soon at Wolf Trap!
DANIEL A. D’ANIELLO Chairman, Board of Directors
Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
Welcome to Wolf Trap Opera’s (WTO) inspiring 2026 season. Each summer brings the thrill of discovery in opera, and this year is no exception. From the sweeping drama of Puccini’s Tosca to the wit and heart of Rossini’s La Cenerentola and the lyrical beauty of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, WTO’s season celebrates the extraordinary range of opera and the talented rising artists who bring it to life. These productions also reflect the program’s distinctive artistic philosophy—selecting exceptional emerging artists first, then shaping repertoire that allows each performer’s strengths to shine.
For more than five decades, WTO has served as a vital launching pad for singers at the start of their professional journeys. Here, audiences have the rare opportunity to experience artists taking on significant roles early in their careers, often before they go on to appear at the world’s leading opera houses. With more than 1,000 alumni, the program's impact reaches well beyond this season and these stages.
Renowned soprano Renée Fleming further enriches this work in her second season as Artist Development Advisor. Drawing on her remarkable international career, she mentors and coaches WTO’s singers to refine their artistry, strengthen audition skills, and expand repertoire breadth. Her leadership offers invaluable insight into today’s operatic landscape, helping our artists excel in the transition from training to distinguished professional careers.
None of this would be possible without the generosity of our donors. Philanthropy fuels every aspect of Wolf Trap Opera’s mission—from artist guidance and production excellence to the advancement of the genre itself. Your commitment ensures that opera remains vibrant, relevant, and accessible for generations to come. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I thank you for being an essential part of this special community.
2026 SEASON AUDITIONS BY THE NUMBERS
1,263 APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED
34 SINGERS SELECTED FOR A 2.85% ACCEPTANCE RATE
HELD AUDITIONS IN
7 CITIES
WO LF TRAP FOUNDATION
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Mrs. Melania Trump
Honorary Chair
Mr. Daniel A. D’Aniello
Chairman
Mr. Arvind Manocha
President and CEO
Ms. Margaret Gupta
Vice Chair and Secretary
Mr. Matthew R. Korn
Treasurer
Mr. Raj Ananthanpillai
Mrs. Andrita J. Andreas
Mr. C.E. Andrews
Mr. Kevin T. Boyle
Ms. Jan Brandt
Mr. Richard K. Bynum
Mr. Bruce L. Caswell
Mr. David O. Childress
Mr. Dante D’Egidio
Mr. Shawn Degnan
Dr. Melissa A. Delgado
Ms. Lynn R. Dillon
ADVISORY COUNCIL
Ms. Hillary Baltimore
Mr. Jeremy Blank
Mrs. Marcia M. Carlucci
Mr. Enrico A. Della Corna
Mr. Ric Edelman
Mr. Amr ElSawy
Mr. Vincent L. Ferraro
Ms. Virginia McGehee Friend
Mr. Gil Guarino
Mr. Stanley J. Gutkowski
ASSOCIATES BOARD
Mr. Adam Spanberger
Honorary Chair
Mr. Steven C. Job
Chair
Mrs. Sarah Choi
Vice Chair and Secretary
Mr. Dominic E. Dragisich
Ms. Ana Echemendia
Mrs. Jean Edelman
Mr. William R. Hanlon
Mr. Kenneth R. Hayduk
Ms. Sue J. Henry
Ms. Jacqueline C. Hinman
Mr. Steven C. Job (Ex Officio)
Mr. Broderick D. Johnson
Mr. Eric J. Kadel, Jr.
Ms. Tracy K. Kenny
Ms. Alka M. Kesavan
Mrs. Susie King
Ms. Nancy J. Laben
Mr. Dave Lougee
Mr. Robert S. Lutz
Ms. Christina Co Mather
Mr. Prabu Natarajan
Mr. Geoffrey Pohanka
Mr. Christopher Raymond
Mr. James C. Reagan
Mr. Kevin Robbins
Mrs. Shelly S. Hazel
Dr. Ashok G. Kaveeshwar
Mr. John E. King
Ms. Anne R. Kline
Mr. Gerald L. Kohlenberger*
Mr. John C. Lee, IV*
General Lester L. Lyles
Ms. Ramona Mockoviak
The Honorable Sean O’Keefe
Mr. Patrick Pacious
Mrs. Teri Dungan
Ms. Rhonda Fleming
Mr. Leo F. Fox III
Mrs. Wendy G. Grills
Ms. Bonnie Haukness
Mr. Pardha Karamsetty
Mr. William P. Krokowski
Mrs. Bambi Landew
Mr. David J. Martin
Dr. Glenn Merberg
Mr. James E. P. Miller
Mrs. Linda Moses
Mrs. Pat Menster Neuman
Mr. David Samuels
Mr. Srikant Sastry
Ms. Anu Saxena
Mr. Fredrick Schaufeld
Mrs. Monica Schmude
Mr. Julian M. Setian
Mr. Kevin P. Smithson
Mr. Todd Stottlemyer
Mr. Kenneth Todorov
Ms. Jennifer L. Toole
Mr. Robert G. Van Hoecke
OTHER OFFICERS
Ms. Beth Brummel
Chief Operating Officer
Mr. Stephen D. Kahn
General Counsel
PRESIDENT EMERITUS
Mr. Terrence D. Jones
FOUNDER
Mrs. Jouett Shouse (1896–1994)
Mrs. Norma G. Ramsey
Mr. John J. Robertson
Ms. Danielle O. Saunders
Ms. Karen Schaufeld
Ms. Theresa Thompson
Mr. Ranvir K. Trehan
Mr. David A. Winston
Mr. John B. Wood
*Former Foundation Board Chair
Mr. Daniel W. Quirk
Mrs. Chelsea Rao
Mrs. Amy Rossi
Mr. Jiten “Jay” Shah
Dr. Dru A. Smith
Mr. Brett Snyder
Mr. Dean Souleles
Mrs. Joan Stansfield
Mr. John E. Thomas, Jr.
Mr. Douglas A. Tyson
Mrs. Cortney Weber
Mr. Jake Zatzkin
PUCCINI TOSCA
A Kay Shouse Great PERformance
MUSIC BY GIACOMO PUCCINI
LIBRETTO BY LUIGI ILLICA AND GIUSEPPE GIACOSA
FILENE CENTER
FRIDAY, AUGUST 7 | 8 PM
SPECIAL THANKS TO ANNE R. KLINE AND GEOFFREY POHANKA AND VIRGINIA McGEHEE FRIEND, PERFORMANCE SPONSORS
CAST
IN ORDER OF VOCAL APPEARANCE
Cesare Angelotti: Cumhur Görgün
Sacristan: Sergio Martinez
Mario Cavaradossi: Demetrious Sampson Jr.
Floria Tosca: Tessa McQueen
Baron Scarpia: Jonathan Patton
Spoletta: Wayd Odle
Sciarrone: Søren Pedersen*
Shepherd: Calista Ro-Jei Smith*
Jailer: Christopher Gray*
Washington National Opera Orchestra
*Wolf Trap Opera Studio Artist
CREATIVE TEAM
Conductor: José Luis Gómez
Directors: Tonya & Ryan McKinny
Scenic Design: Lawrence E. Moten III
Costume Design: Molly Irelan
Lighting Design: Chad R. Jung
Projections: Adam Larsen
Hair & Makeup Design: Anne Nesmith
MUSIC & PRODUCTION STAFF
Assistant Conductor: David Hanlon
Principal Coach & Organ: Blair Salter
Chorus Master & Coach: William Woodard
Coach: Tzu Kuang Tan*
Italian Diction: Domenico Boyagian
Supertitles: Gabrielle Žemaitytė*
Fight & Intimacy Coordinator: Casey Kaleba
Assistant Director: Madeleine Snow*
Production Stage Manager: Gina Hays
Assistant Stage Managers:
Arturo Fernandez Jr., Zoe Steenwyk
*Fellow
PRODUCTION INFO
Sung in Italian with English captions
2 hours and 40 minutes with one intermission
Premiere: Teatro Costanzi, Rome, 1900
Tosca poster, Adolfo Hohenstein, 1899.
THE STORY
ACT I
Cesare Angelotti, an escaped political prisoner, takes refuge inside a church, where he is harbored by the painter Mario Cavaradossi, a revolutionary sympathizer.
The celebrated singer Floria Tosca is Cavaradossi’s lover, and when she arrives at the church, she believes she has heard him with another woman. Tosca’s jealousy is fueled when she recognizes the woman who has inspired Cavaradossi’s portrait of Mary Magdalene.
A cannon signals that Angelotti’s escape has been discovered, and he and the painter flee to Cavaradossi’s home.
As the clerics and choir are preparing a Te Deum to celebrate Napoleon’s recent defeat, they are silenced by the arrival of Baron Scarpia, chief of police. Scarpia is searching for Angelotti, and he suspects Cavaradossi is involved. Scarpia uses Tosca’s jealousy to trick her into leading his men to Cavaradossi’s home.
ACT II
Scarpia learns that although Angelotti is still at large, Cavaradossi has been arrested, and he anticipates the pleasure of having Tosca in his power.
The painter is brought in and interrogated. Scarpia sends for Tosca, and when she arrives, she hears Cavaradossi being tortured. Hearing his cries, Tosca reveals Angelotti’s hiding place.
Word arrives that Napoleon has won the battle, a defeat for Scarpia’s side. Cavaradossi’s reaction to this news angers Scarpia, and he orders the painter’s execution.
Alone with Scarpia, Tosca begs him to spare her lover. He says he would let Cavaradossi go free if she would submit to him, and she agrees. Scarpia orders that the execution be faked and prepares papers that will guarantee safe passage for the couple. But as he approaches to embrace Tosca, she exacts revenge.
ACT III
At dawn, Cavaradossi awaits execution. Tosca arrives and tells him about the mock execution, and they imagine their future freedom.
The firing squad shoots, and Cavaradossi falls. Tosca at first believes that he has played along with the pretense but soon realizes that Scarpia has committed the final betrayal.
TOSCA’S LAYERS OF ROMAN HISTORY
BY TONYA & RYAN McKINNY, DIRECTORS
“In Roma, I wanted to get across the idea that underneath Rome today is ancient Rome. So close. I am always conscious of that, and it thrills me.” —Federico Fellini
When you walk down the streets in Rome, you are walking upon layers and layers of history, every century untidily built upon the previous one. History literally repeats itself in front of your eyes. In many ways, Rome is the most important character in Tosca, both in its physical form and in its political unrest. The rise and fall of civilization and the violence that has always come with it are at the center of our story. We knew we wanted to keep Tosca where she belongs, in Roma. But we also wanted to see if we could draw our artistic arrow from Tosca’s origin and point it further forward.
Our Tosca is a movie star in early 1970s Italy, during a period known as the “Anni di piomba” or “Years of Lead.” This was an incredibly unstable time in Italy’s history, marked by political violence from far-right neo-fascists as well as far-left Marxists, student protests, police violence, and state corruption. If that sounds familiar, it’s worth noting that it would have also sounded eerily recognizable to Italians in 1800. History repeats itself, of course.
This time of unrest also produced some of the greatest films in Italy’s history. The influential Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini was often criticized for not being “political enough.” Though in his mind, making art that is personal and meaningful is a political act in itself.
Tosca is in the same predicament as Fellini. She is caught in the middle of political violence but would rather not pick a side. As happens so often to artists throughout history, she is given no choice. While she walks the streets of Rome, followed constantly by her adoring fans and being watched by the press and the state, she cannot escape the layers of history beneath her.
Tosca and the Myth of High Art
BY ANNE MIDGETTE
Once at The Metropolitan Opera, before a performance of Tosca, I said to a friend that opera was essentially a popular, even a populist art form. I will never forget her look of amazement. “You’re so audacious to say that!” she said, with a mixture of shock and relish.
How far opera has moved from its roots. Today, people like my friend perceive this art form as something rarified: a sacred temple that is in some way exalted beyond the mundane—even Tosca, one of the most approachable, and melodramatic, of all operas. Tosca, after all, is the piece that the musicologist Joseph Kerman famously dissed as “a shabby little shocker.” Well, people like my friend tut-tut about that too.
It does opera no service to isolate it, to put it behind the velvet ropes of High Art. Yes, we love to remember that Madame Butterfly
and Carmen flopped at their respective premieres, because such stories fit the trope of The Misunderstood Artist that we’ve been conditioned to embrace. We like to think that Art is so elevated that not everyone can grasp it right away, and that we, as posterity, are somehow privileged because we recognize the greatness that the artist’s contemporaries failed to notice.
But this simply isn’t accurate. Plenty of the composers in our so-called canon were big stars in their day—Haydn, Liszt, Mendelssohn, even Beethoven—and plenty of great works were extremely popular. Indeed, opera in the 19th century was a precursor of what film is for us today: immersive visual and audio entertainment, and often a vehicle for bringing popular books or plays to the “big stage.”
Puccini, the Steven Spielberg of his age, tended to base his operas on very popular
works—Sardou’s play La Tosca was written for the actress Sarah Bernhardt, who was still touring the piece internationally when Puccini got hold of it (and who, famously, broke her leg jumping from the Castel Sant’Angelo in the final scene in a performance in Rio, an injury that eventually led to the amputation of her leg. “Vissi d’arte,” I lived for art, indeed).
showing of that film shortly after I’d discovered it myself, without telling her the plot, and she turned to me partway through Act III and whispered—spoiler alert—“Oh my goodness, he’s going to die, isn't he?” That’s how Puccini meant us to experience Tosca, I think: with that fresh anguish, each and every time.
Tosca was born to be popular.
Tosca was born to be popular. It veritably flaunts all of the popular operatic tropes: period settings (though recent stage directors have begun moving the action from its traditional 1800 date); the doomed lovers; the oh-so-evil villain; the tragic ending.
But Tosca is also distinctive in its selfreferentiality: it’s an opera about an opera singer, taking us behind the scenes to see the kinds of indignities that singers have to endure. Here’s a reason, perhaps, that this opera has managed to transcend its stereotypes, and to endure: in an age that has come to recognize the ubiquity of “MeToo,” this opera’s entire plot hinges on a powerful man seeking to trade favors for sex.
It takes a powerful double standard to decry the villainy of Scarpia, one of the baddest bad guys who ever lived, while seeking to exonerate the powerful interpreters of this role, or the role of the heroic painter Cavaradossi, for committing similar assaults. Few opera audiences would argue that Scarpia is not bad; but many of those same people, confronted with similar behavior in real life, seek to explain it away.
My own first Tosca experience was eminently populist: the 1976 film with Raina Kabaivanska, Plácido Domingo (speaking of MeToo), and Sherrill Milnes. It was also my first inkling that, after years of my having dismissed him as inferior to my beloved Verdi, Puccini might be worth my time after all. I took a friend to a
We like our opera safely up on stage, its villains kept behind the velvet curtains, revealed at the curtain call to be nice men, after all. We forget, as we congratulate ourselves on how lovely the evening was and how clever we were to enjoy it, that when contemporary audiences rejected Carmen, it wasn’t because they didn’t like the tunes; it was because they found the story so grim and sordid—a story that today is generally presented as harmless, colorful folklore.
The mantle of Great Art, it turns out, can have a way of defanging the works thus labeled, turning them into safe, sanitized, canonized idols for us to worship—and leading us, in some cases, to leave our normal moral judgments at the door, the better to enjoy the pretty music.
Is it audacious to call Puccini populist? Let’s be more audacious, and dare to engage with Tosca, and with so many other so-called “great operas” in the canon, for what is actually happening on stage, and behind the scenes as well. Should we reject Tosca for reveling in the victimization of women? Assuredly not; but that doesn’t mean we should pretend that element isn’t there. I maintain, in fact, that art comes most to life when we engage with it on the level, not of what we want or expect it to be, but of what it’s actually about.
Anne Midgette is a writer and critic on music and opera, the visual arts, and more. A former contributor to The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, she was the chief classical music critic of The Washington Post for 12 years before leaving to focus on a long-planned novel.
ROSSINI LA CENERENTOLA (CINDERELLA)
MUSIC BY GIOACHINO ROSSINI
LIBRETTO BY JACOPO FERRETTI
NEW PRODUCTION
THE BARNS AT WOLF TRAP
THURSDAY, JUNE 18 | 7:30 PM
SUNDAY, JUNE 21 | 2 PM
THURSDAY, JUNE 25 | 2 PM
SATURDAY, JUNE 27 | 7:30 PM
SPECIAL THANKS TO ED AND ANDY SMITH, PERFORMANCE SPONSORS
CAST
IN ORDER OF VOCAL APPEARANCE
Clorinda: Angela Yam
Tisbe: Emily Treigle
Angelina: Sophia Maekawa
Alidoro: Cumhur Görgün
Don Magnifico: Ziniu Zhao
Prince Ramiro: Angel Raii Gomez
Dandini: Korin Thomas-Smith
Chorus: Members of the Wolf Trap Opera Studio
CREATIVE TEAM
Conductor: Louis Lohraseb
Director: Joel Ivany
Scenic & Costume Design: Jacob A. Climer
Lighting Design: Jason Hand
Hair & Makeup Design: Anne Nesmith
Associate Hair & Makeup Design: Melissa Sibert
MUSIC & PRODUCTION STAFF
Principal Coach: Christopher Turbessi
Chorus Master & Coach: Michael Lewis
Coach: Joseph Stevens*
Italian Diction: Ken Weiss, Stefano de Peppo
Supertitles: Tzu Kuang Tan*
Production Stage Manager: Arturo Fernandez Jr.
Assistant Stage Manager: Diane Lin
*Fellow
PRODUCTION INFO
Sung in Italian with English captions 3 hours with one intermission
Premiere: Teatro Valle, Rome, 1817
THE STORY
ACT I
Clorinda and Tisbe, daughters of Don Magnifico, quarrel as usual. Their stepsister Angelina—Cenerentola (Cinderella) who is treated as the family maid—sings her favorite song about a king who marries a common girl. Suddenly Alidoro, tutor to Prince Don Ramiro, arrives disguised as a beggar. The stepsisters try to send him away, but Cenerentola kindly offers him bread and coffee. Courtiers announce that Ramiro will visit and he will hold a ball to choose his bride. Hoping to restore the family fortune, Magnifico pins his hopes on his daughters.
Ramiro arrives at Magnifico’s house in disguise as a servant so he can freely observe the prospective brides. Alidoro has told him there is a girl in the house worthy of being a princess, and Ramiro is determined to find her. Cenerentola returns and is startled by the presence of a stranger. The two are immediately attracted to each other. Ramiro asks who she is, and Cenerentola stammers a confused explanation, then runs away. Finally, the “prince” arrives—in fact Ramiro’s valet, Dandini, in disguise. To Ramiro’s amusement, Magnifico, Clorinda, and Tisbe fall over themselves flattering this “prince,” who invites them to the ball. When Cenerentola asks to attend, Magnifico refuses. Ramiro notes how poorly Cenerentola is treated. Alidoro reenters hinting that there is a third daughter in the house, but Magnifico claims she has died. Alone with Cenerentola, Alidoro promises to take her to the ball, assuring that her good heart will be rewarded.
Later, Dandini confides his poor opinion of the sisters to Ramiro, though both men are puzzled because Alidoro has praised one daughter. Clorinda and Tisbe appear again, pursuing Dandini. When he offers Ramiro as a husband to the sister the prince does not marry, they are outraged at the idea of marrying a servant. Alidoro then introduces a beautiful unknown lady who, strangely, resembles Cenerentola. Unable to make sense, they all sit down to supper, feeling as if in a dream.
ACT II
Magnifico fears the stranger will ruin his daughters’ chances to marry the prince. Cenerentola, tired of being pursued by Dandini, tells him that she is in love with his servant. Overhearing this, Ramiro is overjoyed and steps forward. Cenerentola, however, says their love is not that simple and she must return home. She gives Ramiro a diamond bracelet, identical to her own, and tells him to search for her. The prince resolves to win the mysterious girl. Meanwhile Dandini reveals his true identity to Magnifico, who is furious.
Back home, the sisters order Cenerentola to prepare supper. During a storm, Alidoro arranges for Ramiro’s carriage to break down at the house. Cenerentola and Ramiro recognize each other, and though Ramiro rebukes Magnifico and the sisters, she asks him to forgive them.
At the palace, the couple celebrates their wedding. Magnifico seeks favor, but Cenerentola asks only to be acknowledged as his daughter, declaring her days by the hearth are over.
EVERYONE IS PERFORMING
BY JOEL IVANY, DIRECTOR
Gioachino Rossini’s La Cenerentola is one of opera’s great comic engines. The music moves with incredible speed, the ensembles pile up in joyful chaos, and characters constantly trip over disguises, misunderstandings, and their own ambitions. But beneath all that brilliance lies a surprisingly visceral question: how much of who we are is real and how much is performance?
This is a story where almost everyone is pretending to be something they are not. A prince disguises himself as a servant. A servant pretends to be a prince. Two sisters perform elegance they don’t possess (sorry!). And Don Magnifico, perhaps the most enthusiastic actor of all, works tirelessly to convince the world that his household still belongs to the ranks of high society.
In this production, Magnifico’s home reflects that effort. It’s a place that once aspired to grandeur and still tries very hard to project it. The walls, the furniture, the art, the gestures of the people who live there all participate in the same project: maintaining the appearance of status. Magnifico understands something very real about society. If you perform confidence and wealth convincingly enough, people may believe it.
The trouble is that everyone else is performing too.
Angelina, the young woman at the center of the story, is the only character who isn’t trying to play a role. She doesn’t pretend to be important. She doesn’t chase power or recognition. Instead, she quietly does something much harder. She pays attention. She listens. She responds to the world with empathy.
Rossini gives her the opera’s most extraordinary journey. While the others scramble for position, Angelina slowly becomes the emotional center of the entire stage. By the time she sings her final aria, the music seems to expand around her, as if Rossini himself is acknowledging that generosity might be the most powerful force in the room.
What makes La Cenerentola so much fun is that Rossini never delivers this lesson solemnly. The opera moves like a beautifully controlled whirlwind. Characters burst into dazzling ensembles. Plans collapse in seconds. Identities flip, collide, and reform. The audience gets to watch the entire social machine spin faster and faster until the truth finally reveals itself.
And when it does, it’s wonderfully simple.
Titles don’t matter. Wealth doesn’t matter. Even the disguises eventually fall away. What remains is character.
That’s the true magic of La Cenerentola. Not a fairy godmother, not a pumpkin carriage, but the possibility that kindness and sincerity might still outshine all the noise around them.
Rossini turns that idea into music that sparkles, tumbles, and laughs its way to one of opera’s happiest endings.
Rossini’s Daring Reinvention
BY MARIA TATAR
Rossini’s La Cenerentola began with a dare. The librettist of the opera, Jacopo Ferretti, proposed one subject after another for a collaboration with the composer, but no luck. Finally, out of desperation, he said just one word: “Cinderella.” Rossini challenged Ferretti to write a libretto based on the tale. Ferretti urged the maestro to put it to music. They each delivered, working at breakneck speed to produce text and score, each managing to complete the mission in a matter of a few weeks.
But why choose Cinderella for an opera? It’s easy to dismiss her story as a mere “old wives’ tale,” the sort of lore told by women in the dim light of nurseries or to the rhythmic hum of spinning wheels. Yet these humble, domestic associations didn’t stop a young composer and his librettist from taking up the story for the grand stage. They were chasing a French sensation that had already captivated the Paris Opera in 1810 before sweeping into Milan just four years later.
The fairy-tale momentum was unstoppable in 19th-century Europe. Charles Perrault’s 1697 collection had already begun to transform these tales into literary fare for young and old. But it was the Brothers Grimm in Germany who truly elevated the genre. By rebranding folktales as part of a sacred cultural heritage, they helped forge a sense of national identity from the fragments of the past. While the Grimms used folklore to ground a nation, the tales themselves remained defiant of national boundaries. The oral tradition from which the stories derived acted like a living, breathing connection between nations, proving that while a story may help to define national identity, its spirit belongs to the world.
The kaleidoscopic wonders of a story we call “Cinderella” manifest themselves when we travel around the world, stopping in Egypt to watch an eagle swoop down and carry off a sandal belonging to Rhodopis or landing in China to admire the gold shoes and cloak of feathers worn by Yeh-Hsien. We can appreciate the compassion of the French Cendrillon, who forgives her stepsisters and marries them off to high-ranking court officials. Or we can recoil at the horrors of an Indonesian Cinderella, who punishes her stepsister by forcing her into a cauldron of boiling hot water.
When the fairy tale migrated into the highstakes world of opera, it demanded a
new level of complexity. To ensure “vocal diversity,” the librettist Ferretti expanded the cast, replacing the cruel stepmother with Don Magnifico, the foolish father who favors his two vain daughters over Cenerentola. A valet, a tutor, and various courtiers not only broadened the social landscape—their voices also provided a deep, powerful counterpoint to Cenerentola’s mezzo-soprano pyrotechnics—culminating in the opera’s famous aria, "Non più mesta."
The result of this constant reimagining is a total transformation. Presto! A localized French story that once captivated European capitals became a global phenomenon. By trading the coziness of the nursery for the grandeur of the orchestra pit, La Cenerentola recaptured the tale’s inherent magic—not through the literal wave of a fairy godmother’s wand or the appearance of pumpkin coaches but through the evocative power of performance. What began as a light-hearted dare reanimated Cinderella in a new medium. We are left with a staging that transcends time and place and blends stunning spectacle and magnificent music with the beauty of the human voice to give us hope that goodness will at last triumph over vanity and greed.
Maria Tatar is a Senior Fellow at Harvard University’s Society of Fellows and Professor Emerita of Folklore & Mythology and Germanic Languages & Literatures. Her books include The Heroine with 1001 Faces, Arachnomania, Classic Fairy Tales, and The Annotated African American Folktales
TCHAIKOVSKY EUGENE ONEGIN
MUSIC BY PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY
LIBRETTO BY PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY AND KONSTANTIN SHILOVSKY
NEW PRODUCTION
THE BARNS AT WOLF TRAP
FRIDAY, JULY 17 | 7:30 PM
SUNDAY, JULY 19 | 2 PM
THURSDAY, JULY 23 | 2 PM
SATURDAY, JULY 25 | 7:30 PM
SPECIAL THANKS TO ED AND ANDY SMITH, PERFORMANCE SPONSORS
CAST
IN ORDER OF VOCAL APPEARANCE
Madame Larina: Aubrey Odle
Filipyevna: Cecelia McKinley
Olga: Elissa Pfaender
Tatiana: Magdalena Kuźma
Lensky: Daniel O’Hearn
Eugene Onegin: Finn Sagal
Monsieur Triquet: Jack Hicks*
Commander: Michael Mensah*
Zaretsky: Jack Burrows*
Prince Gremin: Sergio Martinez
Chorus: Wolf Trap Opera Studio
*Wolf Trap Opera Studio Artist
CREATIVE TEAM
Conductor: Steven White
Director: Emma Griffin
Scenic Design: Lee Jellinek
Costume Design: Christopher Ford
Lighting Design: Alejandro Farjado
Hair & Makeup Design: Anne Nesmith
MUSIC & PRODUCTION STAFF
Principal & Russian Diction Coach, Chorus Master: Ksenia Leletkina
Coaches: Ye In Kwak, Gabrielė Žemaitytė*
Supertitles: Joseph Stevens
Production Stage Manager: Annie Wheeler
Assistant Stage Manager: Emma Rocheleau
*Fellow
PRODUCTION INFO
Sung in Russian with English captions
3 hours with one intermission
Premiere: Mally Theatre, Moscow, 1879
THE STORY
ACT I
It is autumn, and at the Larin estate in the countryside, Madame Larina thinks about her youth, when she was in love but courted by another man whom she eventually married. She is now widowed and has two daughters: Tatiana and Olga Olga is being courted by the poet Lensky who lives nearby; he stops by unexpectedly, bringing his friend Eugene Onegin Tatiana falls in love at first sight.
Tatiana asks her nurse Filipyevna about her first love and marriage, and spends the subsequent night pouring her heart out in a letter to Onegin. She finishes as the day breaks and persuades Filipyevna to have her grandson deliver the message.
Tatiana waits for Onegin’s response in the garden. He admits that he was touched by her declaration but explains that he cannot accept it and can only offer her friendship. He advises her to control her emotions, lest another man take advantage of her innocence.
ACT II
January at the Larin Estate. The local community has been invited to celebrate Tatiana’s name day, and Lensky has invited Onegin to join. Surprised and annoyed by the scope of the celebration, Onegin soon grows bored, and takes his revenge on Lensky by flirting and dancing with Olga. Infuriated with Onegin’s increasing attention, and with Olga’s lighthearted reciprocation, Lensky’s jealousy grows. He confronts Onegin and challenges him to a duel.
Before the duel, Lensky contemplates his poetry, his love for Olga, and death. Neither Lensky nor Onegin want to fight, but neither moves to stop the duel. Lensky is killed.
ACT III
St. Petersburg. Onegin has recently returned after several years of travel following the duel. At a ball, Prince Gremin introduces his young wife. Onegin recognizes Tatiana—and realizes he is in love with her. He sends her a letter and goes to the palace to convince her to run away with him. She admits that she still loves him, but she will not leave her husband.
Eugene Onegin and Vladimir Lensky's Duel, Ilya Repin, 1899.
Tchaikovsky’s Singing Poetry
BY STEVEN WHITE, CONDUCTOR
It goes without saying that a vast number of successful operas could be called “poetic.” Indeed, the mystical union of poetry and music that creates “lyric expression” is an inviolable marriage that defines the very nature of opera itself. But Eugene Onegin is unique in the degree to which poetry pervades not only the dramatic content, but also the technical and compositional details of the opera.
With the help of his friend, Konstantin Shilovsky, Tchaikovsky adapted Pushkin’s original text by employing the great poet’s own metrical scheme wherever possible. Pushkin’s iambic tetrameter (as in, from Tatiana’s great letter scene, “I write to you—what more is needed? This said, have I not said enough?”) governs the conversational flow throughout the opera, but never becomes forced or predictable. Of astounding artistic inspiration is his use of the same rhythmic dynamic in music that has no text. The ascending line in the oboe that so magically and hopefully announces the beginning of Tatiana’s monumental aria is rendered in exact iambic tetrameter, followed by four individual iambs that drop directly into our hearts by virtue of solo flute, clarinet, horn, and harp. This is musical poetry of matchless integrity and subtle effectiveness.
Speaking of Tatiana, is there any operatic character who compels our love and respect more sincerely? I think she’s my favorite female character in all of opera. Not only is she a noble human being without guile who, in the vulnerability of her youth has the courage and strength to reveal her heart without pretense, she also proves to be a woman who eschews bitterness and upholds her commitment to the very end. Tchaikovsky lavishes Tatiana with music that runs the full gamut of human expression—utter tenderness, profound passion, joy, and despair.
Onegin himself is also treated with great specificity by Tchaikovsky, who makes clear his relative disdain for the title character. I find it difficult to imagine how nearly any other composer could have captured the cynical, dismissive, sometimes dandy-ish condescending aloofness that pervades Onegin’s demeanor. Through musical choices that support the dramatic circumstances, Tchaikovsky lays bare Onegin’s pathetic weakness in the end. While Onegin pleads with Tatiana, the composer sets his protestations to the music of Tatiana’s original confession of love from the letter scene in one of the greatest moments of “what goes around, comes around.”
In Eugene Onegin, Tchaikovsky employs his skills as a “tone poet” to masterful effect. In the various preludes that begin the scenes and in the musical flow of the drama, it’s almost as if the orchestra has taken up the role of the nameless narrator in Pushkin’s original. The string writing is beyond sumptuous, throbbing with emotional immediacy.
These are but a tiny handful of the riches that are to be found in Eugene Onegin I find that this opera challenges me in ways that go far beyond those that one would normally associate with conducting a great piece of music. Tchaikovsky and Pushkin have given to us one of opera’s most beautiful mirrors with which to examine ourselves and our world.
A Heroine to Cherish: The Emotional Journey of Tchaikovsky’s Tatiana
BY ROGER PINES
When Tchaikovsky’s stage works come to mind, we tend to think first of his universally admired ballets. However, Tchaikovsky also composed 11 operas, rich in humanity and abounding in heartfelt melody. Eugene Onegin, premiered in 1879, has long surpassed the others in popularity, remaining today the best-loved of all Russian operas internationally.
We owe the piece’s dramatic source to Russia’s most celebrated poet, Aleksandr Pushkin (1799–1837). He scored the greatest success of his short life with a verse novel, Yevgeny Onegin (published in serial form, 1825–32). The protagonist was to some degree inspired by Lord Byron’s Childe Harold: the arrogant, restless young man who’s easily bored and doesn’t fit in. But it’s not Onegin who tears one’s heart out—it’s Pushkin’s heroine, Tatiana, to whom Tchaikovsky gives a profoundly moving emotional arc in the course of the opera.
Tchaikovsky prepared the libretto with fellow composer Konstantin Shilovsky, taking it directly from Pushkin’s original wherever possible. Much editing was needed, and Tchaikovsky experienced some criticism for it;
everyone had a different idea of how he should have proceeded with this familiar text. But he loved Pushkin’s words and created the opera in a state approaching ecstasy, especially where Tatiana was concerned; her “Letter Scene” was the first portion of the score that he composed.
The opera’s keynote is lyricism, with grand dramatic outbursts employed very sparingly. We should remember that Tchaikovsky subtitled Onegin, “Lyrical Scenes” and indeed it’s lyric voices that are needed—“juicy” lyric certainly (especially for Tatiana), but lyric nonetheless. Each role’s vocal range is entirely manageable, with expressiveness— never vocal flamboyance—invariably the composer’s emphasis.
In the opening scene, a moment of lyrical fervor prepares us for what’s to come. This brief passage occurs when Tatiana sings to her mother about the romantic novel she’s reading; the torment of its young lovers has affected her deeply. The girl’s every phrase emerges with warmth, sincerity, and an unspoken but obvious vulnerability.
Young woman writing a letter, Federico Zandomeneghi, 1874.
It’s in the second scene of Act One that Tchaikovsky uses his lyrical style to reveal the depths of his heroine’s soul. Her desperate, lovesick letter to Onegin represents the opera’s emotional center. Most lyric sopranos long to sing Tatiana, and that surely has most to do with the 13-minute “Letter Scene”—a tour de force for a thoroughly musicianly and emotionally-responsive singing actress.
Tatiana calls for a “full lyric” soprano. Paradoxically, most youthful voices aren’t yet able to offer much substance in the middle range, but that’s exactly where much of this character’s music “sits.” The singer must free herself of technical concerns in order to concentrate on creating an arresting, aching intimacy, adapting vocal color to musical and textual needs. Pushkin had a surprisingly penetrating understanding of a young girl’s yearnings, and how stunning that Tchaikovsky could express them musically with such unerring truth.
So what do we see in the object of Tatiana’s affection? The following scene tells all. Here Onegin meets with Tatiana after receiving the letter and admits in person that, although touched by Tatiana’s candor, marriage and domestic life offer no appeal. He can love her as a brother, perhaps more than that, and he asks that she not be angered by his response.
This music is cool—Onegin is simply being straightforward. He’s often described as callous, but neither music nor text communicate that here. He can’t be played as nasty and cold, otherwise we’d get annoyed with Tatiana for wanting anything to do with him. We must perceive something that would so intensely attract her. Certainly through body language and vocal color, the baritone portraying Onegin can project the coolness that wounds Tatiana at this moment.
Things change, however: in the final scene, Tatiana takes the upper hand. Yes, she struggles to sustain her core of strength, but in the end she prevails, showing a maturity acquired through marriage and her new stature in society.
The same singer who began the opera portraying a shy teenager now presents a conflicted but ultimately determined woman. Here the voice, too, can reflect the growth in the person. It should gain steadily in breadth and thrust during the scene’s magnificent opening arioso as Tatiana confronts Onegin, wondering whether it’s her social position that has awakened his attraction to her.
When Tatiana and Onegin reflect on how close they’d been to true happiness, the quiet despair of their individual vocal lines speaks volumes. But after admitting that she still loves Onegin, Tatiana asserts—despite his entreaties—that she will stay with her husband. These closing pages are as dramatic as anything written for lyric voices in Russian opera, the orchestra surging with full Tchaikovskyan grandeur.
The sheer scale of the music at this moment is in keeping with the strength Tatiana has acquired. She conquers her agony and takes charge of her life. The man kneeling before her previously scarred her heart, and it’s a measure of her growth as a woman that she can move forward. We know she won’t forget the feelings he once inspired in her, but will she live confidently and even happily without him? Absolutely.
Roger Pines regularly contributes to opera-related publications and recording companies internationally. A recent lecturer for the opera programs of the Yale School of Music and Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute of Music, he currently teaches the opera repertoire and audition workshop courses at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music.
Salon Series
SCOTTISH BARN | THE BARNS AT WOLF TRAP
Artistic intimacy is at the heart of these limited-capacity, artist-curated salon evenings. Begin with dinner, then savor a bespoke musical journey unfolding just feet away. Spanning five distinct concerts, the Salon Series offers the thrill of extraordinary voices in rare proximity, with programs that vary each night.
SALON SERIES: WILL LIVERMAN
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3 | 7:30 PM
2026 Filene Artist in Residence and Grammy-winning performer Will Liverman kicks off the Salon Series with a one-of-a-kind evening of song showcasing the music he loves. Step into a night where everything is curated with care by one of the great voices of a generation.
MONDAY, JUNE 8 | 7:30 PM
Magdalena Kuźma, soprano
Jonathan Patton, baritone
Joseph Li, piano
MONDAY, JUNE 22 | 7:30 PM
Aubrey Odle, mezzo-soprano
Wayd Odle, tenor
Renate Rohlfing, piano
MONDAY, JULY 6 | 7:30 PM
Sophia Maekawa, mezzo-soprano
Daniel O'Hearn, tenor Joseph Li, piano
MONDAY, JULY 20 | 7:30 PM
Angela Yam, soprano
Korin Thomas-Smith, baritone Joseph Li, piano
SPECIAL THANKS TO DEBORAH F. AND DAVID A. WINSTON, PERFORMANCE SPONSORS
Aria Jukebox
YOU VOTE FOR THE SONGS! OUR SINGERS SING THEM! SUNDAY, JUNE 28 | 2 PM THE BARNS AT WOLF TRAP
It’s an afternoon of opera’s greatest arias on demand—and you’re in control of the set list! Experience the high energy of Aria Jukebox, where each singer offers four arias and the audience votes on which ones will be performed live. Along the way, the singers may charm, persuade, or playfully bamboozle the crowd in hopes of swaying the vote. Who will win—audience or artists? You’ll have to attend to find out. Perfect for opera newcomers and longtime fans alike, this event bubbles with fun, and is not to be missed. Vote early, and often!
Audience voting begins at 1 PM.
Wolf Trap Opera’s home stage performances embody its core mission to discover and promote the finest emerging opera talent. Whether inside The Barns or outside at the Filene Center, WTO relies on the venue’s resources to mount the high-quality productions that define its training program.
While cornerstone programming remains on campus, the company continues to expand beyond these boundaries to engage new audiences and share fresh perspectives. These performance opportunities—and the partnerships that make them possible—are the essence of UNTRAPPED, bringing the thrill of vocal music to new places and unexpected spaces.
UNTRAPPED STUDIO ARTISTS IN CONCERT
JULY 21 | 7 PM
HOLY TRINITY CATHOLIC CHURCH IN GEORGETOWN
In its fourth year of concerts at the extraordinary Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Georgetown, Wolf Trap Opera presents a free concert of opera scenes, arias, and more. Hear this season’s talented Studio Artists as they sing some of their favorite music.
UNTRAPPED NAVY BAND CAPITOL CONCERT
AUGUST 10 | 7 PM US CAPITOL
One of Wolf Trap Opera's soloists joins the storied United States Navy Concert Band on the west steps of the United States Capitol building for the Concerts at The Capitol series.
Master Classes
WILL LIVERMAN
MASTER CLASS
SUNDAY, MAY 31 | 3 PM
CENTER FOR EDUCATION AT WOLF TRAP
2026 Filene Artist in Residence and Grammy Award-winning baritone Will Liverman (’15, ’16) returns to Wolf Trap to work with Studio Artists on vocal technique and interpretation in this free public master class.
STEVEN BLIER
MASTER CLASS
TUESDAY, JUNE 9 | 3 PM
CENTER FOR EDUCATION AT WOLF TRAP
Recitalist, raconteur, and longtime Wolf Trap Opera favorite, Steven Blier leads Wolf Trap Opera’s Studio Artists in a free public master class exploring the art of song and the craft of interpretation. A book signing with Blier of his new book, From Ear to Ear: A Pianist's Love Affair with Song, will follow the class.
RENÉE FLEMING
MASTER CLASS
TUESDAY, JUNE 23 | 3 PM
CENTER FOR EDUCATION AT WOLF TRAP
Renowned soprano and Wolf Trap Opera’s Artist Development Advisor, Renée Fleming, works with the next generation of opera stars.
Master Class events are free, but reservations are required and limited.
WOLFTRAP.ORG/MASTERCLASSES
Will liverman, baritone 2026 FILENE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
Will Liverman (’15, ’16) returns to work with Wolf Trap Opera’s emerging singers on artistic development and practical career preparation.
Hailed by The Washington Post as “a voice for this historic moment,” Grammy Award-winning baritone Will Liverman has been praised internationally for his versatility in dramatic and comedic operatic roles and his dedication and vision as a composer, artist, and advisor. He is the co-creator of the soul opera The Factotum, which premiered at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in 2023.
Liverman has appeared at The Metropolitan Opera, English National Opera, Dutch National Opera, LA Opera, Santa Fe Opera, and Washington National Opera, among many others. At The Met, Liverman made history as the first-ever Black Papageno in The Magic Flute; headlined Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up In My Bones, which won a 2023 Grammy Award; and starred in Anthony Davis’ X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. He premiered Kevin Puts’ The Manchurian Candidate at Minnesota Opera and René Orth’s 10 Days in a Madhouse at Opera Philadelphia, and served as Artistic Advisor for Renée Fleming’s SongStudio at Carnegie Hall.
A recipient of The Metropolitan Opera’s 2022 Beverly Sills Artist Award, Liverman is an alumnus of the Ryan Opera Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and holds degrees from The Juilliard School (MM) and Wheaton College in Illinois (BM).
SPECIAL THANKS TO THE LINCOLN AND THERESE FILENE FOUNDATION, 2026 PROGRAM UNDERWRITER
RENÉE FLEMING ARTIST DEVELOPMENT ADVISOR
As Wolf Trap Opera’s Artist Development Advisor, internationally acclaimed soprano Renée Fleming enriches WTO’s training programs through immersive mentorship. With her bold vision and deep passion for nurturing the next generation of singers, she is helping shape the future of opera at the nation’s premier training ground for emerging opera talent.
Fleming works directly with WTO artists in both individual and group settings, offering guidance on audition technique and repertoire development while equipping young performers with the skills to thrive in today’s opera industry. She enhances WTO’s program through a seamless blend of performance opportunities and mentorship, including two exciting initiatives:
• American Impressions: Connecting WTO artists with composers at the forefront of contemporary American opera through study and performance opportunities.
• NextGen: Handpicking and mentoring select members of the 2026 company for a recital at The Barns at Wolf Trap during the 2026–2027 season.
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The prestige of Wolf Trap Opera is internationally recognized, with alumni singing on the stages of the world’s greatest houses.
—Renée Fleming
Scan to watch Renée Fleming’s mentorship in action as she discusses working with WTO’s Filene Artists last summer.
SPECIAL THANKS TO DAN AND GAYLE D’ANIELLO, PROGRAM UNDERWRITERS
WOl F TRAP OPERA: WHERE DEFINING ROLES TAKE SHAPE
Often in opera, there’s a central, consistent theme: tumultuous love and intertwined characters. From the pure-intentioned, disguised trials of La Cenerentola’s Don Ramiro and the intense passion and heartache experienced by Tosca’s Cavaradossi to the unrequited longings of Eugene Onegin’s Tatiana, Wolf Trap Opera’s (WTO) 2026 productions each masterfully portray love’s tribulations and (occasional) happy endings.
Bringing these characters to life are WTO’s Filene and Studio Artists, all of whom are learning and performing pivotal roles early in their careers. Reflecting on this unique training, Wolf Trap’s Manager of Artistic Administration Arianna Zukerman says, “One of the aspects we pride ourselves on at Wolf Trap is making a safe space in which our artists can experiment, discover, and create.”
“These amazing singers are often debuting major roles. When first headlining a show, artists need the space to test their own technique and ideas. We do our best to give them the room to do just that in a process free from judgement.”
This approach has allowed Wolf Trap’s singers to flourish, as evidenced by its robust and successful alumni network. Ahead of the season, WTO superstars Lawrence Brownlee and Simon O’Neill, and WTO’s Artist Development Advisor Renée Fleming all shared their personal connections to Don Ramiro, Cavaradossi, and Tatiana and their experiences with the program.
CROWNING PERFORMANCES
What do WTO and the Paris Opera have in common this June? Performances of Rossini’s timeless La Cenerentola, with the latter venue starring 2019 Filene Artist in Residence
Lawrence Brownlee (’01) as Prince Don Ramiro. Hailed as “an international star in the bel canto operatic repertory” (The New York Times), Brownlee’s name is synonymous with the Rossini tenor repertoire—a legacy that traces back to his training at WTO.
Brownlee debuted the role of Don Ramiro during graduate school at Indiana University and shortly thereafter, he joined WTO where he studied a variety of repertoire, including Britten, Mozart, and Donizetti. By the following summer, he had already advanced to the world stage to take on The Barber of Seville at La Scala—the only opera he has performed more than La Cenerentola
He credits WTO for preparing him for this transition saying, “As I was emerging from young artist to professional, WTO was the first place that treated me like an adult artist. It was a professional experience in every way that taught me how to be a professional artist—no longer a student.”
BROWNLEE’S WORDS OF WISDOM FOR PORTRAYING DON RAMIRO:
“Find the humanity and truth in the character. Dig deep! Ask ‘what specifically does my character want and why?’ Then try to play within that specificity… The ensemble numbers [of La Cenerentola] are demanding and provide challenges; spend time learning those well. The speed of the quintet makes it difficult to pronounce; get this in your muscle memory.”
However, he continues to remain a student of Don Ramiro. Far from the vague fairytale prince of Disney’s retelling, Brownlee attests, “I appreciate this version of the prince [because] it is much more involved. That being said, I have always felt a bit frustrated playing this character because he has to sit and endure what is happening for so long. He cannot reveal his true identity until midway through Act II.”
With time and life experience—ushered in through raising a family—Brownlee continues to reevaluate this challenge with Don Ramiro. He believes his wife and children taught him the importance of patience, a quality that has made him better at telling the story of a prince charmed by Cenerentola’s good heart.
New Zealander and 2016 Filene Artist in Residence Simon O’Neill (’03) is regarded as one of the world’s leading heldentenors and praised for his command of the Wagnerian repertoire. But long before his German specialization, one of O’Neill’s primary roles as a young artist in New Zealand was Tosca’s Cavaradossi.
Not long after his studies at Manhattan School of Music and The Juilliard School, O’Neill auditioned for WTO. When the company needed a replacement for the title role of La Clemenza di Tito, they chose O’Neill. The opportunity opened numerous doors for him, including performing for the great Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart at their home in Maryland and some transformative training that shaped the trajectory of his career.
O’NEILL’S
ADVICE
FOR EMERGING ARTISTS FINDING THEIR NICHE:
“[Even while] singing dramatic roles… there are moments where you have to be happy. When Cavaradossi sings “Recondita armonia,” just smile because you have this gorgeous orchestral interlude before you start singing. And the smile, what it does as singers, it lifts your palate.”
“Be open to where your voice, career, and love of the music is going. You might come to sing Cavaradossi, but you might end up leaving one day [singing] German or Czech repertoire.”
“I went to Wolf Trap with the idea of being a Mozartian tenor, and I ended that summer at Wolf Trap as a young heldentenor. The next year, I had an audition and I became the cover for the role of Siegmund [at The Met],” shared O’Neill.
While reflecting on his time with WTO, O’Neill was opening Kurt Weill’s The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny for English National Opera in London. O’Neill said, “I know I can sing that [repertoire] as a heldentenor because of my discipline of learning to sing as an Italian singer with Wolf Trap back in the day. I'm very grateful for that.”
That Italian training also gets used when O’Neill is cast as Cavaradossi. He estimates he’s portrayed the role around 25 times, and—when compared against his oftenstrenuous German repertoire—the sweet legato phrasing of arias like “Recondita armonia” and “E lucevan le stelle” feel to him like “pouring really lovely tasting olive oil onto [his] vocal cords.” That, coupled with the triumph and drama of “Vittoria, Vittoria” in the infamous torture scene, makes Cavaradossi one of his most adored roles.
Simon O'Neill as Cavaradossi in New Zealand Opera's Tosca (credit: New Zealand Opera, Neil McKenzie)
INNER CONVICTION
It’s hard to discuss American opera without mentioning one of its leading sopranos, Renée Fleming. Her debut as Tatiana in Eugene Onegin with Dallas Opera transformed Fleming’s career, shifting her center from bel canto and Mozart to more diverse repertoire— not to mention a new language. She credits her work alongside native speakers and great baritones Sergei Leiferkus (at her Dallas role debut) and the late Dmitri Hvorostovsky (at The Metropolitan Opera and in concerts in Russia) for helping her master the language and style.
FLEMING’S GUIDANCE FOR NAVIGATING TATIANA’S DEPTH:
“Managing the relatively low tessitura is a challenge. The role is often written in the mean orchestra range—it requires a full middle register. And in terms of the drama, I think the difficulty lies in balancing Tatiana’s reserve with her passion and her progression from her country roots to high society.”
For Fleming, portraying Tatiana feels deeply personal as she explains, “[Tatiana] is bookish, a reader, and a dreamer. I’ve always called it the closest role to my young life, because I was shy at that age, and read constantly as well. But she makes an incredibly courageous choice to share her inner life with Onegin. I admire her growth into a woman of real strength and firm principles by the end of the opera.”
Coincidentally, that increase in confidence mirrors the training Fleming now imparts to the next generation of singers at Wolf Trap.
Here, Fleming works with Filene and Studio Artists to develop their voices as well as a well-rounded approach to performance. After the artists fully digest the libretto and music, she helps fine tune their craft through master classes and individualized training to further prepare them for professional careers.
This season, Fleming even has a connection to WTO’s Tatiana: Magdalena Kuźma. Fleming says, “I have watched Magdalena’s growth as an artist in programs I’ve led like SongStudio at Carnegie Hall and the Aspen Opera Theater. She is highly musical and her voice is uniquely beautiful.”
OPERA FOR TODAY & TOMORROW
For the Filene and Studio Artists embodying the roles of Don Ramiro, Cavaradossi, and Tatiana this season—as well as those filling out the casts of their respective productions— studying these characters at such a pivotal time in their training is paramount.
Through WTO’s continued commitment to fostering emerging opera talent, there’s a great likelihood that those gracing the stages of the Filene Center and The Barns today may be the very same ones transforming into the opera superstars of tomorrow.
Renée Fleming as Tatiana in The Metropolitan Opera's Eugene Onegin (credit: Ken Howard/Met Opera)
GENERATIONS OF W TO ALUMNI CONTINUE
TO INSPIRE
More than five decades in, Wolf Trap Opera (WTO) continues its established tradition of finding and nurturing some of opera’s biggest stars.
Discover a few of the recent accomplishments by WTO’s 1,000+ alumni at home and abroad.
METROPOLITAN REUNIONS
The Metropolitan Opera’s 2025–2026 season featured at least one WTO alum in every single production—a testament to WTO’s impactful training.
In January, opera superstar Denyce Graves-Montgomery (’89) concluded her distinguished three decades-long career with a final turn as Maria in Porgy and Bess. The captivating performance showcased seven WTO alumni, including former Filene Artists bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green (’13, ’14), bass-baritone Alfred Walker (’99), Brittany Olivia Logan (’23, ’25), and Studio alumna Jazmine Saunders (’23).
Alumni in past WTO performances (L-R clockwise): Lawrence Brownlee in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Brandon Cedel in Il viaggio a Reims, Erin Morley in Ariadne auf Naxos, Ryan Speedo Green with The Philadelphia Orchestra, Ailyn Pérez in Le nozze di Figaro, and Jamie Barton in concert at The Barns
In addition to his performances in Porgy and Bess and Tristan und Isolde, Green sang the salacious title role in Don Giovanni with alumni bass-baritone Brandon Cedel (’13) and soprano Andrea Carroll (’12, ’13).
Lawrence Brownlee (’01) joined Erin Morley (’07, ’08) in the latter’s role debut as Marie in the buoyant La Fille du Régiment. The tenor-soprano duo collaborated on the “charmingly picturesque” (OperaWire) 2025 album Golden Age, celebrating the bel canto style. Morley also sang Pamina in The Magic Flute Holiday Presentation with over a dozen other Trappers, including Joshua Blue (’19), Le Bu (’24), Tessa McQueen (’23), Michael Sumuel (’10, ’11), and Emily Treigle (’23, ’24).
CELEBRATING AMERICAN OPERA COMPANIES
Regardless of the language in which they sang, alumni transported viewers around the world while performing on stages across the US.
Grammy-winning bass and 2021 Filene Artist in Residence Morris Robinson (’03, ’04) performed in Aïda with Washington National Opera and the operatic mashup Ride of the Valkyries! with Boston Lyric Opera in fall 2025. In the spring, Robinson sang with the Dallas, Palm Beach, and Atlanta operas.
Mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton (’09) brought former WTO guest artist Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking to life with her “commanding stage presence” (San Francisco Classical Voice) as Sister Helen Prejean at San Francisco Opera. Barton’s portrayal of Elizabeth van Lew in Heggie’s Intelligence, also featuring fellow alumna J’Nai Bridges (’15, ’16), was recorded with Houston Grand Opera and won a Grammy for Best Opera Recording.
After entrancing audiences at Washington National Opera, NPR’s famed Tiny Desk Concert, and The Barns’ 24-25 season, John Holiday (’14) dazzled with his “timeless” (The Washington Post) countertenor voice at the New York Philharmonic in December and LA Opera in spring 2026—all following a glowing profile in The New York Times.
Meanwhile, countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen (’17) made his title role debut in Orfeo ed Euridice at Music of the Baroque in Chicago, amid a string of Handel’s Messiah in Houston, Ann Arbor, and St. Paul.
John Holiday in concert at The Barns at Wolf Trap (2025)
EDUCATION OPERA-TIONS
Wolf Trap alumni have long passed the baton to younger singers, paving the way for the next generation of artists.
After directing a March production of Scott Joplin's Treemonisha at Washington National Opera, Denyce GravesMontgomery (’89) transitioned to leading The Denyce Graves Foundation. The nonprofit’s programs include the Shared Voices initiative, which aims to improve enrollment in Historically Black Colleges and Universities’ arts programs.
Adriana Zabala (’01, ’02) presides over opera events at Yale University since becoming the inaugural Assistant Dean of Collaborative Arts. Zabala’s 2026 accomplishments include: singing the title role in the East Coast premiere of Christopher Theofanidis and Melissa Studdard’s Siddhartha, She and acting as an adjudicator for the Laffont Opera Competition.
Nicholas Phan (’03, ’04) received a 2025 Grammy (Best Opera Recording) for Kaija Saariaho’s astounding Adriana Mater. Phan’s multiple education platforms include Art Song Chicago, which he co-founded in 2010 to promote art song and chamber music.
GLOBAL INFLUENCES
WTO alumni brought outstanding talent to audiences around the world, from East Asia to South America.
At London’s Royal Ballet and Opera, powerhouse soprano Ailyn Pérez (’06) performed Tosca’s title role before gracing stages with Bayerische Staatsoper on tour in Shanghai, as Otello’s Desdemona, and in Munich, as Pagliacci’s Nedda. Meanwhile, Grammy-winning soprano Tamara Wilson (’08) brought her inimitable portrayal of the courageous Brünnhilde to Paris, where she sang in Wagner’s Siegfried with multiple Parisian companies.
Tenor Simon O’Neill (’03) closed out 2025 singing the title role of Wagner’s Siegfried with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra before a summertime performance of Tristan und Isolde at Theatro Municipal de São Paolo. And “impossible to resist” (Bachtrack) soprano Ying Fang (’13, ’14) sang The Magic Flute’s Pamina with Opera Ballet Vlaanderen at Festival d’Aix-enProvence in July, to close out her season.
J'Nai Bridges in Wolf Trap Opera's The Rape of Lucretia (2016)
Adriana Zabala in Wolf Trap Opera's Xerxes (2002)
FILENE ARTISTS
EXCEPTIONAL EMERGING PROFESSIONALS ON THE CUSP OF MAJOR CAREERS
Selected from the top applicants, the 2026 Filene Artists were the catalyst for this season’s repertoire. Wolf Trap Opera’s artist-focused approach—identifying productions once the most talented singers are found—makes the Filene Artist residency a particularly sought-after honor for exceptional emerging singers who have completed their training and are poised for significant careers.
ANGEL RAII GOMEZ
TENOR
McAllen, TX
ROLE: Don Ramiro (La Cenerentola)
TRAINING: Lindemann Young Artist Development Program,
The Metropolitan Opera; Academy of Vocal Arts; International Meistersinger Academy
HIGHLIGHTS: Aldeanos (El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego), The Metropolitan Opera; Count Almaviva (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Ernesto (Don Pasquale), Faust (Faust), Fritz (L’amico Fritz), Academy of Vocal Arts
CUMHUR GÖRGÜN
BASS
Istanbul, Turkey
ROLES: Alidoro (La Cenerentola), Cesare Angelotti (Tosca)
TRAINING: Academy of Vocal Arts, Istanbul University State Conservatory
HIGHLIGHTS: Don Basilio (cover) (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Glyndebourne Festival; Banquo (Macbeth), Teatro Nuovo; Méphistophélès (Faust), Don Pasquale (Don Pasquale), Enrico VIII (Anna Bolena), Leporello (Don Giovanni), Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro), Academy of Vocal Arts
MAGDALENA KUŹMA
SOPRANO
New York City, NY
ROLES: Tatiana (Eugene Onegin), Salon Series 6/8
TRAINING: Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, The Metropolitan Opera; Santa Fe Opera; Merola Opera Program; Ravinia Steans Music Institute; Music Academy of the West; Young Artists Vocal Academy, Houston Grand Opera; SongStudio, Carnegie Hall; Chautauqua Institute; Yale University; Oberlin Conservatory and College; The Juilliard School
HIGHLIGHTS: Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), Polish National Theater, Opera Orlando; Susanna (Le nozze di Figaro), Aspen Music Festival; Juliette (Roméo et Juliette), Glimmerglass Opera; Gianetta (L’elisir d’amore), Sister Catherine (Dead Man Walking), Papagena (Die Zauberflöte), Yvette (La rondine), The Metropolitan Opera; Frasquita (Carmen), Santa Fe Opera; Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Yale Opera
SOPHIA MAEKAWA* MEZZO-SOPRANO
Kyoto, Japan
ROLES: Angelina (La Cenerentola), Salon Series 7/6
TRAINING: Ryan Opera Center, Lyric Opera of Chicago; Singer Fellow, Ravinia Steans Institute; Renée Fleming Artist, Aspen Music Festival; Apprentice Artist, Santa Fe Opera; Gerdine Young Artist, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis; Curtis Institute of Music; Wolf Trap Opera (Filene ’25)
HIGHLIGHTS: Lee Ann (The Listeners), Lyric Opera of Chicago; Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro), Aspen Music Festival, Wolf Trap Opera; Tisbe (La Cenerentola), Pestuchyna (Jenůfa), Lyric Opera of Chicago; Ariodante (Ariodante), Curtis Institute of Music
SERGIO MARTINEZ BASS
Sogamoso, Colombia
ROLES: Prince Gremin (Eugene Onegin), Sacristan (Tosca), Aria Jukebox
TRAINING: The Glimmerglass Festival, Des Moines Metro Opera; Cafritz Young Artist Program, Washington National Opera; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Yale University
HIGHLIGHTS: Il Re (Aida), Virginia Opera; Sergeant of Police (Pirates of Penzance), Tulsa Opera; Cesar Chavez (Dolores), Opera Southwest; Sacristan (Tosca), The Glimmerglass Festival; Palémon (Thaïs), Spoleto Festival (USA); Zuniga (Carmen), Detroit Symphony Orchestra; Judge Advocate General (Grounded), Frére Laurent (Roméo et Juliette), Washington National Orchestra
TRAINING: Cafritz Young Artist Program, Washington National Opera; Merola Opera Program; Wolf Trap Opera (Studio ’22; Filene ’25); Shepherd School of Music, Rice University; Institute for Young Dramatic Voices; James Madison University
HIGHLIGHTS: Third Frida Image (El Ultimo Sueño de Frida y Diego), The Metropolitan Opera; Galatea (Aci, Galatea, e Polifemo), Ars Lyrica Houston; Gertrude (Roméo et Juliette), Arsace (Partenope), Zweite Magd (Elektra), Washington National Opera; Second Witch/ Spirit (Dido and Aeneas), Opera Lafayette; Madame de Croissy (Dialogues des Carmélites), Wolf Trap Opera; Alto soloist (Beethoven Symphony No. 9, Handel's Messiah), Roanoke Symphony Orchestra
TRAINING: Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, The Metropolitan Opera; Merola Opera Program, San Francisco Opera; Wolf Trap Opera (Studio ’23); Central City Opera; Rice University; Oklahoma City University
HIGHLIGHTS: First Lady (The Magic Flute), Annina (La traviata), High Priestess (Aida), Countess Ceprano (Rigoletto), The Metropolitan Opera; Nedda (Pagliacci), Merola Opera Program; Female Chorus (The Rape of Lucretia), Poppea (L’incoronazione di Poppea), Rice University
AUBREY ODLE
MEZZO-SOPRANO
Portland, OR
ROLES: Larina (Eugene Onegin), Salon Series 6/22
TRAINING: Apprentice Artist, The Santa Fe Opera; Studio Program, The Atlanta Opera; Resident Artist, Lyric Opera of Kansas City; Apprentice Artist, Des Moines Metro Opera
HIGHLIGHTS: Seigrune (Die Walküre), The Santa Fe Opera; Lady-in-Waiting (Macbeth), Giovanna (Rigoletto), The Atlanta Opera; Judith (Bluebeard's Castle), Des Moines Metro Opera; Flora (La traviata), Lyric Opera of Kansas City
WAYD ODLE^ TENOR
North Platte, NE
ROLES: Spoletta (Tosca), Salon Series 6/22
TRAINING: Studio Artist, The Atlanta Opera; Apprentice Program, Santa Fe Opera; Lyric Opera of Kansas City; Wolf Trap Opera (Studio ’20, ’21); Knoxville Opera, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Brigham Young University
HIGHLIGHTS: First Armored Man/First Priest (The Magic Flute), The Atlanta Opera; Major Domo (Der Rosenkavalier), The Santa Fe Opera; Alfredo (cover) (La traviata), Dallas Opera; Delbert Grady (The Shining), Lyric Opera of Kansas City; Cavaradossi (Tosca), Kalamazoo Symphony; Don José (Carmen), Varna International
DANIEL O’HEARN* TENOR
Chicago, IL
ROLES: Lensky (Eugene Onegin), Salon Series 7/6
TRAINING: Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, The Metropolitan Opera; Resident Artist Program, Pittsburgh Opera; Apprentice Program, Santa Fe Opera; Resident Artist Program, Utah Opera; DePaul University; Wolf Trap Opera (Filene ’25)
HIGHLIGHTS: Duca (Rigoletto), Pittsburgh Opera; Remendado (Carmen), Seattle Opera; Nemorino (L’elisir d’amore), Utah Opera; Rodolfo (La bohème), Opera Saratoga; Rodolfo (La bohème), Pittsburgh Opera; Don José (Carmen), Wolf Trap Opera; Master of Ceremonies (The Queen of Spades), Ruiz (Il Trovatore), First Armored Guard (The Magic Flute), The Metropolitan Opera
JONATHAN PATTON* BARITONE
Juneau, AK/Durango, CO
ROLES: Scarpia (Tosca), Soloist (Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony), Salon Series 6/8, Aria Jukebox
TRAINING: Cafritz Young Artists Program, Washington National Opera; Young Artists Program, The Glimmerglass Festival; Apprentice Artist, Des Moines Metro Opera; Young Artist, Opera Southwest; Apprentice Artist, Festival Napa Valley; University of North Texas; University of New Mexico; Fort Lewis College; Wolf Trap Opera (Filene ’25)
HIGHLIGHTS: Baruch (Baruch's Schweigen), Muffled Voices Festival; Escamillo (Carmen), Knoxville Opera; Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni), Rapides Symphony Orchestra; Marquis de la Force (Dialogues des Carmélites), Wolf Trap Opera; Steve Jobs (The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs), Washington National Opera; Silvio (Pagliacci), The Glimmerglass Festival
ELISSA PFAENDER*
MEZZO-SOPRANO
Delafield, WI
ROLES: Olga (Eugene Onegin), Aria Jukebox
TRAINING: Wolf Trap Opera (Filene ’25); Gaddes Festival Artist, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis; Vocal Fellow, Ravinia Steans Music Institute; Resident Artist, Tulsa Opera; Apprentice Artist, Sarasota Opera; Oberlin Conservatory
HIGHLIGHTS: Carmen (Carmen), Wolf Trap Opera; Anna Kennedy (Maria Stuarda), Teatro Real; Marcellina (Le nozze di Figaro), Waltraute (Die Walküre), Dritte Dame (Die Zauberflöte), Deutsche Oper Berlin; McLean (Susannah), Opera Theater of Saint Louis; Soloist (Tchaikovsky Spectacular), Chicago Symphony Orchestra
TRAINING: Ryan Opera Center, Lyric Opera of Chicago; Fleming Artist, Aspen Music Festival; Merola Opera Program; Yale Opera; University of California, Los Angeles
HIGHLIGHTS: Guglielmo (Così fan tutte), Aspen Music Festival; First Villager (El último sueño de Frida y Diego), Lyric Opera of Chicago; Nick Shadow (The Rake’s Progress), Tutor (Le Comte Ory), Yale Opera
TRAINING: Sarah and Ernest Butler Studio, Houston Grand Opera; Wolf Trap Opera (Filene ’24); Merola Opera Program; Apprentice Program, Des Moines Metro Opera; Georgia State University
HIGHLIGHTS: Sportin’ Life (Porgy and Bess), Houston Grand Opera; Lennie (Of Mice and Men), Roldolfo (La bohème), Austin Opera; Malcolm (Macbeth), Atlanta Opera; Kronprinz (Silent Night), Wolf Trap Opera
KORIN THOMAS-SMITH BARITONE
Toronto, Canada
ROLES: Dandini (La Cenerentola), Salon Series 7/20
TRAINING: Ensemble Studio Program, Canadian Opera Company; Apprentice Artist Program for Singers, Santa Fe Opera; Apprentice Artist, Des Moines Metro Opera; Young Artist, The Glimmerglass Festival; Voice Fellow, Ravinia Steans Music Institute; Yale School of Music; University of Toronto
HIGHLIGHTS: The Businessman (The Little Prince), The Dallas Opera; Mercutio (Roméo et Juliette), Malatesta (Don Pasquale), Canadian Opera Company; Schaunard (La bohème), Count Ceprano (Rigoletto), Santa Fe Opera
ANGELA YAM SOPRANO
Sacramento, CA
ROLE: Clorinda (La Cenerentola), Salon Series 7/20
TRAINING: Emerging Artists Program, Boston Lyric Opera; Resident Artist Program, The Glimmerglass Festival; Apprentice Artist, Chautauqua Opera; Festival Artist, Opera Saratoga; Apprentice Artists, Santa Fe Opera; New England Conservatory
HIGHLIGHTS: Calisto (La Calisto), Opera Memphis; Celeste 1 (Sunday in the Park with George), The Glimmerglass Festival; Ismene (Mitridate), Boston Lyric Opera; Johanna (Sweeney Todd), Chautauqua Opera
ZINIU ZHAO BASS
Shandong Province, China
ROLES: Don Magnifico (La Cenerentola)
TRAINING: Sarah and Ernest Butler Opera Studio, Houston Grand Opera; Central Conservatory of Music (Beijing)
HIGHLIGHTS: Colline (La bohème), Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte), Don Pasquale (Don Pasquale), Don Bartolo (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Central Conservatory of Music; Don Magnifico (La Cenerentola), Reimar Von Zweter (Tannhäuser), Maestro Spinelloccio (Gianni Schicchi), French General (Silent Night), Candy (Of Mice and Men), Houston Grand Opera
*Returning Filene Artist
^Former Studio Artist
STUDIO ARTISTS
GIFTED YOUNG SINGERS FROM TOP VOICE PROGRAMS
Designed to bridge the gap from student to professional, Wolf Trap Opera’s Studio program nurtures singers of significant potential who are currently or were recently in university or conservatory training. Studio Artists understudy principal roles, perform smaller parts, sing in the chorus, refine their craft with regular studio classes, and work with a select roster of guest teachers.
JOHN ARLIEVSKY
BARITONE
Nyack, NY
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola, Eugene Onegin)
COVERS: Dandini (La Cenerentola), Zaretsky (Eugene Onegin), Sciarrone (Tosca)
TRAINING: Yale Opera, Yale School of Music; Peabody Conservatory, Johns Hopkins University; Piano Performance and Composition, Westminster Choir College; Tanglewood Vocal Fellow; Shared Voices, Denyce Graves Foundation; Castleton Vocal Immersion Program
MAYA BEHIRI
SOPRANO
Jerusalem, Israel
ROLE: Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVERS: Clorinda (La Cenerentola), Shepherd (Tosca)
TRAINING: Bienen School of Music, Northwestern University; Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, Tel Aviv University
JACK BURROWS
BARITONE
Seattle, WA
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola), Zaretsky/Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVERS: Don Magnifico (La Cenerentola), Jailer (Tosca)
TRAINING: Shepherd School of Music, Rice University; Pacific Lutheran University; Music Academy of the West
NATALIE CREEL
MEZZO-SOPRANO
Zachary, LA
ROLE: Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Olga (Eugene Onegin)
TRAINING: Lehrer Studio Artist, Music Academy of the West; Vocal Immersion Fellow, Castleton Festival; Shepherd School of Music, Rice University; Louisiana State University
AYANNA DELK-LEWIS^ SOPRANO
Lynwood, CA
ROLE: Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Tosca (Tosca)
TRAINING: Wolf Trap Opera (Studio ’25); University of Houston; California State University-Fullerton
ALESSANDRO FANAN TENOR
Alba, Italy
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola, Eugene Onegin)
COVERS: Monsieur Triquet (Eugene Onegin)
TRAINING: Young Artist Vocal Academy, Houston Grand Opera; Frost School of Music Program at Salzburg, University of Miami
CHRISTOPHER GRAY BASS-BARITONE
Dallas, TX
ROLE: Chorus (La Cenerentola, Eugene Onegin), Jailer (Tosca)
COVERS: Angelotti (Tosca), Prince Gremin (Eugene Onegin)
TRAINING: Studio Artist, Aspen Music Festival; Music on Site; Varna International Music Academy; College of Music, University of North Texas
JACK HICKS TENOR
Bernardsville, NJ
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola), Triquet/Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVERS: Ramiro (La Cenerentola)
TRAINING: College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati; Juilliard Pre-College, The Juilliard School; Chautauqua Opera Conservatory
XIAOFENG HOU TENOR
Beijing, China
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola, Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Lensky (Eugene Onegin)
TRAINING: Chicago Summer Opera; Classic Lyric Arts; China Conservatory of Music (Beijing); New England Conservatory
MADISON KAVANAUGH^ MEZZO-SOPRANO
Bossier City, LA
ROLE: Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Filipyevna (Eugene Onegin)
TRAINING: College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati; Louisiana State University; Wolf Trap Opera (Studio ’25); The Institute for Young Dramatic Voices; Sewanee Summer Music Festival; The Collaborative Piano Institute
MICHAEL MENSAH BASS
Elmina, Ghana
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola), Commander/Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Sacristan (Tosca)
TRAINING: Choir Academy, Vienna State Opera; Berlin Opera Academy; Thornton School of Music, University of Southern California; Vocal Immersion Program, Castleton Festival
SØREN PEDERSEN^ BARITONE
San Diego, CA
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola, Eugene Onegin), Sciarrone (Tosca)
COVERS: Alidoro (La Cenerentola), Eugene Onegin (Eugene Onegin)
TRAINING: Wolf Trap Opera (Studio ’25); College Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati; Chautauqua Opera Conservatory
RUDY POLK
TENOR
Clinton, MS
ROLES: Chorus (La Cenerentola, Eugene Onegin)
COVERS: Lensky (Eugene Onegin), Spoletta (Tosca)
TRAINING: Brevard Music Center; Castleton Vocal Immersion Program, Castleton Festival; University of North Texas
ANTOINETTE POMPE van MEERDERVOORT
MEZZO-SOPRANO
Chicago, IL
ROLE: Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Angelina (La Cenerentola)
TRAINING: Shepherd School of Music, Rice University; Royal College of Music-London; Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University; Opera UK Artist, Grange Festival; Smith Young Artist, Cedar Rapids Opera
UMA SINGH
SOPRANO
Cleveland, OH
ROLE: Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Tatiana (Eugene Onegin)
TRAINING: Fulbright US Scholar Program; Franz Liszt University of Music-Weimar; Sarasota Opera; Central City Opera; Studio Artist, Chautauqua Opera Company; Northwestern University; University of Michigan
CALISTA RO-JEI SMITH
SOPRANO
Houston, TX
ROLES: Chorus (Eugene Onegin), Shepherd (Tosca)
COVER: Clorinda (La Cenerentola)
TRAINING: Studio Artist, Aspen Music Festival; College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati; Northwestern University
SYDNEY SORBET
MEZZO-SOPRANO
Covington, LA
ROLE: Chorus (Eugene Onegin)
COVER: Tisbe (La Cenerentola)
TRAINING: Smith Young Artist, Cedar Rapids Opera; Apprentice Artist, Des Moines Metro Opera; College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati; Louisiana State University
^Former Studio Artist
SUPPORT FOR THE 2026 STUDIO ARTISTS PROVIDED IN PART BY SCHMIDT VOCAL ARTS
FELLOWS
FUTURE LEADERS IN OPERA DIRECTING AND COACHING Fellows are emerging professionals that make critical contributions to Wolf Trap Opera’s music and directing teams playing piano in rehearsals, coaching singers, assisting the directing teams, and running supertitles. Alumni have gone on to positions with leading opera companies and built thriving freelance careers as conductors and directors.
MARINETTE GOMEZ
DIRECTING FELLOW
Orlando, FL
TRAINING: Directing Fellowship, The Metropolitan Opera; Ryan Opera Center, Lyric Opera of Chicago; Stage Director, Glimmerglass Festival
HIGHLIGHTS: Director: Silla, Chicago Summer Opera; The Orange Days, University of North Florida; Remedios Varios, Chicago Opera Theatre; Assistant Director: Hansel and Gretel, Utah Opera
MADELEINE SNOW
DIRECTING FELLOW
Chappaqua, NY
TRAINING: Marion Roose Pullin Studio, Arizona Opera; Eastman School of Music; Harvard University
HIGHLIGHTS: Director: La Cenerentola, La finta giardiniera, Arizona Opera; Roméo et Juliette, Opera Colorado; L’elisir d’amore, Die Zauberflöte, Boulder Opera; La Calisto, Eastman Opera Theatre; Die Zauberflöte, Cendrillon, Harvard College Opera; Assistant Director: Madama Butterfly, Zorro, Aida, La bohème, Arizona Opera; La traviata, Opera Colorado; The Pirates of Penzance, Central City Opera; An American Soldier, PAC NYC; Norma, Palm Beach Opera
JOSEPH STEVENS
COACHING FELLOW
Karachi, Pakistan/Rochester, NH
TRAINING: University of New Hampshire; Carnegie Mellon University; College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati
HIGHLIGHTS: Assistant Coach, Rehearsal Pianist: La finta giardiniera, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (celeste and harpsichord), College-Conservatory of Music; Amahl and the Night Visitors, Dayton Opera; The Post Office/Opera Fusion, Cincinnati Opera; Cendrillon, Les mamelles de Tirésias, College-Conservatory of Music
TZU KUANG TAN COACHING FELLOW
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
TRAINING: Butler Studio, Houston Grand Opera; Merola Opera Program; Music Academy of the West; Butler Opera Center, University of Austin; University of Michigan; Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music
HIGHLIGHTS: Coaching: Song Studio, Carnegie Hall; Winner’s Recital, Music Academy of the West; Schwabacher Recital, Merola Opera Program
GABRIELĖ ŽEMAITYTĖ
COACHING FELLOW
Vilnius, Lithuania
TRAINING: Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program, LA Opera; Music Academy of the West; Manetti Shrem Opera Program, Festival Napa Valley; Conservatory of Music, Bard College; Koninklijk Conservatorium, Royal Conservatoire (Netherlands)
HIGHLIGHTS: Pianist: The Concertgebouw (Amsterdam, Netherlands); Muziekgebouw (Amsterdam, Netherlands); Second Prize, Copenhagen Lied-Duo Competition (Copenhagen, Denmark)
GUEST ARTISTS
JACOB A. CLIMER
Scenic & Costume Design: La Cenerentola
Ragtime, Opera Montana; Salome, Pelleas et Melisandre, American Apollo, Love for Three Oranges, Des Moines Metro Opera; Unknown Soldier, Arena Stage; Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Olney Theatre Center; Gary, Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater; John Kander’s Kid Victory; Sarah Ruhl’s Melancholy Play; Les Misérables, Dallas Theater Center; Creative Director & Designer, The Texas Rose Festival
ALEJANDRO FARJADO
Lighting Design: Eugene Onegin
Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Alberta Ballet; La Passion de Simone, Die Zauberflöte, La Calisto, Mannes Opera; Cabaret on Broadway, Associate Prologue Designer, August Wilson Theatre; Roméo et Juliette, National Opera of Chile
CHRISTOPHER FORD
Costume Design: Eugene Onegin
Scenic & Costume Design: La Passion de Simone, Mannes Opera; The Beastiary, Ars Nova; Dido & Aeneas, Curtis Institute of Music
MOLLY IRELAN
Costume Design: Tosca
Costume Designer: prism, Rev 23, Hildegard, Prototype Festival; Il Due Figaro, Handel and Haydn; Oedipus Rex, Salome, Houston Symphony; The Romance of the Rose, Long Beach Opera; desert in, Mitradate, Boston Lyric Opera; Nuit sans aube, Opéra-Comique; Das kalte Herz, Staatsoper Unter den Linden
JOEL IVANY
Director: La Cenerentola
Artistic Director: Edmonton Opera; Director: Otello, LA Opera; Dead Man Walking, Minnesota Opera; Messiah/Complex (film), Against the Grain Theatre; Die Fledermaus, Edmonton Opera; Opera Program Director: Banff Centre
JOSÉ LUIS GÓMEZ
Conductor: Tosca
Music Director: Orchestral and Educational Programs, Tucson Symphony Orchestra; 200.Com Community Opera, Teatro Sociale di Como; First Prize Winner: 2010 International Conductors' Competition, Sir Georg Solti; Guest Conductor and international guest appearances: major orchestras across America, Europe, and Asia
EMMA GRIFFIN
Director: Eugene Onegin
Managing Artistic Director: Mannes Opera, Mannes School of Music; Director: Korngold’s The Silent Serenade (US premiere), Mannes Opera; Sweeney Todd, La Traviata, Wolf Trap Opera; Upcoming Director: Mitridate, Opera Philadelphia
JASON HAND
Lighting Design: La Cenerentola Otello, Los Angeles Opera; Macbeth, Minnesota Opera; Carmen, Canadian Opera Company; Tosca, Ayre, Edmonton Opera; Kopernikus, Against the Grain Theatre; Immersive Disney Animation and Van Gogh experiences in 30 cities including NYC, LA, Nashville, Rome, Bangkok, Singapore, and Toronto
LEE JELLINEK
Scenic Design: Eugene Onegin
Opera: Boston Lyric Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Opera Philadelphia, Juilliard; Broadway: Oklahoma!, Marjorie Prime, Mary Jane, Sea Wall / A Life, Marvin’s Room; Off-Broadway: New York Theatre Workshop, The Public Theater, Signature Theatre, Manhattan Theatre Club, Lincoln Center, Playwrights Horizons, MCC Theater
CHAD R. JUNG
Lighting Design: Tosca
Opera: Opera Australia, Arizona Opera, Atlanta Opera, Austin Opera, Dallas Opera, Minnesota Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Opéra de Montréal, San Antonio Opera, Seattle Opera, Tulsa Opera, Wolf Trap Opera; Dance: Ballet Hispánico, Ben Stevenson, Bruce Wood, Boca Tuya, Ballet Austin, Texas Ballet Theater, Tony Tucci
ADAM LARSEN
Projections: Tosca
Projection Designer: SoundBox, San Francisco Symphony; Unravelled, The Wallis; Carmina Burana, Lyric Opera of Chicago; Silent Night, Wolf Trap Opera; Creative Director: Salome, Houston Symphony
LOUIS LOHRASEB
Conductor: La Cenerentola
Tosca, La Traviata, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, LA Opera; Carmen, Semperoper Dresden; Le nozze di Figaro, Staatsoper Hamburg; A Midsummer Night's Dream, Atlanta Opera; Carmen, San Diego Opera; Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Central City Opera
RYAN McKINNY
Director: Tosca
The Metropolitan Opera, Houston Grand Opera, LA Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Santa Fe Opera, San Francisco Opera, Seattle Opera, Washington National Opera, Canadian Opera Company, Staatsoper Hamburg, Deutsche Oper Berlin
TONYA McKINNY
Director: Tosca
Minnesota Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Washington National Opera, Dallas Opera, The Glimmerglass Festival
LAWRENCE E. MOTEN III
Scenic Design: Tosca
Scenic Designer: Treemonisha, Washington National Opera; Dialogues of the Carmelites, Silent Night, Cosí fan tutte, Faust, Wolf Trap Opera; The Knock, Central City Opera; This Little Light of Mine, Santa Fe Opera; Kunene and The King, Merry Wives, Shakespeare Theatre Company; Broadway: Chicken & Biscuits, Circle In The Square Theatre
ANNE NESMITH
Hair & Makeup Design: Tosca, La Cenerentola, Eugene Onegin
Wolf Trap Opera, Kennedy Center, Arena Stage, Ford’s Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Signature Theatre, Washington National Opera, The Washington Ballet, Seiji Ozawa's Matsumoto Festival, Hyogo Performing Arts Center, Atlanta Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Opera Philadelphia, Boston Lyric Opera, Opera Boston, Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery
EMILY TREIGLE
Guest Alumni Artist: Tisbe (La Cenerentola)
Così fan tutte (Despina), Semele (Juno/ Ino), Wolf Trap Opera; The Magic Flute (Second Lady), The Metropolitan Opera; Il Trittico (Ciesca, La zelatrice), Houston Grand Opera; Eugene Onegin (Filipyevna), Canadian Opera Company; Dialogues des Carmelites (Mère Marie), New Orleans Opera; Così fan tutte (Despina), Madison Opera
STEVEN WHITE
Conductor: Eugene Onegin
La traviata, The Metropolitan Opera; The Rake's Progress, Opera Omaha; Thaïs, Utah Opera; Ariadne auf Naxos, Arizona Opera; Rigoletto, San Diego Opera
MUSIC STAFF
DOMENICO BOYAGIAN
Italian Diction: Tosca
Conductor: Beethoven Symphony No. 9, Suburban Symphony Orchestra; La boheme, Opera Delaware; L’Elisir d’Amore, Florentine Opera; Tchaikovsky/Bach, Delaware Symphony Orchestra; Verdi’s Requiem, National Symphony of Costa Rica
YE IN KWAK
Coach: Eugene Onegin
Music Staff: Eugene Onegin, The Metropolitan Opera; La bohème, The Seven Deadly Sins, Wolf Trap Opera; Les Pêcheurs de Perles, Così fan tutte, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, L’Elisir D’Amore, Korea National University; Harpsichodist: Idomeneo, Aspen Opera Theater; Orchestral Pianist: Angélique, Manhattan School of Music Opera
KSENIA LELETKINA
Principal & Russian Diction Coach, Chorus Master: Eugene Onegin
The Metropolitan Opera Music Staff; The Juilliard School faculty; Palm Beach Opera faculty; author/editor of Libretti of Russian Operas, Volume II and Anthology of Russian Songs; Conductor: Il barbiere di Siviglia, Central City Opera; La clemenza di Tito, University of Oklahoma
MICHAEL LEWIS
Chorus Master, Coach: La Cenerentola
Vocal Coach & Chorus Master: La bohème, The Rape of Lucretia, Faust, I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Falstaff, Academy of Vocal Arts; Principal Pianist: Semele, The Raven, 10 Days in a Madhouse, Opera Philadelphia; Principal Pianist: Tosca, Castor & Patience, Cincinnati Opera
STEFANO DE PEPPO
Italian Diction: La Cenerentola
Italian Coach: La clemenza di Tito, Manhattan School of Music; Le nozze di Figaro, Indiana University; Gianni Schicchi & Suor Angelica, Denver University; Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Adler Fellowship Program, San Francisco Opera
BLAIR SALTER
Principal Coach, Organ: Tosca
Assistant Conductor: La bohème, LA Opera; Prompter: Akhnaten, LA Opera; Conductor: Pagliacci, Pacific Opera Project; Cruzar la cara de la luna, Lyric Opera of Kansas City; Music Staff: Le nozze di Figaro, Lyric Opera of Chicago
CHRISTOPHER TURBESSI
Continuo, Principal Coach: La Cenerentola
The Collaborative Piano Institute, Houston Grand Opera, Utah Opera, Virginia Opera, Santa Fe Opera Tour, Opera Santa Barbara, Syracuse Opera, Aspen Opera Theater, Castleton Festival, Rice University, Temple University, Louisiana State University
KEN WEISS
Italian Diction: La Cenerentola
Principal Coach: Cafritz Young Artists, Washington National Opera; Assistant Conductor: Washington National Opera; Guest Coach: College-Conservatory of Music Summer Programs, Opera Theater of Lucca, Canto Vocal Programs, Opera North; Workshops: University of Maryland, The Juilliard School
WILLIAM WOODARD
Chorus Master/Second Coach: Tosca
Chorus Master: Carmen, Wolf Trap Opera; Music Staff: Houston Grand Opera; Opera Theatre of St. Louis; La Clemenza di Tito, Washington Concert Opera; The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, San Francisco Opera
PRODUCTION STAFF
ARTURO FERNANDEZ JR.
Production Stage Manager: La Cenerentola
Assistant Stage Manager: Tosca
Stage Manager: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Symphony for Youth, Symphony for Schools, Los Angeles Philharmonic; Assistant Stage Manager: Lucia di Lammermoor, Don Giovanni, Madame Butterfly, Akhenaten, LA Opera
GINA HAYS
Production Stage Manager: Tosca
San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Opera Philadelphia, Washington National Opera, Atlanta Opera, Utah Opera, OPERA America
Guthrie Theatre, Folger Theatre, Round House Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Spoleto Festival USA, Studio Theatre, Washington National Opera, Castleton Festival
DIANE LIN
Assistant Stage Manager: La Cenerentola
Production Stage Manager: Washington National Opera; Surtitle Coordinator: Vocal Arts DC; Stage Manager: Central City Opera, Opera Lafayette, Opera Philadelphia; Assistant Stage Manager: San Diego Opera
EMMA ROCHELEAU
Assistant Stage Manager: Eugene Onegin
3rd Assistant Stage Manager: Messiah, Silent Night, Hansel and Gretel, Porgy and Bess, Houston Grand Opera; Assistant Stage Manager: Don Giovanni, Music Academy of the West
ZOE STEENWYK
Assistant Stage Manager: Tosca
Assistant Stage Manager: The Barber of Seville, Cruzar la Cara de la Luna, Turandot, La Cenerentola, Porgy and Bess, Of Mice and Men, Lyric Opera of Kansas City; The Marriage of Figaro, Wolf Trap Opera
ANNIE WHEELER
Production Stage Manager: Eugene Onegin
Production Stage Manager at Houston Grand Opera (18 seasons), New York City Opera, San Francisco Opera, Glimmerglass Festival, Des Moines Metro Opera
Tenor; Founder, Col Canto Consulting; WTO alum (’07, ’08)
CORY LIPPIELLO
Emmy Award-winning Creative Producer and Casting Director
MARQUITA LISTER
Soprano; Professor of Practice, Morgan State
KATE RIGG
Actor, Comedian, and Activist
BRENTON RYAN
Tenor, WTO alum (’13)
ORCHESTRA & CHORUS
LA CENERENTOLA
Violin I
Claudia Chudacoff, concertmaster
Susan Midkiff
Karen Lowry-Tucker
Heather Haughn
Sarah Sherry Himes
Violin II
Laura Miller, principal
Timothy Macek
Jennifer Himes
Leslie Silverfinei
Viola
Jennifer Rende, principal
Tiffany Richardson
Stephenie Knutsen
Cello
Lori Barnet, principal
Kerry Van Laanen
Bass
Christopher Chlumsky, principal
Flute
David Lonkevich, principal
Beverly Crawford
Oboe
David Garcia, principal
Mark Christianson
Clarinet
Sara Han, principal
Jeremy Eig
Bassoon
Christopher Jewell, principal Eric Dircksen
Horn
Amy Horn, principal
Joy Hodges
Trumpet
Phil Snedecor, principal
Kurt DuPuis
Trombone
Bryan Bourne, principal
EUGENE ONEGIN
Violin I
David Salness, concertmaster
Allison Bailey
Gianina Constantinescu
Leslie Silverfine
Xi Chen
Jennifer Rickard
Violin II
Sally McLain, principal
Alexandra Mikhlin
Paula McCarthy
Laura Knutson
Viola
Jennifer Rende, principal
Tiffany Richardson
Stephanie Knutsen
Cello
Lori Barnet, principal
Kerry Van Laanen
Todd Thiel
Bass
Robert Dimperio, principal
Edgardo Malaga Jr.
Flute
Beverly Crawford, principal
David Lonkevich
Oboe
Fatma Daglar, principal
David Garcia
Clarinet
David Jones, principal
Kathleen Mulcahy
Bassoon
Samuel Blair, principal
Jonathan Zepp
Horn
Amy Horn, principal
Shona Goldberg-Leopold
Trumpet
Phil Snedecor, principal
Kurt DuPuis
Trombone
Bryan Bourne, principal
Timpani
William Richards, principal
Harp
Rebecca Smith, principal
TOSCA
Chorus
Sopranos: Alexis Behnke
Kelly Curtin
Jennifer Jellings
Ashley Larkin
Tjaden O’Dowd Cox
Erin Ridge
Mezzos:
Katherine Brandt
Anamer Castrello
Alexandra Coburn
Brittani McNeill
Reyna Sawtell
Natalie Turner
Tenors:
Donald Carter
Aurelio Dominguez
Lance Fisher
Sammy Huh
Andrew Sauvageau
Lejerian Williams
Baritones/Basses:
Alex Alburqueque
David Gradin
Xavier Joseph
Dongkeon (DK) Kim
Elliot Matheny
James Schaffran
Children’s Chorus of Washington:
Margaret Nomura Clark, Artistic Director and Robbie Jacobs, Executive Director
Members of AGMA appear through the courtesy of the American Guild of Musical Artists, AFL-CIO.
The musicians employed in this production are members of and represented by D.C. Federation of Musicians, AFM Local 161-710.
STAFF
WOLF TRAP OPERA ARTISTIC & ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF
LEE ANNE MYSLEWSKI
Vice President
RONALD LEE NEWMAN
Director, Artistic Operations
ARIANNA ZUKERMAN
Manager, Artistic Administration
CHRISTEN CAIN Coordinator, Company Management
TIM McCORMICK
Director of Production, The Barns
DAVID HANLON Head of Music
KATIE PREISSNER
Rehearsal Administrator
ERIN GEOUQUE
Social Media Consultant
SCENE SHOP
ZOE TOMPKINS
Technical Director
GIBSON CAMERON
Assistant Tech Director
MASON ALLEN
Production Assistant
TJADEN O'DOWD COX
Production Assistant
PETER COLLINS
Audio Assistant
SHANA FRANKLIN
Lighting Supervisor
LINNIE HAMPTON
Lighting Assistant
GEORGE BURGTORF
Props Master
SAM WRIGHT SPAGNOLA Props Assistant
DANELLE LEINONEN
Master Carpenter
MOLLY MURILLO
Carpenter
PETE PETERS
Carpenter
MARSHALL HUBERTS
Carpenter
GOLDIE SNOW
Charge Artist
DANNY FORTUNO
Scenic Artist
COSTUME SHOP
SUSAN CHIANG
Costume Shop Manager
CLAUDIA BROWNLEE
Design Assistant
SARAH KREKEL
Design Assistant
DENISE AITCHISON
Draper
DENNIS KITMORE
Draper
SAM EISENSTIEN-BOND
First Hand
AMY VANDER STAAY First Hand
ANNA LUISA ROMERO First Hand
JENNA HALEEN
Stitcher/Wardrobe
SIMON MARTIN
Stitcher/Wardrobe
CLAY PISTO
Stitcher/Wardrobe
LISA COLEMAN
Wardrobe Head
APPRENTICES
MARCEL SIMONE FULTON
Artistic Administration
GRIFFIN CHYALL
Artistic Administration
TUCKER ROBBINS
Artistic Administration
YUNLONG DAI
Admin Communications
VINCENT TRICARICO
Stage Management
BONNIE RUBLE
Stage Management
JERRY WANG
Stage Management
OLIVIA GONCALVES
Technical Apprentice
MALLORY FURGAL
Technical Apprentice
CONNOR THATCHER
Lighting Apprentice
GABRIELLA SIMEK
Props Apprentice
JESPER BRALEY
Scene Painting Apprentice
LYDIA KLOSK
Costume Apprentice
WOLF TRAP FOUNDATION
LEADERSHIP
ARVIND MANOCHA
President and CEO
BETH BRUMMEL
Chief Operating Officer
SARA BEESLEY
Vice President, Program and Production
BERNIE BERRY
Senior Director, Ticket Services
DAMON EFFINGHAM
Senior Director, Government Affairs
JOHN GIAMBALVO
Vice President, Finance
ELIZABETH SCHILL HUGHES
Senior Director, Human Resources
SARA P. JAFFE
Vice President, Development
FRASER KADERA
Vice President, Facilities
LUCIEN KONAN
Senior Director, Hospitality
AKUA KOUYATE-TATE
Vice President, Education
JO LaBRECQUE
Vice President, Communications and Marketing
LEE ANNE MYSLEWSKI
Vice President, Opera and Classical Programming
GUIDE CONTRIBUTORS
JO LaBRECQUE
Vice President, Communications and Marketing
SARA SHAFFER
Director, Creative
SANDRA RODRIGUEZ
Director, Communications
EMILY HUNT
Manager, Editorial Content
DANA ARMSTRONG
Coordinator, Editorial Content
CLARISSE GAILLARD
Graphic Designer
TIMMY CHEN Manager, Marketing
GUIDE PHOTOGRAPHERS
Stacey Bode, Adam Ewing, Griffin Harrington, Rich Kessler, Rei Linam, Carol Pratt, Jaclyn Simpson, Scott Suchman, Rob Wallace, Cory Weaver, Daniel Welch, Kaiden J. Yu
OPERA BEYOND THE BARNS
Expand your Wolf Trap Opera experience to the comfort of your own home!
THE BARNS POLICIES
• All patrons, regardless of age, must have a ticket.
• Patrons must sit in the seats for which they have tickets.
• Outside food or beverages may not be consumed inside the facility.
• Beverages are permitted inside the theater. Food is not permitted inside the theater.
• The Barns is a smoke-free facility. Smoking, including e-cigarettes, is permitted only in the designated area outside the main entrance.
• The use of recording equipment and cameras (with or without flash) during performances is prohibited unless coordinated through management and authorized by the artist(s).
• Late arrivals are normally seated between movements, acts, or numbers at the discretion of management and at the request of the artist(s).
STREAMING VIDEO
Stream Wolf Trap Opera’s 2025 production of Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites. Full productions are available at wolftrap.org/streaming
RADIO
Catch Wolf Trap Opera’s 2025 productions airing this summer as a part of the Opera Matinee broadcast series on Classical WETA 90.9. Don’t miss The Marriage of Figaro on June 6 and Dialogues of the Carmelites on June 13.
• With the exception of service animals assisting disabled persons, pets are not permitted.
• Patrons may not stand in or block aisles or sightlines at any time during performances.
• Disturbing fellow patrons with loud conversation or inappropriate behavior is not permitted and may result in removal from the performance without a refund.
• All cell phones and electronic devices must be silenced during the performance.
• Firearms are prohibited.
• Resale of tickets on Wolf Trap Foundation property is strictly prohibited by Wolf Trap Foundation policy.
• Violation of The Barns at Wolf Trap House Rules may result in removal from the performance without refund and/or prosecution.
CAMPAIGN FOR WOLF TRAP
THANK YOU to these Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts donors for their commitments to the Campaign for Wolf Trap: Our Next Chapter, an initiative to support facility enhancements and programs for future generations.
Reflects donations through 2024.
VISIONARY DONORS
Dan and Gayle D’Aniello
$2,500,000+
Jacqueline B. Mars
Hillary and Tom Baltimore
Lincoln and Therese Filene Foundation
Shashikant and Margaret Gupta
Gary D. Mather+ and Christina Co Mather
Karen and Fred Schaufeld
$1,000,000 TO $2,499,999
John and Susie King
Jean and Ric Edelman
Anne R. Kline and Geoffrey Pohanka
Matt Korn and Cindy Miller
BENEFACTORS: $500,000 TO $999,999
The Setian Family
Janet+ and Calvin Hill
Ed and Andy Smith
F. Chapman and Grace Taylor
Robert and Lisa Van Hoecke
PATRONS: $250,000 TO $499,999
C.E. and Jean Andrews
Brickman Family Foundation
Bruce Caswell and Lauren Deichman
Melissa Delgado and Anthony Colangelo
The ElSawy Family Foundation
Virginia McGehee Friend
Alka and Sudhakar Kesavan
Janet and Jerry Kohlenberger
John C. Lee, IV and Cindy Lee
Bob and Lisa Lutz
Chris and Paige Nassetta
National Park Foundation/
The Boeing Company
Edward and Susan O’Connell
Donna and Jim Reagan
The Robbins Family
Kevin and Beth Smithson
Trehan Foundation
Nell V. Weidenhammer+
John and Jessica Wood
SUSTAINERS: $100,000 TO $249,999
Anonymous
Steven and Marjie Alloy
The Ananthanpillai Family
Christopher and Andrita (AJ) Andreas
Michael and Ana Beckley
The Bedrock Community Fund
Kevin and Cynthia Boyle
Jan Brandt
Capital One
Marcia and Frank C.+ Carlucci III
Denise Chen and Tim Maas
L. William Derrow+
John and Lynn Dillon
Ken and Vickie Hayduk
Shelly and Jack Hazel
Sue J. Henry and Carter G. Phillips
Eric and Heather Kadel
Leana and Marc Katz
Ashok and Stuti Kaveeshwar
Nancy Laben and Jonathan Feiger
Denise Riedel Lewis and Kenneth J. Lewis
General Lester and Mina Lyles and Family
Arvind Manocha and Gideon Malone
Ann McPherson McKee
Robert and Judy Might
Reed and Pat Menster Neuman
PNC Foundation
Norma and Russ Ramsey
James Roth
Srikant Sastry and Manjula Pindiprolu
Todd and Elaine Stottlemyer
Theresa Thompson
Victoria Trumbower
Lynn and Carl Verboncoeur
Deborah F. and David A. Winston
SUPPORTERS: $50,000 TO $99,999
Anonymous Foundation
The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
Jeff and Jacqueline Copeland
The Ithaka Foundation
Broderick Johnson and Michele Norris
Robert M. and Joyce A. Johnson
Philip and Sandy+ Marcum
Donna and Buzz Miller
Janet M. Osborn
The Pence Group, Inc.
Jonathan and Virginia Shames
John and Gina Wasson
Karen A. Zavinsky+
PARTNERS: $25,000 TO $49,999
Jeremy and Stephanie Blank
Richard and Evelyn Bynum
Tenley Carp and David Samuels
Karen and Jim Cleveland
Vincent Ferraro and Laura Forte
Gil and Janice Guarino
Lisa and Richard Jeanneret
Mars Foundation
Jodi and Darren Morton
Boofie and Joe O’Gorman
Dion and Michelle Rudnicki
Craig and Christina Sharon
CONTRIBUTORS: $10,000 TO $24,999
Anonymous
Sam Barnes
Jennie and Mark Bishof
Beth Brummel and Michael Beresik
Janice Z. and H. Lawrence Clark
Steve and Christie Day
Enterprise Knowledge
Gerald W. and Marlene K. Fischer
Bette S. Gorman
Lynda Lonshein Hellman
Estaste of Alexine Clement Jackson
Donald and Sherlyn Jenkins
Scott and RaSheeda Keir
Tracy K. Kenny
William J. Long+
Dana and David Martin
Nanette and Charles Mees
Katherine Newland
Patrick and Annie Pacious
The Page Family
Dennis Peery and Anu Saxena
Michael and Brigette Polmar
Meg Porta and Matt Swayhoover
Gerry and Lynn Rubin
Ann Sanfacon
Bernadette and Ed Saperstein
Lisa Schievelbein
Virginia and Alan Strauss
Sally A. Turner and Jerry G. Bridges
The Janice and Robert Vitale Charitable Fund
Marjorie H. Wax and Brian P. Hochheimer
Judith and Ronald+ Wilgenbusch
Bill and Terry Witowsky
Doug and Melanie Wolfe Giving Fund
Theresa and John B. Wood
Ann Ziff
+ Deceased
ANNUAL FUND DONORS
Wolf Trap Foundation is deeply grateful to each of the following individuals for supporting the Foundation through membership gifts, events and other annual sponsorships, endowment gifts, and special project support made between April 1, 2025, and April 1, 2026. Donations to the Campaign for Wolf Trap: Our Next Chapter are listed separately in this program, at wolftrap.org/campaign, and on designated signage throughout Wolf Trap. To donate, please contact Wolf Trap Development at 703.255.1927 or visit wolftrap.org/give.
SEASON UNDERWRITERS
Dan and Gayle D’Aniello
$100,000+
Anonymous
Jan Brandt
Kimberly Engel Haber and Brett Haber/ The Dennis and Judy Engel Charitable
Foundation
Shashikant and Margaret Gupta
Alka and Sudhakar Kesavan
Anne R. Kline and Geoffrey Pohanka
Donna and Jim Reagan
Michael Saylor
Scuba Mike
F. Chapman and Grace Taylor
The Webber Family
Deborah F. and David A. Winston
$50,000 TO $99,999
Christopher and Andrita (AJ) Andreas
Michael and Ana Beckley
Bruce L. Caswell and Lauren Deichman
Melissa Delgado and Anthony Colangelo
Craig and Valerie Dykstra
Jean and Ric Edelman
Virginia McGehee Friend
Larry Halff and Randy Windham
Sue J. Henry and Carter G. Phillips
Jacqueline and George Hinman
Trevor Kempner and Meghan Murphy
John and Susie King
Matt Korn and Cindy Miller
Dan and Gloria Logan | The Revada Foundation
Danni and Dave Lougee
Gary D. Mather+ and Christina Co Mather
Estates of Barbara and Ward Morris
Srikant Sastry and Manjula Pindiprolu
Karen and Fred Schaufeld
The Setian Family
Ed and Andy Smith
Ashley Stow
Usha Kiran Foundation (Jai and Pallabi Saboo)
Robert Van Hoecke
Governor Glenn and Mrs. Suzanne S. Youngkin
$25,000 TO $49,999
Anonymous (4)
Steven and Marjie Alloy
Raj Ananthanpillai and Radhika Rajagopalan
C.E. and Jean Andrews
Mrs. Mary Astley
Michelle & David Baldacci
Marcia and Frank C.+ Carlucci III
Tenley Carp and David Samuels
Jeff and Jacky Copeland
William and Elizabeth Gould
William Hanlon
Shelly and Jack Hazel
Broderick Johnson and Michele Norris
Robert M. and Joyce A. Johnson
Eric and Heather Kadel
Leana and Marc Katz
Janet and Jerry Kohlenberger
Nancy Laben and Jon Feiger
Youn Nim Lord+ and Linda L. Lord+
Bob and Lisa Lutz
Gen. (Ret.) Lester L. and Mina Lyles
Mr. and Mrs. James F. MacGuidwin
Nanette and Charles Mees
Samuel Meisner
Julie Myers Wood and John Wood
Heidi and RJ Narang
Diane and Tim Naughton
Edward and Susan O'Connell
Samantha and Troy Poppe
The Robbins Family
Peri and William Ross
Gerry and Lynn Rubin
Ann Sanfacon
Jiten (Jay) and Sujani (Jen) Shah
The Shrivastava Family
Kevin and Beth Smithson
Paul and Tracy Tartaglione
Lynn and Carl Verboncoeur
Daniel and Bobbie Webster
Julin and Michael Williams
Ann Ziff
$15,000 TO $24,999
Anonymous (3)
Debbie Alex and David Harris
Erin and Derek Arrison
Hillary and Tom Baltimore
Paul Blakely
Jeremy and Stephanie Blank
Cynthia and Kevin Boyle
Beth B. Buehlmann
David and Stacie Childress
Coolie Doolie
Mary Cristler
Maria Coakley David
John and Lynn Dillon
Juliana Dunlap and James Corrigan
Diana and Douglas Dykstra
Dr. and Mrs. Gerald W. Fischer
Leo and Mary Fox
Alexander and Jacqueline Henry
Clark Hoyt and Linda Kauss
Cynthia Hull
Frank Huynh and Leandro Toledo
Jeff and Tori
Gayle and Steven Job
Ashok and Stuti Kaveeshwar
Tracy Kenny and Stuart Van Houten
Ross and Kaye Kory
Bambi and Barry Landew
Matt Lerner/Frederick Coin Exchange
Leviton Family
Katherine and Brian Lucas
Cynthia and John Martin
Dana and David Martin
Mason Hirst Foundation
Ray and Colleen McDuffie
Ann McPherson McKee, Gift in Remembrance of Burtt & Rebecca Gray McKee and Douglas & Ann McKee Seeley
Glenn and Julie Merberg
Susie and Josh Metz
Ryan and Krista Miller
Boofie and Joe O'Gorman
Michael and Cynthia O'Kane
Harish R. Rao & Chelsea R. Rao
Chris and Rita Raymond
H. Mac and Michele-Anne Riley
Brenda and William Romenius
Jim Roth
Karl and Susan Salnoske
Stan and Ruth Seemann
Joan Sheppard
Ronald and Deborah Sindler
Judith M. Stehling and Edgar J. Ariza-Niño
Kenneth and Lynn Todorov
Victoria Trumbower
Caroline Morris Van Kirk
Rishi Vyas and Zainab Javaid
James Y. S. Yap
Joseph Young and Linda Conrad
$10,000 TO $14,999
Anonymous (8)
Ernie and Cathy Abbott
Terri R. Adams
Ann Cook Charitable Fund
Susan and Jim Arnold
Edward J. and Laura G. Asher
Jay and Terry Bachmann
Jason M. Baldy
Richard+ and Julie Barcus
Raymond S. Baxter, III & Denise Detwiler Baxter/ Baxter & Associates, Inc.
Jennie and Mark Bishof
Al and Melissa Blount
Harlan W. and Mary M. Bowers
K. David Boyer, Jr. and Family
Rick and Debbie Bress
Dan and Leslie Burpee
Richard and Evelyn Bynum
John and Sue Byrne
Victoria and Madison Calvert
Drew and Therese Caplan
Gregory and Jane Castanias
Christopher and Carol Casto
Kavita and Jay Challa
Amanda Charney
Sarah and James Choi
Cynthia Chormann Hann
Erin and Kent Collier
Jon and Patty Craver
Jeff and Natalie Davis
John and Mary Davis
Meghan and John Deese
Shawn and Robyn Degnan
Enrico and Linda Della Corna
Dominic and Nedda Dragisich
Raymond A. and Roslyn M. Duda
Bryan and Laurian Eckle
Mr. and Mrs. Dean S. Edmonds/ Dean S. Edmonds Foundation
Randall Eliason and Chérie Kiser
Sara and Sam Feder
Ginny Kogan Feldman
Lauren Freeman and Walter Steimel
Dr. Kevin Fricka
Friends of Andy Keathley
Bonnie Feld
Vincent Ferraro and Laura Forte
Ms. Jennifer Flynn
In Honor of Jim and Mary Beggs, Allen and Maureen Fox
Carol and Rick Froehlich
Jan Johnston Fuchs
Glenn and Barbara Gardner
Verena Gibbs and Bo Cappabianca
Bonnie L. Goldschmidt and Michele Shimek
Jordan Goldstein
Scott and Polly Goldstein
Steven and Akemi Greco
Chris and Jennifer Greenlee
Patrick and Leslie Groomes
Gil and Janice Guarino
Stanley J. and Cynthia M. Gutkowski
Allen Haid and Sandra Cummins-Haid
Todd and Melinda Hall
Jay Halpern
Bridget and Conway Halsall
Dr. Dabney G. Hart / Mr. & Mrs. T. Michael Louden
Sheila Heaphy
Sharon and Jeff Heinz
Alyssa and Richard Henderson
Julie Ann Heyward
Ashley E. Iddings
Kathy and Richard Igercich
The Ithaka Foundation
Earl and Rebecca Johnson
Matt and Taylor Jones
Stephen and Toby+ Kahn
Ricki and Joel Kanter
Suneetha and Pardha Karamsetty
Sean M. Kelley
Mr. and Ms. W. Russell King
Mark and Elena Kleifges
Jenna and Wyatt Korff
Gayle and Jonathan Kosarin
David F. La Mar and Terri L. Crowl
Lanny and Barbara Lancaster
John C. Lee, IV and Cindy Lee
Douglas and Elizabeth Lobel
Chip and Katie Lowry
Lauren Lyles, Esq.
Kathryn Mackensen
Michael and Jennifer Maloney
Clark and Kathleen Manning and Family
Joey and Anna Maranto
Brian and Michelle Martel
Chuck and Terri Mays
Eric and Mary McNutt
James and Audrey Miller
Michael B. Miller
Ramona and John W. Mockoviak
Darren and Jodi Morton
Bob Moskal
Anne Motz
Roderick and Jane Murchison
James and Karen Murray
Reed and Pat Menster Neuman
Patsy and Howard Norton
Laura and Sean O'Keefe
Janet M. Osborn
Renata and Spence Patterson
Dennis Peery and Anu Saxena
Janice Petzold
Mark and Carol Poblete
Matthew Pozun
Sean and Shirley Prosser,
in memory of Jim and Rosemary Prosser
Norma and Russ Ramsey
Melissa Rhoads and Ryan Simpson
Diana Richman & Jim Abellera
Patti and John Robertson
Selwa and David Rutchik
Sherry Rutherford and Bill Krokowski
Jeff and Dawn Sanok
Dr. Mona Sarfaty and Dr. Jay Siegel
Danielle and John Saunders
Jennifer and Andy Schenker
Monica and Robert Schmude
John and Darcy Sekas
Craig and Christina Sharon
Steven and Donna Shriver
Jon and Pat Simons
Arlene and David Slan
Rob and Robyn Smith
Peter and Jennie Stathis
Todd and Elaine Stottlemyer
Virginia and Alan Strauss
Khary and Caroline Stringer
Aruna Subramaniam and Prabu Natarajan
Pam and Greg Sullivan
Sharad and Mahinder Tak
Derrick Tam
Peter and Ann Tanous
Clarence and Anne Taylor
Tori Thomas
Theresa (Terry) Thompson
JoAn D. Tolley
Jennifer and Richard Toole
Kathleen and Gary Tremblay
Rick and Debbie Triviso
Richard J. Underwood
Alexandra Wagner and Wei-Ming Shao
David Wallach
Marc and Cortney Weber
Dr. Brooke Weddle and Mr. Miguel Payan
Sandy and Carolyn Weininger
Theresa F. and John B. Wood
Karen Yankosky
Pamela and Abbas Yazdani
Greg and Janne Young
Jacob and Whitney Zatzkin
Reem Zawawi
$7,000 TO $9,999
Anonymous (6)
Ramon and Marissa Alcala
John R. and Kathy Allen
Barbara and Bear Ard
Vicky Bailey and Larry Smith
Thomas Balint and Stephanie Tennyson
Russel and Ann Bantham
Thomas A. Belles and Carla Minosh
Kevin and Jane Bise
Andrea Bitz and William Schwartz
Stephanie Brotherton
Amy Brown
Dennis Brown and Jane Platt-Brown
Beth Brummel and Michael Beresik
Nancy and Dennis Burke
Alice and Terry Burns
George C. and Sarah P. Cabalu
The Chaskin Family
Christopher and Jennifer Chatman
Jay W. and Heidi A. Chesky
Col. (R) Lary and Sabine Chinowsky
Brian J. Christianson
Kathy and Jim Connor
Kevin Crabtree and Mary Kelleher-Crabtree
Joseph Craven
Deborah Dale and Michael Goodman
Susie and Oscar De Soto
Trevor and Ingrid Dearman
Barbara A. DiCicco
Helen and Ronald Dunn
James and Diane Ecklund
Michael J. Eidsness
Brian and Debbie Fields
Gary Fontaine and O'Shelya S. Brown
Susan Fox/The Walt Disney Company
Lien and George Galloway
Cathy A. German
Marge and Joe Grills
Atul Grover
Kenneth Grunley
Norene and Tim Guilford
MaryLynn and Greg Haase
Marlene and William Haffner
Nicole Alfandre Halbreiner
Bonnie and Bob Haukness
Robert H. and Brenda Hawthorne
Samantha Hess and Thomas Czeh
Lisa and Ron Hodge
Avi Hoffer
Nettie Horne and Suzanne Haynes
Shannon and William Houck
Rylan and Carl Hutzler
Dr. Renee Iacona
Joseph and Jill Kale
Richard and Barbara Kaufmann
Erik Kloster and Betty Shihda-Kloster
Leo Kratz
David and Mary Beth Lane
John and Cindy Langan
John and Nancy Larue
Adam Leff
Chris and Allison Lesser
Bryan and Maggie Lytton
William H. Mann III
Philip and Sandy+ Marcum
Linda A. Mazawey
Robert and Barbara McCord
Donald and Shannon McGahn
Susan and David McMunn
Mr. and Ms. Jay Meadows/ Meadows Farms Nurseries
Christopher and Simone Meyer
Devon Miller and Darryl J. Anderson
Mr. and Mrs. Charles T. Moses III
Ray and Patricia Murphy
Lloyd C. Noland
Jill Norton
Delbert Parks
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen D. Parks, Sr.
Margaret Payne
Nora and Glen Petitt
John Pittas
Christopher T. Poell
Carol S. Popowsky
Erin Richardson
Ward and Jennifer Roberts
Melissa Romano
Bernadette and Ed Saperstein
Jean Schiro-Zavela and Vance Zavela
Dawn Schlegel and Joseph DeMorat
Jonathan and Virginia Shames
John Sheridan and Marlet Bazemore
Paul D. Shively and Claire L. Orth
Gina Shultz
Suzan Sigmond
Joel K. and Martha L. Smith
Duncan and Patricia Sparrell
Dave Steadman and Daphne Kiplinger
James and Geraldine Stockdale
David L. Straus,
Gift in Remembrance of Betty B. Straus
Christie and Mark Struckman
Sinclair and Cathleen Szebrat
Justin and Jennifer Tate
Linda and Steuart Thomsen
Ruth and Ron Van Winkle
Rosetta and Martin Virgilio
Bruce and Christine Wardinski
John and Gina Wasson
Marjorie H. Wax and Brian P. Hochheimer
Tina and Geoffrey White
Robert Whiteman
Lisa and Eric Wieman
David and Ellen Winter
Bill and Terry Witowsky
$5,000 TO $6,999
Anonymous (14)
Kathryn Adams
Robert and Sara Adler
Nedra and Peter Agnew
David and Donna Ahart
Melinda Ampthor
Miho and John Anderson
Marian and Jay Andre
Richard and Rosemarie Andreano
Billy Armstrong
Erika Arner
Jeanine and Daniel Aronowitz
James and Juliet Arrighi
Lawrence and Kathleen Ausubel
Keith and Sherry Babb
Jennifer Banga
Marjorie Barclay
Sam Barnes
Rose Bates
Donna and Barry Beach
David and Cecilia Beck
Amy Beckman and Steven Gaba
Jeffrey and Rachel Bedell
Susan and Marc Benezra
B. Michael and Sandra Berger
Will and Kathy Berry
Alok Bhatt
Joshua Bolten
Lady Evelyn Booth
Regina and Bill Bouie
Kevin M. Breslin
Gary Broadwater
Rex Brouillard and Michelle Henry
Abby E. Brown
Dennis and Julie Bruns
James and Phyllis Bruyette
Tim and Nan Bryan
Andrew and Jennifer Buckreis
Sarah Buescher
David B. Bundren, Sr.
Jessica Bunin and Alexis Albano
Robyn and Bob Burdett
David and Carolyn Burgess
James Busch
Laina Bush and Michael Zajkowski
Cathy Butz
William J. Caldwell and Michele Toth
Donna Callejon and Deborah Whiteside
Kathryn Campbell and James Crowley
Joseph and Donna Cantara
Lori and Robert Caplan
Vince Careatti
Christopher Carpenter and Lora Shimp
Brian and Stephanie Castelli
James and Karen Chamberlain
Allayne and Brian Chappelle
Denise Chen and Tim Maas
Joseph and Michelle Chotkowski
John Claringbould and Patricia Loughrey
Trudy H. Clark
Susan R. Clayman and Frank Starks
Karen and Jim Cleveland
Beth and Michael Coakley
Stephen Coates and Alli Pawlenty
Bob and Kellie Cochran
Mark and Jane Cohen
Franklin C. Coleman
Rachel Coll
Wendy Connell
Phyllis and Wes Corley
Frederick Corte and Christopher Ingram
The Cotten Family
Jeffrey Couillard and Eve Fuerth
Nina Cron
Daniel and Nicole Curran
Ellen Cury
Hussein Damirji & Ghida AlJuburi Damirji
Dan and Bekki Danner
Lonnie Davis
Steve and Christie Day
Kathleen K. Deal
Steven Decker
Lawrence+ and Sharon Deibel
Tami and Jeff Dierman
Kathy and Andrew Ditmore
Stefanie Doebler
Joseph and Pat Donahue
Hank Dorochovich and Julie Johns
Christian Downs
Elizabeth Dresing and Craig Goodman
Kristin and Eric Dubelier
Anna and Rick Dulik
John Dumont
Julie and Bill Duncan
Teri and Tom Dungan
Jim and Timoney Dunlap
Mike and Kathy Eastman
Robert J. Eatinger, Jr.
Rear Admiral and Mrs. Thomas J. Eccles, USN (Ret)
George and Karen Eichert
Robert and Alison Eisiminger
Eddie and Rachel Eitches
Katy Eldridge
Holly and Richard Ellis
Jo and Robert Engle
Cynthia Erskine
Suzanne and John Feigert
Taryn Fielder and Ryan Forsythe
Therese Fimian
Jack Firestone
Michael P. and Marilyn H. Fitzgerald
Beth C. Flanagan
Brian Flanigan
Bonnie and Stephen Flax
Rhonda Fleming and Mike Cooley
James and Mary Flounlacker
Roger and Nancy Fones
Nico Foris
Marybeth and Zachary Fraser
Russell Frey and I-Min Chao
Dan Frisby and Suzanne Dougherty
Virginia Fulton
Christina and Louis Gadrinab
Melinda G. Gaertner
Richard Gaiani
Nancy Gariepy
Carol Ann Garner
Glenn and Deborah Gaynor
David Gearin and Jean Lynn
Don and Mary Goddard
Rocio and Raul Gonzalez
Jennifer and Chris Graham
Sarah Granger
William and Jacqueline A. Gravell
Regina Gray
Sherry and Todd Gray
Tracy K. Griggs
Brian and Deb Grosner
Bruce and Kathryn Gudenberg
Jeff Hall and Carolyn Kahn-Hall
Daniel Hamilton
Jeffrey and Elizabeth Harris
Luke and Emily Harris
Aileen and Erik Hawkins
Frank and Teresa Hearl
Dana A. Hearn and Kevin J. McCloskey
Sharon Heinle and Chris DeLashmutt
Lynda Lonshein Hellman
Christine Henck and Steven Bernstein
Leigh and Peter Henry
Amanda and Jim Holmberg
Robert and Linda Horrigan
Andrew Howell
Kris Hutchison
Christopher Huther
Kevin and Barbara Hutto
William Isaacson
Joseph and Robin Jackson
Richard and Anna Jackson
John and Tracie Jacquemin/ The Jacquemin Family Foundation
Richard and Laurie Johnson
Wendell Johnson and Kristina Roman
Andrea Jolly
Terre and Polly Jones
Lisa Junker
Allan and Fran Kalkstein
James and Robbie Kaplan
Sharon Karaffa and Grant Fleming
Brian and Diane Keller
Roger and Teresa Keller
Jodie Kelley and Scott Sinder
Carly and Christian Kelly
Patrick and Ellen Kelsay
Robin and Michael Kennedy
Carol King
Stephen and Mary Sue Kitchen
Clare and Thomas Klanderman
John and Mary Kleinhans
Tara T. Kochis
George Korenko
Emily and Yanek Korff
Julie and Al Krachman
Carl Krause and Joanna Wilbur
David Kriegman
Phyllis Krochmal
Sanjai and Deborah Kumar
Lori LaFave and Steve Murphy
William and Nancy LaForge
Joni and Don Langevoort
Kirsten and William Langhorne
Kim and Frank Latkiewicz
David and Michele Lawrence
Tammy Le and Garry Ho
Barry A. Leffew
Susan A. Lehman
Sue Leonard
Stephan Levy
Diane Lewis, Washington Fine Properties
Denise Riedel Lewis and Kenneth J. Lewis
Ted and Vivian Lewis
Jeff and Rachel Liang
Dennis and Tracey Liberson
Kathleen and Michael Liddick
Estate of Judith A. Light
Dr. Diana Locke and Mr. Robert Toense
Megan Lockhart
Kent Logsdon
Marcia and Adrian Lund
Jennifer Lyons and Derek Morrissette
Catherine and Brad Lytle
Robert MacDonald and Ann Rollins
Drye Mande Family
Paul and Rendall Marino
Mitchell and Cheryl Marovitz
Frank and Susan Mars
Kevin and Sarah Martin
Kristi Martin
Albert and Terri Martinez
Steve Matthews
Jeffrey and Cynthia Mazanec
Dorothy and Alicia McCartney
John and Deanne McGranahan
Lynn & Billy McKee
Cristina F. and Michael A. McLaughlin
Kenneth and Sandy Metcalfe
Alice and Alistair Miller
Charles Miller
Jill Minneman
Thomas W. Minnick, National Counseling Group
Jax, Lilly and Lee Monsein
Robert and Barbara Moss
Amy and Will Mudge
Michael Mullen
John and Jill Murray
Leanne and James Myers
Joanne and Nicholas Nanna
Sarah and John Nash
Paul J. Nevins and Sheila LaFalce
Katherine Newland
Kathleen and Kevin Newmeyer
Jill and James Norcross
Suzanne Nordfelt
Bob and Lee Norstern
Timmy and Amanda Norton
Carol and Jorge Ochoa
Brian O'Connor
Christopher Olsen and Elizabeth Dean
Ms. Stephanie Oueda-Cruz
The Page Family
David Paight
Alex and Michael Pascarella
Patricia Payne
Mary Pedigo and Daniel Washburn
Laura Peebles and Ellen Fingerman
Katie Pehrson
David and Jamie Pelton
Suzy and Bob Pence
Jim and Tonda Phalen
Ginger Phillips
Meg Porta and Matt Swayhoover
Alden Potter
Dr. Suzanne Powers
Jeff and Jill Purdy
Kenneth and Valerie Quaglio
Daniel and Roberta Quirk
James Raba and Maureen Nelson
Rabaut Family Foundation
Eileen Rader
Bruce Ragusa and Kate Goodrich
David Rand
Everett Karyl Reinauer
Reinsch Pierce Family Foundation
by Lola C. Reinsch
Jonathan Remson
James and Linda Rettberg
Donna Rhoads
Dave and Aimee Richardson
Jim Roberts and Julie Carter Roberts
David A. Robertson
Virginia Robinson and Jordan Higgins
Trinka Roeckelein and Philip D. de Picciotto
Amy and Ben Rossi
Michael and Jane Rowny
Kathryn Tucker Rutkowski
Alicia Saffer and Kris Hatlelid
Scott Salmirs
Eric Salzberg
Drs. Stephen and Mary Sapp
Steve Satterfield
Erica and Ted Schmitz
Karen Schneider
Ronda Schrenk
Douglas Schuweiler and Andrea Schuweiler
Thomas Schwab and Rebecca Knutson
Jim Schwenke
Dr. Steven & Mrs. Gretchen Seiler
Sean Sharifi
Ritika and Rohit Sharma
Jules and Judy Shore
Mr. Louis and Dr. Kathleen K. Sichenze
Joseph Sifer
Calvert and Sally Simmons
Jessica Slean
Tina and Albert Small, Jr.
Dr. Dru and Mrs. Marie Smith
Martha Nell Smith and Marilee Lindemann
Linda and Nigel Smyth
Brett and Anne Snyder
Amy and Patrick Souders
Dean and Sandra Souleles
Teri Spiller
Chris and Diane Spina
Joan Stansfield,
Stansfield Signature Real Estate
Drs. Virginia Steen and Joseph Verbalis
Michael L. Stevens and Elizabeth M. Munno
Kathleen and Scott Stewart
Bill and Pat Stipe
David Stirrett
Jeff and Jaci Stoltz
Richard and Genevieve Strand
Lisa Stransky
Thomas and Heather Stroup
Dr. David A. Strouse
Gretchen and Christopher Strub
Sophia Tarraza
Cornell and Anne-Wesley Teague
Brooke Terry
Ray and Stacey Thal
Paul and Pam Thieberger
John E. Thomas, Jr.
Jarrod Thompson
Lynn Thomson
Kristine and David Timmerman
Rob Timmins and Jeff Kaplan
Denise Todd
Tim and Corina Trainer
Rick R. Treviño and W. Larz Pearson
Amy and Jeff Turcotte
Douglas A. Tyson and Dr. Tessa Cholmondeley
Stephanie and Fernando+ van Reigersberg
William and Patricia Vance
Timothy Voelz
Craig Wagner
Kathy and C. Eric Warden
Laura Wareham
Roger and Diane Warin
Rick Watson
Kristin and Joshua Weed
Greg Wells
Earl Wessell
Tim and Anne Whipple
John and Marylou Whisler
Jason and Shannon White
Jon and Lisa White
Diane Whitmoyer
Judith and Ronald+ Wilgenbusch
David and Joy Willey
Janet Wilson
Stephen and Rosemarie Wilson
The Witt Family
Sara Nelson Wolff
Kristy Wolford
Ainsley and David Wollman
Joy and Thomas Wood
Cheryl A. Wooden and Dr. Deb Bobbitt
Susana Wright
Aziz Yazdani
Joseph and Gwendolyn Zanin
S. Zeliff
+ Deceased
CORPORATE, FOUNDATION, AND GOVERNMENT PARTNERS
Wolf Trap Foundation sincerely appreciates each of the following institutions for supporting the Foundation through grants, corporate partnerships, and fundraisers between April 1, 2025 and April 1, 2026.
Donations to the Campaign for Wolf Trap: Our Next Chapter are listed separately in this program, at wolftrap.org/campaign, and on designated signage throughout Wolf Trap.
$500,000+
Department of the Interior, National Park Service
PNC
$250,000 TO $499,999
The Boeing Company
Capital One
Northrop Grumman
$100,000 TO $249,000
County of Fairfax, Virginia
Danaher Foundation
Lincoln and Therese Filene Foundation
General Dynamics
Halff Windham Foundation
HII
Kaiser Permanente Mid-Atlantic
National Park Foundation
PwC
Science Applications International Corporation
(SAIC)
Tickets.com
The Volgenau Foundation
$50,000 TO $99,999
Anonymous Foundation
Booz Allen Hamilton
Choice Hotels International
A. James and Alice B. Clark Foundation
CrossCountry Consulting
Ernst & Young
Gensler
Hilton Supply Management
Host Hotels & Resorts
KPMG LLP
La' Agra
SOSi
United Airlines
Virginia Commission for the Arts
$25,000 TO $49,999
Acentra Health
Alston & Bird
American Airlines
The Theodore H. Barth Foundation, Inc.
Bender Foundation, Inc.
Brown-Forman Corporation
The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
Charina Endowment Fund
Cox Business
Deloitte
Expedition Technology, LLC
Johnson Brothers Service Distributing, Inc.
JPMorgan Chase
Kearney & Company
L.F. Jennings
Leidos
Maximus
McGuireWoods LLP
The Claude Moore Charitable Foundation
National Endowment for the Arts
Our Purpose Foundation
RBC Wealth Management
Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP
Telos Corporation
WHITE64
$15,000 TO $24,999
22nd Century Technologies Inc.
Anthem
Apex CoVantage
Arnold F. Baggins Foundation, Inc.
Chevy Chase Trust
The Cornelius J. and Ellen P. Coakley
Family Foundation, Inc
CohnReznick
Cushman & Wakefield
DLA Piper
The Richard Eaton Foundation
Guidepost Solutions
Hilton McLean Tysons Corner
Karin's Florist
Laird Norton Family Foundation
Mars Foundation
The Mather
Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management
Nauticon Office Solutions
Park Hotels & Resorts
rand* construction corporation
Select Event Group
Starr Hill Brewery
The Venable Foundation
Washington Gas
WilmerHale
$10,000 TO $14,999
ArentFox Schiff
ArtsFairfax
Atlantic Union Bank
Dorothy G. Bender Foundation, Inc.
CACI
Devils Backbone Brewing Company
Enterprise Knowledge
Forvis Mazars
FTS International, LLC
Giant Food, Inc.
Goldman Sachs
Grant Thornton
Holland & Knight LLP
K Street Financial
Lockton Companies
M&T Bank
Nancy Peery Marriott Foundation, Inc.
Maximus Foundation
M Events Meeting Technologies Inc.
Merrifield Garden Center
Mount Vernon Printing, An RR Donnelley Company
Ohio Hometown Heroes
Rulo Strategies LLC
Saval Foods LLC
Schmidt Vocal Arts
Stratos Solutions
Tax Analysts
TechnoMile LLC
Thrive Networks
Unison Software Inc.
United Bank
Wealthspire Advisors
Wells Fargo
Williams & Connolly LLP
Wormald Homes
$5,000 TO $9,999
Accenture
Andersen
Avalon Consulting
C2 Technologies
Chanel Tysons Boutique
DevFi Inc.
Dimick Foundation
HHMI Janelia Research Campus
Monumental Sports & Entertainment
The Morrison & Foerster Foundation
Pinnacle Financial Partners
PKF O'Connor Davies
The Nora Roberts Foundation
Sapporo-Stone Brewing
The Albert and Lillian Small Foundation, Inc.
WOLF TRAP FOUNDATION
NAMED ENDOWMENT FUNDS
The following Endowment Funds were established with $100,000 or more to support Wolf Trap Foundation’s programs.
Benjamin and Mary Astley Fund for Wolf Trap
Baltimore Family Fund
Mary H. Beggs President’s Fund
The Howard and Sondra Bender Family Fund for Education
Patrice King Brickman Family Fund
Capital One Fund for Education
Caswell/Deichman Family Fund for Wolf Trap
Denise Chen and Tim Maas Fund for Wolf Trap
The Coffelt Fund for Wolf Trap Opera and Education
The Colangelo Family Fund for the Arts
The Cox Communications Fund for Education Initiatives
in the Performing Arts
D’Aniello Fund for Opera
L. William Derrow Fund for Wolf Trap Opera
in Honor of Amy E. Schaffer
Lynn and John Dillon Endowment Fund
Nancy K. Eberhardt | Howard and Dorothy Kahn Education Fund
The ElSawy Endowment for Education
The Freed Fund for Early Childhood Education in the Performing Arts
The Lee Anne F. Geiger Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
General Dynamics Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
Gupta Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
Halff Windham Foundation Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
Carol V. Harford Fund for Wolf Trap Opera
in Memory of Catherine Filene Shouse
Shelly and Jack Hazel Family Fund for Wolf Trap
Hearst Foundation, Inc.
Sue Henry and Carter Phillips Fund for Wolf Trap
Janet and Calvin Hill Fund for Wolf Trap
The Jacquemin Family Fund for Master Teaching Artists
The Paula A. Jameson Fund for Wolf Trap Opera
Stuart C. and Nancy M. Johnson Fund for Wolf Trap
Terre and Polly Jones Endowed Fund for Artistic Initiatives
Kadel Family Fund for Wolf Trap
Ashok and Hariastuti Kaveeshwar Fund for Wolf Trap
Alan and Carol Kelly Fund for Education
The King Family Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
Janet and Jerry Kohlenberger | The Trojanger Fund for Wolf Trap
Matthew Korn and Cynthia Miller Family Foundation Fund for Education
Nancy Laben and Jonathan Feiger Fund for Wolf Trap
Youn Nim Lord and Linda L. Lord Fund for Early Learning
Through the Arts
Robert and Lisa Lutz Fund for Wolf Trap
The General Lester L. Lyles and Family Fund for Education Fund for Wolf Trap in Honor of Arvind Manocha and Gideon Malone
The Sandy “Tanta” Marcum Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
Fund for Artistic Excellence in Honor of Audrey M. Mars
Mars Fellowship Fund for Wolf Trap Opera
Gary D. Mather and Christina Co Mather Fund for Wolf Trap
The Suzann Wilson Matthews Internship Fund
Ann McKee Fund for Opera
The Linda and Tobia Mercuro Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
The Mullaney Family Fund for Education
National Endowment for the Arts
NEA Packard Challenge Fund
Reed and Pat Neuman Fund Celebrating Arts and Education
The Terry Noack Master Teaching Artists in Dance Fund
Edward and Susan O’Connell Family Fund for Wolf Trap
Packard Fund
PNC Fund for Early Childhood Education
Geoffrey P. Pohanka and Anne R. Kline Fund for Wolf Trap Opera
Carol S. Popowsky Parrot Fund for Education
James A. Roth Family Fund for Wolf Trap
Sastry-Pindiprolu Family Fund for Wolf Trap
Julian Setian Family Fund for the Arts
Catherine Filene Shouse Education Fund
Kay Shouse Great Performance Fund
Jon and Pat Simons Fund for Wolf Trap
Ed and Andy Smith Fund for Wolf Trap Opera
Kevin and Beth Smithson Family Fund for Wolf Trap Education
Peter and Jennie Stathis Fund for Early Learning Through the Arts
Arthur Tracy Fund for Wolf Trap Opera
Hans and Mimi Tuch Fund for Wolf Trap Opera Conductors
Van Hoecke Family Fund for Technology in Education
RADM Ronald C. and Judith A. Wilgenbusch Fund
for Wolf Trap Opera and Classical Programs
Earle C. and June A. Williams Fund for Wolf Trap
Deborah and David Winston Fund for Classical Music
Kim Witman Fund for Opera Coaching
CATHERINE FILENE SHOUSE LEGACY CIRCLE
Wolf Trap Foundation gratefully acknowledges these individuals who have thoughtfully expressed their commitment to preserving the legacy of Wolf Trap for future generations by remembering the Foundation in their estate plans.
Anonymous (31)
Dr.+ and Mrs. Duane A. Adams
Terri R. Adams
Cheryl Allen and Donna McCloskey
Ananthanpillai Family
Jean W. Arnold
Jeannie P. Baliles*
Nancy A. Bartholomaei
Ashley Benes
David+ and Joan Berenson*
Eleanor K. H. Blayney
Thomas W. Bliss and Debra Harkins Bliss
Barbara A. Boinest
Barbara A. and Peter P. Bonora
David M. Borowski+ and Kerry Cadden
K. David Boyer, Jr. and Family
Mary W. Brady
D. S. Bronfman
Nancy Broyhill
Dennis and Julie Bruns
Beth B. Buehlmann
Edward A.+ and Karen A. Burka
Allyson Butler
Marcia and Frank C.+ Carlucci III*
Tenley Carp and David Samuels^
Jim and Karen Chamberlain
Denise Chen and Tim Maas
Deborah M. and Michael Jay Chusmir
Trudy Clark
Roy Cleland
Mark Richard Clem* and Kathleen Callahan
Mr. and Mrs. Philip M. Collins
Suzanne Conrad*
Jim and Kaye Cook
Phyllis and Wes Corley
Stephen T. Cramolini+ and John R. Feather II
Lawrence+ and Sharon Deibel
Laurie Parks DeLand
Ronald and Linda DeRamus
John and Lynn Dillon
Raymond A. and Roslyn M. Duda^
Kristen and Christopher Eckert*
Eddie and Rachel Eitches
Nancy and Dan Ellis^
Suzanne Anastos Feigert
Marilyn Hicks Fitzgerald
Michael P. Fitzgerald
Mark and Lynn Freemantle
Daryl and Marcia Friedman*
Virginia McGehee Friend
Hermione Fthenakis
Tom Gardner and Marianne Meagher^
W. Morton Glassberg and Sharon Sellers^
James N. Glerum+ and Diane Morales Glerum
Stephen and Barbara Goetting*
Bette S. Gorman
Sandra Goshgarian
Robert H. and Linda C. Grimes*
John and Dawn Grinstead
Barbara Groshans
MaryLynn and Greg Haase
Allen Raphael Halper and Kim Kunzig Halper
Stewart and Pam+ Hannah
Robert H. and Brenda Hawthorne^
Holidae H. Hayes
Robin Crawford Heller
Kaye Ann Hellmich
Julie Ann Heyward
Jo and Larry Hodgin*
William M. Holmes, Jr.*
Clark Hoyt and Linda Kauss
Gayle and Steve Job
Stuart C. and Nancy M.+ Johnson*
Margaret C. Jones
Terrence and Polly Jones*^
Ms. Terry Lynn Jones*
Barbara (Grabon) and Robert+ Juszczyk
Jim and Robbie Kaplan
Paul and Jerri Karstetter
Ashok and Stuti Kaveeshwar*
Sean M. Kelley
Janet and Jerry Kohlenberger^
Patricia and John Koskinen
Sue Leonard
Howard and Charla Levine^
Mr.+ and Mrs. Robert D. G. Lewis
Dr. Diana Locke and Mr. Robert Toense
Jill and Jeff Loewer
Dennis and Pam Lucey
Bob and Lisa Lutz^
Karyl Charna Lynn
Timothy and Martha Malone
Philip and Sandy+ Marcum
Mr.+ and Mrs. William H. Marumoto*
Dr. R. Barbara Mattas*
Mr.+ and Mrs. R. Dennis McArver*
Beth Masters McCormick
Ann McPherson McKee*
Elizabeth S. Medaglia and Joseph H. Sinnott
Joshua, Benjamin, and Micah Miller*
RoseMarie M. Mirabella*
Frances Edmonds (Mohr) and Michael D. Mohr*
Ward+ and Barbara+ Morris
Mr. and Mrs. Charles T. Moses III
Robert and Barbara Moss^
Jim and Karen Murray
Dr.+ and Mrs. J. Frederic Mushinski
Richard+ and Stella Guerra Nelson*
Darrell L. Netherton
Katherine Newland
Dr. Norine E. Noonan*
Nicholas Nylec II and Sharon J. Nylec
Edward and Susan O’Connell
Philip and Marjorie Odeen*
Beatriz M. Oliveira
Stephen D. Parks, Jr. and Amy Domagala-Parks
Susan J. and Stephen D. Parks
Alexandra and Kyle Patton
James B. Pearson, Jr.*
Julia Perry
Charles Polinger
Carol S. Popowsky
Meg Porta and Matt Swayhoover^
Sean and Shirley Prosser
Blair Reischer and Martha Bozman
Don and Paige Rhodes
Dr. Robin Rinearson
Kevin and Kate Robbins
Julie Carter Roberts and The Honorable James Montgomery Roberts*
Ed Robichaud
Lisa and Bud+ Roeder
James Roth
Barbara L. Rowe
Kevin L. Rusnak and Donald R. Dechow Jr.+
Rosanne Russo
Bernadette Saperstein
Danielle O. and John H. Saunders
Alan J. Savada*
David Lawrence Scally
Amy E. Schaffer
Nanci Schimizzi
Ruth and Stan Seemann
Ronald Segal+ and Beverly Dickerson
Keith and Michelle Senglaub
Mary Shedlock and Jim Mizner
Joan Sheppard
Dr. George Siemering and Vickie Watson Siemering
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Silien
Mr.+ and Mrs. Murray Simpson
Marshall I. Soltz
Sandra and Eoin Stafford
Robert E. Stovall and Deborah D. Ralston
Pam and Greg Sullivan
Theresa (Terry) Thompson
Robert A. Timmins, Jr.
Ina and Ed+ Tornberg
Timothy and Corina Trainer^
Rick R. Treviño and W. Larz Pearson
Lesley D. Turner and Curtis L. Schehr
Mr. and Mrs. James M. Underhill
Stephanie and Fernando+ van Reigersberg
Jamie and Richard Walker
Charlie and Terry Walters*
Patricia Shea Ward and Paul B. Ward
Dr. Karin and Richard+ Warner
W. Jay and Camille Warren*
Donald W. Weber, Sr.
Ms. Angela Caveness Weisskopf
Margaret Miller and Richard D.+ Welch, Jr.+*
RADM Ronald C.+ and Mrs. Judith A. Wilgenbusch
Miriam C. Flaherty Willis and MG Simon V. L. Willis*
Bob Wilson^
William L. Wingert, Jr.*
Deborah F. and David A. Winston
Donna Wolverton
Andrew Woodcock and Mary Ewell
Cheryl A. Wooden and Dr. Deb Bobbitt
James B. and Sue Ann Zahrt
Alexander and Michelle Zajac
Thomas J. Zaug
* Charter Member
^ Next Chapter Legacy
+ Deceased
For a list of all Legacy Circle Charter Members, visit wolftrap.org/legacyrecognition.
EXPLORE MORE MUSIC AT THE FILENE CENTER
“Each year, Wolf Trap proudly welcomes the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) to its summer home at the Filene Center for an inspiring lineup of symphonic masterworks, iconic film scores, and performances with today’s leading artists. This season is especially meaningful as the NSO returns with an expanded summer residency, deepening its connection to our audiences and strengthening our long-standing partnership. With Maestro Gianandrea Noseda leading Beethoven’s monumental Ninth Symphony and an all-American program honoring our nation’s 250th anniversary, these concerts celebrate the vibrancy, expressive power, and enduring relevance of orchestral music. Special collaborations, including a newly commissioned work with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, promise to make this a truly unforgettable summer.”
—ARVIND MANOCHA
President & CEO, Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
BEETHOVEN’S
NINTH SYMPHONY
National Symphony Orchestra
Gianandrea Noseda, conductor
Tessa McQueen, soprano
Cecelia McKinley, alto
Demetrious Sampson Jr., tenor
Jonathan Patton, baritone
The Washington Chorus
AUG 14
ST. VINCENT
National Symphony Orchestra
Jules Buckley, conductor
JUNE 25
This all-Beethoven program opens with the Handel-inspired overture to The Consecration of the House and his rarely performed Elegiac Song before concluding with Beethoven’s Ninth, the symphony by which all others are measured.
DEBORAH F. AND DAVID A. WINSTON, PERFORMANCE SPONSORS
NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
FEATURING LIZZO
Steven Reineke, conductor
JULY 7
STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI IN CONCERT
National Symphony Orchestra
Emil de Cou, conductor
JULY 9
A.R. RAHMAN
National Symphony Orchestra
Steven Reineke, conductor
JULY 10
JON BATISTE
National Symphony Orchestra
Jonathan Taylor Rush, conductor
AUG 21
HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONETM IN CONCERT
National Symphony Orchestra
Steven Reineke, conductor
AUG 27
THE JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER ORCHESTRA WITH WYNTON MARSALIS
National Symphony Orchestra
James Gaffigan, conductor
SEP 12
DISNEY’S THE LITTLE MERMAID IN CONCERT
National Symphony Orchestra
Steven Reineke, conductor
JULY 11
JOSH GROBAN
National Symphony Orchestra
Stage, Screen, and Symphony
AUG 22
JERRY GARCIA SYMPHONIC CELEBRATION
National Symphony Orchestra
Featuring Melvin Seals, Jacklyn LaBranch, Tom Hamilton, Grahame Lesh, John Morgan Kimock, and Kanika Moore
