View artist profile - BASS-BARITONE ARTIST WEBSITE FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM YOUTUBE CHRISTIAN PURSELL BASS-BARITONE BIOGRAPHY Christian Pursell is a dynamic, impassioned actor with unmatched stage presence, an enthralling, powerful voice, and a mastery of musical genres from baroque to musical theater, including bel canto and romantic opera. In May 2025, Mr. Pursell débuted the role of Tom in the world premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon’s opera This House at Opera Theatre of St. Louis. His 2024-2025 season began with his Metropolitan Opera house début as Sciarrone in Tosca , alongside covering Hermann/Schlemil in Tales of Hoffmann . Mr. Pursell then joined the Bach Ensemble of St. Thomas featuring members of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. In November, he returned to Seattle Symphony to perform Fauré Requiem , performed the title role in Mendelssohn’s Elijah with San Jose Symphonic Choir, then visited Portland Baroque Orchestra as a soloist in Handel Messiah . Pursell performed The Prosecutor in Blind Injustice with MasterVoices, followed by Aman in Ester with Haymarket Opera. The 2025-2026 season brings more exciting house and role debuts, including house débuts with Seattle Opera and Dayton Opera as Escamillo in Carmen , and role and house débuts with the Teatro Colón as Cassandro in Mozart’s La Finta Semplice , Chicago Opera Theater as Falstaff in Salieri’s operatic setting of the Shakespeare play, and with the Florentine Opera singing the Four Villains in Tales of Hoffman . Additionally, he appears as a guest soloist in Handel’s Messiah at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco with the American Bach Soloists and will sing Monterone in Baltimore Symphony’s concert performances of Rigoletto and Four Villains . READ MORE Mr. Pursell released his first art song album, Ferne, in July 2024; the live lieder recital recording is available on IDAGIO, Apple Music, and Spotify. Last season, he added three important roles to his repertoire: Leporello in Don Giovanni (Cincinnati Opera) Don Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia (Virginia Opera), and the role of Noah at Carnegie Hall (debut) in a concert performance of Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Grapes of Wrath . Chicago Classical Review Other recent opera engagements include Opera Philadelphia as Elmiro in Rossini’s Otello , the Canadian Opera Company as Angelotti in Tosca , Wolf Trap Opera as Blitch in Susannah , and at Wiener Staatsoper as Second Englishman in Prokofiev’s The Gambler . He has performed the role of Escamillo in Carmen at the Cincinnati Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Hawaii Opera Theatre, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. As a concert soloist, Mr. Pursell has performed Handel’s Messiah with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Samuel in Handel’s Saul with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra in Walt Disney Concert Hall, and Strauss’ Salome with Fabio Luisi and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Other works performed include Britten’s War Requiem, Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem , Bach’s St. Matthew Passion , Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 , Haydn’s The Creation , Faure’s Requiem , and Pärt’s Passio . His first commercial recording, the world premiere of Gregory Spears’ Fellow Travelers with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, was released in 2017. In January 2024, Pursell won Fourth Prize, and “Best Baritone” at the Tenor Viñas International Vocal Competition in Barcelona, Spain. He won 2nd prize in the 2024 Concorso Lirico Internazionale Tebaldi-Gigli-Corelli competition. He placed 3rd in the 2022 Opera Mississippi Vocal Competition, and won 3rd prize in the 2021 James Toland Vocal Arts competition. He is the recipient of the 2019 Igor Gorin Memorial Award, and is a national semi-finalist of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (2016). He was also a quarterfinalist in the 2019 Operalia competition, a Richard F. Gold Career Grant recipient (2018), winner of the Partners for the Arts competition (2018), second award winner of the Jensen Foundation competition (2017), winner of the Theodor Uppman Award from the Sullivan Foundation (2017), and recipient of a Sara Tucker Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Music Foundation (2017). A graduate of the prestigious Adler Fellowship at San Francisco Opera, Mr. Pursell’s many role credits with the company included Lieutenant Ratcliffe in Billy Budd , and Walter Raleigh in Roberto Devereux . He also sang a critically acclaimed performance of Dandini in La Cenerentola with Merola Opera Program. Mr. Pursell is a graduate of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and received his Master of Music degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He raises his young son in the Fingerlakes region of New York. Current as of August 22, 2025 CRITICAL ACCLAIM "Christian Pursell made his solos and recitatives land like soul-deep testimony." - The San Francisco Chronicle Handel's Messiah – " In a performance at once commanding and intimate, bass-baritone Christian Pursell made his solos and recitatives land like soul-deep testimony. He did it early on, leading “The People That Walked in Darkness” step by chromatically ascendant step to “where the light shined.” Near the end of the work, before vigorously summoning the exulting trumpets, Pursell almost breathlessly promised a “Mystery,” that in an instant “we shall all be changed.” I can’t be the only one who felt a shiver of divine possibility, set off by Pursell’s lustrous, impassioned singing." –––––––––– "Mr. Pursell’s substantial orotund sound, musicality, and charismatic demeanor were wholly winning." – Opera Today This House – " We had to wait for Act II for the tall and playful bass-baritone Christian Pursell to take the stage, but when he entered, he owned it. Mr. Pursell’s substantial orotund sound, musicality, and charismatic demeanor were wholly winning. His and Mr. Austin’s love duet about Valancia was arguably the highpoint of an evening that was chockfull of them." –––––––––– "...commanding and convincing..." – The Millbrook Independant Blind Injustice – "Bass-baritone Christian Pursell delivered a commanding and convincing portrait of a blindly ambitious careerist prosecutor with impressive power and a frighteningly memorable voice. As the villain, he was appropriately insensitive and self-righteous." –––––––––– "His performance was often hilariously funny, and he wielded an excellent voice, to boot." – Cincinnati Business Courrier Don Giovanni – Bass-baritone Christian Pursell, who earned a master’s degree at CCM, performed the role of Leporello, Giovanni’s servant and general clean-up man. His performance was often hilariously funny, and he wielded an excellent voice, to boot. His Act I “Catalog” Aria, in which Leporello describes the more than 2,000 amorous conquests of his master, was engagingly sung. –––––––––– "Christian Pursell certainly brought swagger to the role of Escamillo..." – Schmopera Carmen – "Christian Pursell certainly brought swagger to the role of Escamillo, the famous toreador and Don José’s rival for Carmen’s heart. Pursell’s Escamillo was a bit of a pretty boy with long flowing locks and a flashy sense of fashion. The baritone performed arguably the catchiest tune of the opera with his act two aria, strutting the stage like a true peacock." –––––––––– "Pursell...is an outstanding bass-baritone..." – Opera Gene Susannah – "Christian Pursell who portrayed Reverend Blitch is an outstanding bass-baritone who sang beautifully, but in this role also had challenging dramatic demands. He met the demands both as the charismatic preacher and as the contrite sinner who had forced himself on Susannah." FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Shawn Marie Jeffery Genereal/Opera Adrienne Boris Symphony

View artist profile - LIBRETTIST ARTIST WEBSITE FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM YOUTUBE JARROD LEE LIBRETTIST BIOGRAPHY Writer/Librettist Jarrod Lee hails from Sylacauga, AL, and presently resides in Baltimore, MD. His work is influenced by his experience of being Black, Gay, and American, adding to the canon of stories written by Black Americans for the operatic stage and beyond. Lee’s current collaborations include Hello, Star , based on the children’s book by Stephanie V.W. Lucianovic, with composer Carla Lucero, co-commissioned by Opera Parallèle and The Peabody Institute, which will premiere in the fall of 2026, and Delta King's Blues ,a retelling of the legend of blues guitarist Robert Johnson, with composer Damien Geter. Last summer, Finger Lakes Opera premiered the chamber opera Two Corners , written with composer B.E. Boykin, with whom he also collaborated on the choral song Beyond What I See and Oshun , which was developed through Washington National Opera’s American Opera Initiative. His What is Love? An AI Story with composer Timothy Amukele, was awarded Crowd Favorite and Runner-up with the ATL 96hr Opera Festival/Competition, and the art song See your Equal placed third in the composition category of the George Shirley Vocal Competition, with composer Ronald “Trey” Walton, who he also collaborated with on Voices of Zion . READ MORE A frequent collaborator with composer Timothy Amukele, their additional works together include Kandake , which will be seen this season in a double bill with Oshun presented by Maryland Opera, a community opera called Spirit Moves , and an art song cycle called Journey to You . Other works in currently in development include Promised Land with composer Glenn McClure and Split-Second/LIFE with composer Jasmine Barnes. Lee has received commissions from the Alliance for New Music Theater, the Atlanta Opera, IN Series, Finger Lakes Opera, Opera Parallèle, The Peabody Institute at John's Hopkins, Opera Theatre of St. Louis and the Washington National Opera. In addition to original stories, Jarrod translated a deconstruction of Die Zauberflӧte called Black Flute with playwright Sybil Roberts. As an opera singer, Jarrod draws from his performance experiences when creating new stories. In concert with writing and performing, Lee works in Performing Arts Administration and Consulting as the Director of New Voices for Maryland Opera and as the Projects Director for the Coalition for African Americans in the Performing Arts (CAAPA). Current as of August 26, 2025 FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Shawn Marie Jeffery Vice President | Classical & Creatives Aaron Sanko CEO & Partner | Theatre, Film, TV & Literary

View artist profile - COMPOSER WEBSITE INSTAGRAM CATALOG RICKY IAN GORDON COMPOSER BIOGRAPHY Long Island native Ricky Ian Gordon studied piano, composition, and acting at Carnegie Mellon University before settling in New York City, where he quickly emerged as a leading writer of vocal music that spans art song, opera, and musical theater. Mr. Gordon’s songs have been performed and recorded by such internationally renowned singers as Renée Fleming, Dawn Upshaw, Nathan Gunn, Judy Collins, Kelli O’Hara, Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, Nicole Cabell, the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Frederica von Stade, Nadine Sierra, Andrea Marcovicci, Harolyn Blackwell, and Betty Buckley, among many others. Of Mr. Gordon’s oeuvre, Stephen Holden, wrote in The New York Times , “If the music of Ricky Ian Gordon had to be defined by a single quality, it would be the bursting effervescence in fusing songs that blithely blur the lines between art song and the high-end Broadway music of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim…It’s caviar for a world gorging on pizza.” READ MORE Upcoming commissions include This House, a new opera for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis’ 50th anniversary season in 2025 with librettists Lynn Nottage and Ruby Gerber. His Huit Chansons de Fleurs, written for soprano Erin Morley, will be released on a new Orchid Classic recording and premiere at the Kennedy Center on May 13, 2024, and his Marvin Gaye Songs commissioned by the Tucson Song Festival for baritone Justin Austin, using poems by Vievee Francis, recently premiered at Carnegie Hall on March 5, 2024. Mr. Gordon’s opera The Grapes of Wrath recently returned to Carnegie Hall on April 17, 2024, presented by MasterVoices, led by Ted Sperling and featuring Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Seen and Heard International called the newest edition of the piece “...slick, vibrant and emotionally wrenching…”, while Arts Journal called it “...one of the great New York events of the season…” and New York Stage Review said, “If you’re left dryeyed, you are perhaps utterly devoid of empathy.” Other recent productions of his operas include The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (New York City Opera/National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, lib. Michael Korie); Intimate Apparel (Metropolitan Opera/Lincoln Center Theater, lib. Lynn Nottage); Ellen West (Beth Morrison Projects, Opera Saratoga, lib. Frank Bidart); The House Without a Christmas Tree (Houston Grand Opera); 27 (Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Pittsburgh Opera, Opera Montreal, and Opera Montana, lib. Royce Vavrek); Morning Star (Cincinnati Opera, OnSite Opera, lib. William Hoffman); A Coffin in Egypt (Houston Grand Opera, Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, Chicago Opera Theater, Opera Philadelphia, and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, lib. Leonard Foglia); Rappahannock County (Virginia Opera, lib. Mark Campbell); Green Sneakers (Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, Bay Chamber Festival, Opera Birmingham, and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, lib. Ricky Ian Gordon); The Grapes of Wrath (Minnesota Opera, Utah Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Anchorage Opera, Disney Hall, and Carnegie Hall, lib. Michael Korie); The Tibetan Book of The Dead (Houston Grand Opera, Eastman School of Music, and Opera Grand Rapids, lib. Jean Claude Van Itallie); and Orpheus and Euridice (Lincoln Center (OBIE Award), Pittsburgh Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Minnesota Dance Theater, and Vermont Opera Project, lib. Ricky Ian Gordon). His musicals include Sycamore Trees (Signature Theatre, playwright Nina Mankin, Helen Hayes Award); My Life with Albertine (Playwrights Horizons, playwright Richard Nelson, AT&T Award, Gilman and Gonzalez-Falla Music Theater Foundation Award); and Dream True (Vineyard Theatre, playwright Tina Landau, Richard Rodgers Award). As a teacher, Mr. Gordon has taught both master classes and composition classes in colleges and universities throughout the country including Yale, NYU, Northwestern, Juilliard, Manhattan School of Music, Catholic, Bennington, Vassar, Carnegie Mellon, Elon, Michigan State, University of Michigan, Point Park (McGinnis Distinguished Lecturer), Texas Lutheran University, Eastman School of Music, Florida State University, Texas Christian University, and San Francisco Conservatory. He has been the featured Composer-in-Residence at various festivals including Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, the Van Cliburn Foundation, Voices of Change, Santa Fe Song Festival, Songfest at Pepperdine University, Chautauqua, Aspen Music Festival, and Ravinia. In 2018, he was the commencement speaker at the University of Michigan. Other honors include the 2003 Alumni Merit Award for exceptional achievement and leadership from Carnegie Mellon University, a Shen Family Foundation Award, the Stephen Sondheim Award, the Constance Klinsky Award, and many awards from ASCAP, of which he is a member, the National Endowment of the Arts, and the American Music Center. Mr. Gordon’s works are published by Presser Music, Carl Fischer Music, Williamson Music, and Hal Leonard and are available everywhere; they are also widely recorded on various labels. His memoir Seeing Through: A Chronicle of Sex, Drugs, and Opera will be released on July 23, 2024 and is available for preorder. Current as of May 9, 2024 CRITICAL ACCLAIM "Ricky Ian Gordon is a Mensch..." – Opera Today Seeing Through: A Chronicle of Sex, Drugs, and Opera – "Ricky Ian Gordon is a Mensch. His Seeing Through: A Chronicle of Sex, Drugs, and Opera... is already a highly satisfying, complicated, intriguing, vexing, informative voyage, that caroms around the world of classical music and theatre VIP relationships, bumping heads, bruising egos, and bonding in creative fruition." __________ "... Gordon clearly has an original attitude...” – Gramophone Bright-Eyed Joy – “Ricky Ian Gordon is one of the New Yorkbased composers who seem to be creating a new genre‚ halfway between American art song and show tunes. The booklet that comes with this CD‚ although it prints the texts of the songs and has an affectionate note about the composer from producer Tommy Krasker‚ gives no information about the singers. Dawn Upshaw and Audra McDonald are both well known for their ability to encompass musical theatre and concertplatform styles‚ but it’s a surprise to find the composer Adam Guettel as a vocalist here. Gordon’s music has echoes of Sondheim‚ Copland and a generous dash of the blues. The emphasis is on a slightly jokey‚ halfsad‚ halfhappy mood. His settings here focus on poetry by Langston Hughes‚ Edna St Vincent Millay and Dorothy Parker. Hughes’ Poor Girl’s Ruination is paired with The Dream Keeper to make a pointed scena that Audra McDonald sings with expressive melancholy. The male voices‚ Guettel‚ Darius de Haas and Chris Pedro Trakas all veer towards crooning‚ whereas Theresa McCarthy has a pure soprano that is well displayed in Afternoon on a Hill. There are a couple of duets‚ Love Song for Lucinda‚ with a nice ragtime influence‚ and Resumé/Wail/Frustration‚ three typically cynical Dorothy Parker verses‚ sung by Judy Blazer and Trakas‚ which is the most overtly Broadway selection‚ whereas Song for a Dark Girl comes nearest to opera. This‚ like Dream Variations and Daybreak in Alabama‚ comes from Audra McDonald’s recital Way Back to Paradise (Nonesuch‚ 7/99). New Moon and Joy are vocal quartets to verses by Hughes that have that quality of spare emotion that made him one of the most admired poets of the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s. The mood expressed in them is mostly optimistic‚ as Joy‚ the song from which theCD gets its title‚ implies. Gordon clearly has an original attitude‚ and the accompaniments, both piano solo and instrumental‚ are full of attractive detail.” __________ “Gordon’s music palpably burns with sorrow and frustration...” – Journal of Singing Souvenir – “The first song we hear from Ricky Ian Gordon is “Souvenir,” an exquisite setting of a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay, Gordon’s poetic first love. Every bit as poignant is “The Good Death,” an excerpt from the theatrical song cycle Rappahannock County , in which a seriously ill Civil War soldier laments the likelihood that his will not be a heroic death on the battlefield, but rather a pointless death in a hospital bed due to typhus. Gordon’s music palpably burns with sorrow and frustration, and Powell’s performance of it is nothing less than searing. The same can be said for “Father’s Song,” from a largely autobiographical musical titled Sycamore Trees . In this heartbreaking song, a father mourns the death of one of his daughters from a drug overdose. Gordon takes us on a nearly unbearable journey into the most acute kind of sorrow and regret, but it is Powell’s openhearted singing that makes such a journey possible.” __________ "...He illustrates with skill, grace and flair...." – The New York Times The Grapes of Wrath – "Mr. Gordon’s music is received from elsewhere: from the simple singing of American balladry, the wide-open-spaces style of American symphonists, and the bounce of the Broadway and Hollywood musical. There are tinges of dissonance to accompany the opera’s uglier moments, but this music’s main intent is to oblige. If Alban Berg or Messiaen had been painters, they would be regarded as artists. Mr. Gordon is more an illustrator. He illustrates with skill, grace and flair. Mr. Korie’s literate, often clever libretto is a big help. Together the two men gently push the narrative from episode to episode." FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Aaron Sanko CEO & Partner Shawn Marie Jeffery Agent | Classical & Creatives

View artists profile - CONDUCTOR FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM YOUTUBE DONALD LEE III CONDUCTOR BIOGRAPHY American Conductor and Pianist Donald Lee III is quickly gaining notoriety for his versatility and charisma both on the podium and at the keyboard. A recipient of a 2025 Solti Foundation Career Assistance Reward, Lee has appeared in concert with the Des Moines Metro Opera Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago Chorus, and members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Lee recently served as the assistant conductor for the world premiere of She Who Dared at Chicago Opera Theater. The summer of 2025 brought him to Chautauqua Institute, working closely with Denyce Graves, conducting scenes and playing selections from the new opera Loving v. Virginia and song cycle Cotton by Damien Geter, as well as preparing the chorus for a reading of Missy Mazzoli’s new opera Lincoln in the Bardo , and to Jackson State University conducting members of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra in a variety of operatic repertoire as part of the Inaugural S.O.S. Opera Bootcamp . In recital he collaborated with Lawrence Brownlee appearing with the Norwegian Opera and Ballet, and with Nicole Heaston and Justin Austin at Houston Grand Opera. In the 2025-26 season Lee will lead the Bay Area Rainbow Symphony in Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony , Damien Geter’s Sinfonia Americana and Joel Thompson’s To Awaken the Sleeper , joins the Reno Chamber Orchestra on the podium for their All That Jazz program featuring works by Florence Price, Claude Bolling, Arturo Marquez, and George Gershwin, and will be the guest conductor for the Charleston Gospel Choir presenting their annual Gospel Christmas Concert . He also joins the Washington National Opera serving as the cover conductor for Treemonisha and Virginia Opera as the harpsichordist and repetiteur for their production of La cenerentola . His season concludes with his return to Cincinnati Opera as the assistant conductor for Carmen and the world premiere of Lalovavi , for which he is also chorus master. READ MORE Lee has also been engaged as a cover conductor with the Gateways Festival Orchestra and Des Moines Metro Opera, and served as the assistant conductor with the Oakland Symphony in the 2024-25 season. Recent productions include Salome , Carmen , Champion , and the world premiere of American Apollo . Additional highlights as a pianist include appearing as soloist with the University of Maryland Symphony Orchestra for Florence Price’s Piano Concerto, recording works by underrepresented composers for broadcast on the Chicago radio station WFMT, and being the first pianist to record Francis Johnson’s A Set of New Cotillions, the first published original work by a Black American composer. As an advocate for the performance of new music by under-represented composers, Lee has conducted the music of Jasmine Barnes, Damien Geter, and Carlos Simon. Lee appeared as the guest conductor for Montgomery Presents the Blacknificent 7 , part of the CSO MusicNOW concert series. He has also conducted the workshops of In The Rush , a new opera by Carlos Simon, Lynn Nottage, and Ruby Aiyo-Gerber at Cincinnati Opera and Indiana University. As a pianist, Lee has been a part of the creation of six new operas through Opera Theater St. Louis’ New Works Collective. He was also the pianist for Will Liverman’s The Factotum , improvising in multiple genres throughout the opera. Lee holds degrees from James Madison University and University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Lee was the inaugural conductor/pianist member of the Ryan Opera Center, the training program of the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Current as of September 2025 FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Shawn Marie Jeffery General CRITICAL ACCLAIM "fluid [and] communicative..." - Musical America Worldwide The Blacknificent 7 - "Donald Lee III conducted both The United States Welcomes You and Annunciation with the same fluid, communicative gestures that have been his hallmark at Lyric Opera, where he’s resident pianist/conductor of the Ryan Opera Center."

View artist profile - TENOR ACTOR'S ACCESS ARTIST WEBSITE INSTAGRAM YOUTUBE SPOTIFY JOHN RIESEN TENOR BIOGRAPHY Hailed as “every inch the hero in stature and voice” ( Classical Voice North America ), award-winning American tenor John Riesen is consistently impressing audiences with his "impassioned...and vibrant" voice ( Opera Today ). John’s growing career boasts a variety of roles and includes significant work in opera, musical theatre, studio recording, and concert, both classical and Pops. He has released two albums: What You'd Call a Dream (2019) and Christmas at Home (2020) and several singles, including “Autumn Leaves” (2021), “What a Wonderful World” (2021), and “Maria” (from West Side Story , 2021), that have reached ten million streams on Spotify and Apple Music, and has lent his voice to 130 commercially available recordings. Recently, critics praised John’s “soaring vocal performance” on the 2025 album Love Is… by Terry Lee Nichols ( NewAgeCD.com ). John is also the head of Spotify promotion and PR for Emitha LLC, building an ecosystem for classical singers to be heard around the world. John’s 2025-2026 season begins at Grant Park Music Festival in The Magic of Rodgers & Hammerstein conducted by Mo. Larry Loh. He then returns to the popular Prohibition Pops concert with Wheeling Symphony Orchestra and Sioux City Symphony Orchestra and returns to Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra for their concert of Opera Hits. In addition to several private concerts throughout North America, John looks forward to launching the tour of Aria Nouveau , his duet program with Top 10 Billboard-charting soprano Laura Auer, in select American cities throughout the season. READ MORE In the 2024-2025 season, John made his Carnegie Hall début as tenor soloist in Carmina Burana with Oratorio Society New York under the baton of Mo. Kent Tritle. He then returned to Carnegie Hall to close out his season as tenor soloist with Mozart’s Vesperae de Dominica . He returned to Utah Opera in one of his favorite roles, Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd, made his role début as Don José in Carmen with Sioux City Symphony, and joined Las Vegas Philharmonic for Handel’s Messiah . Additionally, he appeared in concert with Shreveport Opera, and at several private events. In the 2023-2024 season, he returned to Pacific Symphony in Mo. Carl St. Clair’s finale concert of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 , which he also performed with the Southwest Michigan Symphony, and joined Flint Symphony Orchestra for Carmina Burana . On the Pops stage, he joined The Dallas Symphony and The Phoenix Symphony for their touring concert Prohibition , Virginia Arts Festival with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra as Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd , and both Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra and Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra for Holiday Pops programming. He was also a featured soloist in Opera Las Vegas 25 th anniversary gala, joined Portland Opera for an all-Puccini program, and returned to Opera Montana as Rodolfo in La bohème . The previous season included his début with Brevard Music Center as tenor soloist in Carmina Burana under the baton of Mo. JoAnn Falletta, his role début as Camille in The Merry Widow at Knoxville Opera - where he also reprised his Younger Thompson in Glory Denied - his role début as the Duke in Rigoletto at Opera Montana, a return to Opera Las Vegas as Detective Daniel Lewis in A Capacity for Evil , and Younger Thompson at Opera Roanoke. Additionally, he was named a semifinalist on NBC’s America’s Got Talent. In recent seasons, John appeared as Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance with Utah Opera, Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi with On Site Opera, Chris in the world-premiere of Favorite Son by Grammy Award-winning songwriter Marcus Hummons, Ralph Rackstraw in HMS Pinafore with Pensacola Opera, Martin in The Tender Land with The Hart School, Alfredo in La Traviata with the Pacific Symphony, and Younger Thompson with Berkshire Opera Festival. Other career highlights include his début as Roméo in Roméo et Juliette as a guest artist with the Janiec Opera Company at Brevard Music Center, his Detroit Opera début as Pirelli in Sweeney Todd , Younger Thompson in Glory Denied with UrbanArias, and Bill Calhoun in Kiss Me, Kate with Intermountain Opera Bozeman. He also made several role débuts including Prince Charming in Cendrillon with Opera Company of Middlebury, Lensky in Eugene Onegin with Intermountain Opera Bozeman, Alfredo in La Traviata with Gulfshore Opera, Younger Thomspon in Glory Denied with Opera Birmingham and Des Moines Metro Opera, the title role in Candide with Chautauqua Opera, and his Lincoln Center début as Tony in West Side Story Suite with the New York City Ballet. John’s honors include being a repeat Regional Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, 1st prize in the Harold Haugh Light Opera Competition, and 2nd prize in the Mary Jacobs Smith Singer of the Year Competition, as well as awards from the Opera Columbus Cooper-Bing Competition and the Opera Birmingham Competition. John has been privileged to sing for political figures, including President Barack Obama, President Jimmy Carter, District Judge Stephanie Kulp Seymour, and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. He has sung the national anthem at several collegiate, semi-professional, and professional organizations, including the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park, the Pensacola Ice Flyers, MSU hockey/baseball, and more. Before singing, John avidly pursued athletics, attaining all-region pitcher status in 2006 and 2007. Current as of July 23, 2025 CRITICAL ACCLAIM "... Riesen was perfectly cast..." – Utah Arts Review The Pirates of Penzance – “Making his Utah Opera debut, John Riesen was perfectly cast as Frederic. . . Riesen’s expressive voice was mannered in just the right way to reflect Frederic’s self-righteousness, and as an actor, he fully committed to being the “slave of duty.” The seriousness he brought to his character’s moral dilemma propelled the show forward and heightened its humor." __________ “... Riesen’s (Chris) voice filled the theater with a welcoming richness…” – Music City Review Favorite Son – “Right out of the gate, John Riesen’s (Chris) voice filled the theater with a welcoming richness in the lower register. It continued to bloom further throughout the story in more grand tenor-y moments, as in the anthemic chorus of the eponymous “Favorite Son” song." __________ "... Every inch the hero in stature and voice…” – Classical Voice North America Glory Denied – “As Younger Jim, Riesen glowed with his love of Alyce... Every inch the hero in stature and voice, Riesen could express the sweetest of emotions or become rapier-sharp with indignation or defiance when he was roused by demons real or imagined.” __________ "... youthfully blooming tenor..." – San Francisco Classical Voice La Traviata – “Riesen, with his youthfully blooming tenor and beamish face, comes off as an eager innocent who falls hard and fast for a woman he’s drawn to but doesn’t quite fathom. That lays the ground work for his wounded anger at her apparent betrayal later on. . . Riesen is still on a roll as the second act begins, all but belting out his infatuation. . . His brow furrowed, voice fibrous, and body tense with anger, Alfredo flings his gambling winnings at Violetta in a violent frenzy. It’s a powerful, frightening moment.” FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Adrienne Boris General Aaron Sanko Film/TV/Theatre

View artist profile - ACTOR MEDIA ACTOR'S ACCESS ARTIST WEBSITE IMDB KAREN CHRISTIE-WARD ACTOR REPRESENTATIVES THEATRE Aaron Sanko FILM/TV Christopher D. Silveri JUNIOR AGENT: FILM/TV Lucius Robinson

View artist profile - MASTER TEACHER KATHLEEN KELLY MASTER TEACHER BIOGRAPHY Kathleen Kelly’s projects and repertoire are wide-ranging and diverse. From Mozart to commissioned works by her peers, she is both deeply experienced in the classical vocal canon and engaged in new creation. Recent notable projects include a recording with soprano Emily Albrink, FORCE OF NATURE, of four world premiere song cycles which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Traditional Classical Chart. Additionally, she music directed the opera FAT PIG, composed for activist soprano Tracy Cox, and the filmed opera Interstate , composed by Kamala Sankaram, co-authored and performed by Kathleen and soprano Jennifer Cresswell, produced by Minnesota Opera, and now streaming on Marquee TV. The first woman and first American named as Director of Musical Studies at the Vienna State Opera, Kathleen’s operatic experience is the backbone of her career. Trained at the San Francisco Opera, she joined the company’s music staff and moved from there to a long association with the Metropolitan Opera. She was head of music at Houston Grand Opera, and music director of the Berkshire Opera before moving to Vienna. Kathleen has conducted at the Glimmerglass Festival, Wolf Trap Opera, Arizona Opera, El Paso Opera, Opera Columbus, the Merola Program, and the Alexandria Symphony, and has been a visiting master coach for the prestigious young artist programs of Chicago Lyric Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Washington National Opera, and the Canadian Opera Company. READ MORE Kathleen’s recital career includes appearances at Wigmore Hall, Weill Hall, Zankel Hall, the Kennedy Center, Vienna’s Musikverein, the Mahlersaal of the Vienna State Opera, the Neue Galerie, the Schwabacher Series in San Francisco, and the Tucson Desert Song Festival. Her recent collaboration with Jamie Barton has won wide acclaim, and her partners have included Elena Villalon, Michael Kelly, Karen Slack, Ryan McKinny, Christine Goerke, Troy Cook, Emily Albrink Katz, Laura Levoir, Amber Wagner, Sorin Coliban, Ariana Strahl, Martha Guth, and Jennifer Holloway. She has curated art song series for the Houston Grand Opera and the Vienna State Opera. In demand as a mentor of rising artists, Kathleen has given masterclasses and workshops internationally. She was a recent guest teacher the Opera Studio at the New National Theater in Tokyo, and I will return in summer 2024 to coach and conduct their scenes program. She has also given masterclasses and workshops in North America, among others at the University of Toronto, the Schulich School at McGill University, University of Cincinnati, Baylor University, Vanderbilt University, University of Texas at Austin, University of Michigan, the Peabody Conservatory, University of Washington, Westminster Choir College, and Interlochen. She has served on the juries of the Wirth Prize at McGill University, the Dallas Opera Guild competition, the Kristin Lewis Foundation Scholarship auditions, the Cooper-Bing competition, the Richard Tucker Foundation, the Jensen Foundation, and the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions. Kathleen’s commitment to new music, particularly American music, is a major part of her musical life. She is active as an emcee for Sparks and Wiry Cries’ songSLAM events, which supports new work. In 2022, she performed or conducted world premieres by Matt Boehler, Reinaldo Moya, Jake Heggie, Naila Nombeko, Rene Orth, and Steven Rouse. A published poet and essayist, Kathleen has created several new opera translations and libretti. Her poem You was chosen as one of five poems for Jake Heggie’s new cycle What I Miss, composed for Jamie Barton. Her poems have also been set by composers David Hanlon, Jamie Leidwinger, and Juliana Hall. Her English adaptation of Hansel and Gretel, commissioned by Tri-Cities Opera, is now in use alongside her chamber orchestra arrangement of the work. For Arizona Opera, she created a multilingual version of Emmerich Kalman’s Arizona Lady, and she wrote the libretto for David Hanlon’s Wolf Trap premiere Listen, Wilhelmina! Her English adaptation of Smetana’s The Bartered Bride premiered in 2019, and her English adaptation of La bohème commissioned by Opera Columbus premiered in 2021. Current as of July 30, 2023 CRITICAL ACCLAIM "Kathleen Kelly proves to be a splendid collaborator at the piano..." – National Association of Teachers of Singing Force of Nature – "Kathleen Kelly proves to be a splendid collaborator at the piano, dispatching even the most demanding songs with astonishing ease. The technical quality of these recordings is sterling." __________ "... most unforgettable is the final song, “You”..." – San Francisco Chronicle Jamie Barton in Recital – "Perhaps most unforgettable is the final song, “You,” with a text by the pianist and educator Kathleen Kelly, Barton’s longtime recital partner. The words convey the power of distance and memory in shaping onscreen interactions between loved ones, and Heggie sets it to music of almost translucent emotion. Small wonder that Barton teared up in the course of delivering it, and she was hardly alone." __________ "... a pianist with a voice and imagination..." – London Times Recital Tour with Jaime Barton – "American mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton brought...Kathleen Kelly, a pianist with a voice and imagination as distinctive, versatile and capacious as hers, and a programme that combined grandeur, fantasy and relatability — that much-mocked ability to cut through the perceived limitations of art song and touch a kind of folk memory.” __________ "... Kathleen Kelly’s dynamic musical direction..." – San Francisco Classical Voice Schwabacher Summer Scenes Concert – “Among some 30 Merola opening concerts I’ve seen, many provided great discoveries, but the intensity of the entire 2018 edition...seemed unique...under Kathleen Kelly’s dynamic musical direction and former “Merolina” Aria Umezawa’s restrained staging...Kelly’s orchestra throve apace and once again the conductor secured the primacy of voices.” __________ "... with a flair that matched the continual spark onstage..." – Opera News Le nozze di Figaro – “Part of that eloquence came from the tasteful application of embellishment, which all the principals employed throughout the performance to valuable effect...In the pit, Kathleen Kelly conducted a generally tidy, smartly-paced account of the score...articulated with a flair that matched the continual spark onstage.” __________ "... Kathleen Kelly’s incisive conducting..." – Wall Street Journal Ariadne auf Naxos – “Kathleen Kelly’s incisive conducting...complemented Ms. Zambello’s antic directing in Act I and expanded into supportive, long-breathed phrases in Act II.” __________ "... fine musical direction by conductor Kathleen Kelly..." – Huffington Post A Coffin in Egypt – “All the elements of this production seem to fall effortlessly into place, from the striking set...to the fine musical direction by conductor Kathleen Kelly.” FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Shawn Marie Jeffery General

View artists profile - SOPRANO/ACTOR ACTOR'S ACCESS ARTIST WEBSITE INSTAGRAM EMMA GRIMSLEY SOPRANO/ACTOR BIOGRAPHY Soprano Emma Grimsley has proved herself to be an artist that can span many musical genres, gaining momentum in both opera and musical theatre. Emma recently performed the lead role of Christine Daaé in the National Tour of The Phantom of the Opera which concluded in Toronto in 2020. While on tour she also performed the role of Young Alyce in Glory Denied with Des Moines Metro Opera and appeared as the soprano soloist in On Broadway with Springfield Symphony Orchestra. Most recently, Ms. Grimsley appeared in concerts with Salt March Opera, Music for a Great Space, and Transcendence Theatre Company. In addition, she can frequently be seen and heard in cabaret and concert venues around New York, including 54 Below and Joe’s Pub. A champion of new works, Ms. Grimsley is constantly involved in innovative productions in both opera and theatre. A few notable projects include the workshops of Theo Popov and Tony Asaro’s The Halloween Tree with American Lyric Theatre, Young Alyce in Tom Cipullo’s contemporary opera Glory Denied with Nashville Opera, based on Tom Philpott’s novel about America’s longest serving POW, and a reading of a new play by Tony Award-winning playwright Mark Medoff, Time and Chance . READ MORE Ms. Grimsley recently performed in the world premiere of Favorite Son , a folk opera by Grammy Award-winning Nashville songwriter Marcus Hummon; she portrayed Johanna in Sweeney Todd with Opera Tampa and Cinderella in Into the Woods with Annapolis Opera; and she was a soloist in Christian De Gre Cardenas’ Twisted Operettas at Joe’s Pub in the Public Theater. Prior engagements include Johanna in Sweeney Todd with New Orleans Opera and Eugene Opera, Tzeitel in Fiddler on the Roof with Shreveport Opera, and Barbara Conti in the Off-Broadway production of Figaro! 90210 , which she later reprised at The Duke on 42nd Street. Emma had the opportunity to be a part of Friends in Theater Company’s production of The Secret Garden at the famed Off-Broadway Lucille Lortel Theatre to benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation, which featured Broadway stars such as Rebecca Luker and Bill Nolte from the original cast of the musical. Ms. Grimsley made her professional début as Lucia in Vespertine Opera Theater’s production of The Rape of Lucretia and has since built an impressive repertoire of roles. Opera credits include Papagena in Die Zauberflöte with Pacific Music Works in Seattle, Cunegonde in Candide for Ash Lawn Opera, Gretel in Hänsel und Gretel and Guenevere in Camelot at the Seagle Music Colony, the Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte at the Louis J. Roussel Performance Hall in New Orleans, Mabel in Pirates of Penzance at Belfast Maskers, and Minette in the West Coast premiere of Hans Werner Henze’s The English Cat at the University of Southern California. She also joined the prestigious Aspen Music Festival and School. Grimsley is also a published writer with a degree in English from Loyola University in New Orleans. She shared her literary skills with Playbill when she conducted an interview with famed composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz. Current as of September 1, 2025 FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES S hawn Marie Jeffery General/Opera Adrienne Boris Symphony Aaron Sanko Film/TV/Theatre CRITICAL ACCLAIM "...an enchanting Emma Grimsley..." – Broadway World The Phantom of the Opera – "Emma Grimsley will assume the role of 'Christine Daaé' beginning August 7 when the spectacular new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, currently on tour in North America, starts performances in Honolulu, HI for the first time in almost 25 years." __________ "...Emma Grimsley was a standout..." – New Orleans Advocate Sweeney Todd – “Among the other singers, Emma Grimsley was a standout as Johanna. …Her ‘Green Finch and Linnet Bird’ aria is a lilting, sentimental paean to the need for love she feels in her heart.” __________ "...brilliant..." – On Broadway Springfield Symphony Pops Concert – “Another of the evening’s many high points (literally and figuratively) was Grimsley’s brilliant account of the stratospheric aria “Glitter and be Gay” from Leonard Bernstein’s Candide. She and Murphy stole our hearts with the “Balcony Scene” from West Side Story and returned to captivate once again during the evening’s second half with “All I Ask of You” from Phantom of the Opera.” __________ "...Grimsley's voice soars...completely effortless..." – Broadway World The Phantom of the Opera – “ Emma Grimsley plays Christine Daaé. While the role calls for a very wide vocal range by musical theater standards, Grimsley's voice soars up to the high notes so gracefully it makes them sound completely effortless.” -Broadway World __________ "...Grimsley's soprano is all steel and silver..." – Chicago Sun-Times The Phantom of the Opera – “Grimsley's soprano is all steel and silver: Crescendo-ing through the upper reaches of the treble clef is an athletic endeavor, and Grimsley pulls it off without sacrificing Christine's gossamer fragility. Their tango duet in "Past the Point of No Return" smolders in the wake of "Don Juan Triumphant," a Caligula-worthy bacchanal that includes a grotesquely glistening boar-on-a-spit and a peacock.”

View artists profile - CONDUCTOR ANDREW BISANTZ CONDUCTOR BIOGRAPHY “Bisantz is a powerhouse...” – Buffalo News A versatile musician acknowledged for his passionate and commanding leadership from the podium, the exciting American conductor Andrew Bisantz is building an impressive roster of credits at leading national orchestras and opera companies throughout the country. He is an Associate Professor of Music and Principal Opera Conductor at Boston Conservatory at Berklee and the Music Director at Eugene Opera. At Eugene, Mr. Bisantz has been responsible for the emergence of the company as one of the most noted and important performing arts organizations in the Pacific Northwest. There, he has conducted Don Giovanni , Le nozze di Figaro , Faust , La bohème , The Mikado , Carmen , Nixon in China , The Pirates of Penzance , Dead Man Walking , Orphée aux Enfers , La fanciulla del West , L’elisir d’amore , Lucia di Lammermoor , Eugene Onegin , The Magic Flute and La Traviata . Last season, Mr. Bisantz conducted Le nozze di Figaro and New York Stories with Eugene Opera, as well as La Fanciulla del West for Central City Opera. In addition, he recently returned to the podium at Florida Grand Opera to conduct performances of New York Stories , Madama Butterfly for Opera Tampa, and A Little Night Music for Arizona Opera. This season, he will be conducting Rigoletto and Dark Sisters for Eugene Opera, as well as Così fan tutte for Boston Conservatory at Berklee. READ MORE In recent seasons, Mr. Bisantz returned to Opera Tampa to conduct Sweeney Todd , as well as Acis and Galatea for Eugene Opera, Lee Hoiby and Lanford Wilson’s Summer and Smoke for SUNY Fredonia, and Northwestern University’s production of The Magic Flute . He also conducted Opera Saratoga’s production of The Consul , a concert entitled “Mozart’s Operatic Favorites” with Buffalo Philharmonic, Albert Herring at McGill University, Tosca with Tri-Cities Opera, Le nozze di Figaro for Florida Grand Opera, Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Fallen Giant for American Lyric Theater, La fille du régiment with Opera Saratoga, Dialogues des Carmelites with Savannah Voice Festival, as well as his company’s productions of As One and H.M.S. Pinafore, La fanciulla del West with Virginia Opera, Macbeth for Opera Tampa, Don Giovanni with Northwestern University, and Il barbiere di Siviglia with Eugene Opera. Notable engagements from the past few seasons also include returns to Florida Grand Opera for Rigoletto , Menotti’s The Consul , and Die Zauberflöte ; A Midsummer Night’s Dream at McGill University; Rigoletto at Opera Coeur d’Alene and Tri-Cities Opera; Verdi’s La Traviata for Virginia Opera; Le nozze di Figaro at Opera San José; La faniciulla del West at Opera Omaha; and Don Giovanni at Savannah Voice Festival and in his début with Wolf Trap Opera. He also conducted Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 with the Boston Landmarks Orchestra under the famed Hatch Shell and sold-out performances of Rhapsody in Blue with Buffalo Philharmonic. Mr. Bisantz made his European début conducting concerts with the Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto in Porto, Portugal and returned conducting a concert of Bomtempo’s Requiem with the OSP and the Coro Casa da Música. He also recently débuted at the Brevard Music Center, conducting Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore for the Janiec Opera Company. For his début with Boston Lyric Opera leading The Turn of the Screw , The Boston Globe selected it as one of the ten top Boston classical music events of 2010, and The Boston Musical Intelligencer noted that “Conductor Andrew Bisantz led the small group of instrumentalists with skill and an impeccable ear for balance...in those instances when the players were the focal point, especially the interludes that fall between each scene, the musicianship was effective and inspired.” He subsequently returned for productions of Tosca and Madama Butterfly . Mr. Bisantz previously served as Associate Conductor of Florida Grand Opera (FGO). He made his FGO main stage début conducting Bizet’s Carmen for the company’s historic final performances at Miami-Dade County Auditorium. With FGO, he also conducted Suor Angelica , Pagliacci , La Cenerentola , La bohème , Don Giovanni , and Manon Lescaut . At FGO General Director Robert Heuer’s 25th Anniversary Gala, Maestro Bisantz led the FGO Orchestra in performance with notable artists such as Elizabeth Futral, Katharine Goeldner, Kyle Pfortmiller, and David Pomeroy. Additional positions held include Assistant Conductor at Glimmerglass Opera, where he conducted Gilbert and Sullivan’s Patience and Massenet’s Le portrait de Manon ; Apprentice Conductor and Associate Producer of the Buffalo Philharmonic National Public Radio broadcasts; Music Director of the Florida International University Opera Theatre; and faculty member of VOICExperience, a summer voice program created by legendary baritone Sherrill Milnes and soprano Maria Zouves. Mr. Bisantz earned his Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from Fredonia State College, where he studied piano with Robert Jordan and conducting with Grant Cooper. He completed his Master of Music degree in Orchestral Conducting at the Cleveland Institute of Music where he studied with legendary conductors such as Carl Topilow, Louis Lane, and current Music Director of New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Alan Gilbert. Current as of November 1, 2024 FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Shawn Marie Jeffery General CRITICAL ACCLAIM "...conducted with rocking rhythmic energy..." – Opera News Nixon in China – “The orchestra under Andrew Bisantz, Eugene Opera’s music director, did full justice to John Adams’s magnificent, often beautiful score. Bisantz conducted with rocking rhythmic energy and a wide dynamic range, wonderfully soft in such lyrical passages as the banquet toasts and Chou En-lai’s closing lines.” __________ "...He summoned the gloriously romantic, cinematic music with crisp execution..." – Virginia Times Dispatch La Fanciulla del West – “Andrew Bisantz’s conducting was the first of many master strokes. He summoned the gloriously romantic, cinematic music with crisp execution, from the foreboding power of the percussion to the romantic beauty of the strings to the pastoral shades of the horns.” __________ “…Bisantz is a powerhouse…” – Buffalo News Don Giovanni – “Bisantz is a powerhouse who plays harpsichord to accompany the recitatives, conducts charmingly with no baton, and even stepped in for a cameo role as the Commandatore in "Don Giovanni." The Commandatore dies at the start of the opera and so Bisantz spent a couple minutes simply lying in the middle of the stage. You had to love him for that…And you had to love him for this unusual program. Currently, Bisantz is music director of the Eugene Opera, and he must put some thought into how to widen the audience for this ancient art form. This concert is one that could make anyone want to hear more.” __________ "...Bisantz evoked lines interwoven beautifully with the vocals..." – Mercury News The Marriage of Figaro – “In his Opera San Jose debut, conductor Andrew Bisantz revealed the emotions behind Mozart’s incredible technique. The composer’s favorite number, the Act III sextet, was a revelatory experience. Bisantz evoked lines interwoven beautifully with the vocals, with textures crystal clear, giving the mastery of Mozart’s counterpoint its resplendent shine.” __________ "… Bisantz brought the act to a truly terrifying climax…” – The Boston Musical IntelligenceR Tosca – “Under Andrew Bisanz’s baton, the BLO orchestra brought Puccini’s score to life. The reminiscence motives weresubtly marked and Puccini’s instrumentation was treated with an extraordinary sensitivity. Particularly remarkable was the first act’s grand crescendo… Bisantz brought the act to a truly terrifying climax…”

View artist profile - ACTOR MEDIA ACTOR'S ACCESS ARTIST WEBSITE INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK YOUTUBE MICHEL VASQUEZ ACTOR REPRESENTATIVES FILM/TV Christopher D. Silveri THEATRE Aaron Sanko JUNIOR AGENT: FILM/TV Lucius Robinson

View artist profile - BASS-BARITONE PHILIP COKORINOS BASS-BARITONE BIOGRAPHY Hailed by Opera News for his “comedic high jinks” and “first-rate singing,” Philip Cokorinos was winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 1985 and went on to sing his début during the Met’s 1987-1988 season. Since then, he appeared in more than 400 performances of 40 operas at the Met, including “Live from the Met” telecasts of Don Giovanni ; the world premiere of The Ghosts of Versailles ; and the Met’s premieres of Sly , Cyrano de Bergerac , The Gambler , and Shostakovich’s verismo expressionist opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk , to name a few. He appeared many times in their productions of the standard repertoire, including Tosca , La bohème , La fanciulla del West , La Traviata , Adriana Lecouvreur , La rondine , Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg , Macbeth, Manon , Don Carlo, Tosca, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Gianni Schicchi , Manon Lescaut , and Le nozze di Figaro . The Metropolitan Opera Live in HD broadcasts have included Manon , La fanciulla del West , The Nose , Werther , Manon Lescaut , Le nozze di Figaro , La bohème , and Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk . Mr. Cokorinos’s tenure at the Metropolitan Opera has recently included their productions of Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk , La bohème , and Tosca . Last season. Mr. Cokorinos returned to the Metropolitan Opera to cover Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro . He also joined Opera Tampa to sing the title role in Don Pasquale , El Paso Opera to sing Frère Laurent in Roméo et Juliette , and he finished his season with the Bard Music Festival, reprising the role of Grandfather in Martinů’s Julietta . This season he rejoins the Metropolitan Opera, this time to cover Matthieu in Andrea Chenier . He also joins Florentine Opera as the Sacristan in Tosca and reprises his Frère Laurent with Resonance Works. For Vero Beach Opera, he’ll perform as both Sparafucile and Monterone in their production of Rigoletto . READ MORE Outside of the Met, recent appearances include Benoit/Alcindoro in La bohème with The Atlanta Opera and the Pacific Symphony, Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore with Anchorage Opera and San Francisco Opera (cover), Frère Laurent in Roméo et Juliette with New York City Opera, and Schlendrian in On Site Opera’s English translation of Bach’s Coffee Cantata . Mr. Cokorinos sang the Sacristan in Tosca at Los Angeles Opera and Opera San Antonio, Benoit/Alcindoro in La bohème at the Seiji Ozawa Music Academy, San Diego Opera’s long-awaited Gianni Schicchi as Simone, performances of Cappadocia, Slave, and Second Nazarene in Salome with Spoleto Festival USA and The Atlanta Opera, and Grandfather in the U.S. premiere of Julietta with American Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. 2020 engagements were to include Simone in Gianni Schicchi with the San Diego Opera and a return to the Metropolitan Opera for La bohème , the Sacristan in Tosca , and Johann in Werther . In the spring of 2021, he returned to the stage with Austin Opera for the Sacristan in Tosca. A house favorite with Los Angeles Opera, Mr. Cokorinos has appeared many times with the company including a triumphant return for their “Beaumarchais Trilogy,” singing Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia , Antonio in Le nozze di Figaro , and Pasha in The Ghosts of Versailles , all under Maestro James Conlon. He later returned as Betto di Signa in their production of Gianni Schicchi/Pagliacci . Other roles with the house include Benoit/Alcindoro in La bohème , Baron Duphol in La Traviata , the Sacristan in Tosca , Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin , Duke of Verona in Roméo et Juliette , Zuniga in Carmen , Bitterolf in Tannhäuser , and Ser Amantio di Nicolao in Gianni Schicchi with director Woody Allen. Elsewhere, he performed the title role in Don Pasquale with Opera Santa Barbara and Anchorage Opera. With New York City Opera, Mr. Cokorinos performed the roles of Archibaldo in L’amore dei tre re , the Priest in La campana sommersa , and made his role début as Riolobo in Florencia en el Amazonas . He sang Daland in Der fliegende Holländer with Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and he added Swallow in Peter Grimes to his many roles with Chautauqua Opera, which include Méphistophélès in Faust , Oroveso in Norma , the Forester in The Cunning Little Vixen , and Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor . With Opera Colorado, he sang Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola and the Sacristan in Tosca ; with the Spoleto Festival USA, he sang Coley in Flora and Capellio in Bellini’s I Capuleti e i Montecchi ; and with Central City Opera, he sang Don Marco in The Saint of Bleecker Street , Pandolfe in Cendrillon , and his most frequently performed role, Leporello in Don Giovanni . Additional North American engagements include Frère Laurent in Roméo et Juliette with Opera Carolina and Nashville Opera; Rocco in Fidelio with Palm Beach Opera; Timur in Turandot with Florida Grand Opera; Banquo in Macbeth with Edmonton Opera; Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Calgary Opera and Opera Lyra Ottawa; Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte with Atlanta Opera; and multiple productions with Glimmerglass Opera, including Il matrimonio segreto , Le comte Ory , Il barbiere di Siviglia , and La finta giardiniera . On the concert stage, Mr. Cokorinos’ notable symphonic appearances include Haydn’s Creation and Handel’s Messiah at Carnegie Hall, Herod in Berlioz’ L’enfance du Christ telecast with NHK Symphony in Tokyo. He appeared in concert with the Minnesota Orchestra; Cincinnati May Festival; Spoleto Festival USA; Spokane Symphony; The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra; Jacksonville Symphony; the Little Orchestra Society of New York; and in several performances with Opera Orchestra of New York including Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola , Raimondo in Wagner’s Rienzi , Rochefort in Anna Bolena , Astarote in Armida , Cardinal de Brogni in La Juive , the Prefect in Linda di Chamounix , Capellio in I Capuleti e i Montecchi , and Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte , staged in the Temple of Dendur at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. His discography includes two works of Hector Berlioz with the Montreal Symphony under Charles Dutoit: Herod in L’enfance du Christ and Wagner in Huit Scenes de Faust , both released on DECCA. He can also be heard on the world-premiere recording of Stephen Paulus’ oratorio To Be Certain of the Dawn with the Minnesota Orchestra under Osmo Vanska, and the Grammy Award-winning recording of Corigliano’s The Ghosts of Versailles with Los Angeles Opera. Current as of September 1, 2025 CRITICAL ACCLAIM "...first-rate singing..." – Opera News La Cenerentola – “With his double takes and well-handled comedic high jinks, not to mention first-rate singing, bass-baritone Philip Cokorinos could hardly have been stronger as [Don] Magnifico.” __________ "...authoritative and compelling..." – Opera News Florencia en el Amazonas – “Bass-baritone Philip Cokorinos was authoritative and compelling as Riolobo, the boatswain/river god.” __________ "...rolling, commanding baritone..." – Opera Today The Cunning Little Vixen – “Surpassed by a tremendous performance from Philip Cokorinos as “Bartos, the Forester.” Mr. Cokorinos’ rolling, commanding baritone; his heartfelt outpouring of thoroughly internalized text; and his sympathetic demeanor didn’t just merely touch me, but rather became the heart of the piece, making the opera work for me in a way that no previous mounting had.” __________ "...stood out from the fine cast..." – Opera News L’amore dei tre re – “Philip Cokorinos, as the blind Archibaldo, who strangles his faithless daughter-in-law, stood out from the fine cast for his commanding voice and strong projection of character.” __________ "...shines as the gem in the cast..." – The Emory Wheel Don Giovanni – “Vocally, Philip Cokorinos shines as the gem in the cast as Leporello.With rich, ringing baritone notes, he often outshines his master in vocal abilities.He has fine acting chops as well, easily milking laughs from his often laughable character.” FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES Elliot Brown General/Opera Adrienne Boris Symphony

View artists profile - DIRECTOR ARTIST WEBSITE JAMIBETH MARGOLIS DIRECTOR BIOGRAPHY With nearly twenty years of professional experience in theater and opera, Jamibeth Margolis is a stage director and trained intimacy choreographer based in New York City with credits at prestigious theaters and opera companies around the US including New York City Opera, Lincoln Center, The Metropolitan Opera, and many more. Most recently, Jamibeth directed and cast the staged reading of John Riley’s A Girl I Know . Recent theatrical directing credits include National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s Broadway: A Jewish American Legacy gala event, The Whole Megillah at 54 Below, The Count of Monte Cristo at the Bleecker Street Theatre, and a staged reading of Save the Palace with LDK Productions. She also directed a semi-staged concert production of The Music Man for Pacific Symphony. This season, Jamibeth is leading casting for Harmony on Broadway and the 2023-2024 season at the National Yiddish Theatre. Other theatrical credits include Do I Hear a Waltz? and Jekyll and Hyde with Arvada Center Theater in Denver and As You Like It with Cortland Repertory Theatre. Ms. Margolis worked alongside Tony Award winner Jerry Zaks on the Broadway revival of The Caine Mutiny Court Martial and alongside Jules Feiffer in A Bad Friend with Lincoln Center Theatre. She also helmed developmental productions of new musical works including Owl Creek , Far from the Madding Crowd , Plane Crazy , Great Googley Moo , and Warsaw . READ MORE Jamibeth’s operatic directing credits include productions of Tosca, The Pirates of Penzance, Amahl and the Night Visitors, La Traviata, The Merry Widow, Dance of Death, and The Tender Land. An advocate of developing new voices for the stage, she directed several new chamber operas by Martin Halpern including The Lock of Hair, The Inseparables and most recently, What the Babe Said. Jamibeth was the recipient of the competitive SDCF Directing Observership on Mark Lamos’ production of Tosca at New York City Opera and served as Assistant Stage Director for La Traviata and Lucia di Lammermoor at Opera New Jersey. In prior seasons, she assisted with the casting for The Merry Widow at the Metropolitan Opera starring Plácido Domingo. In addition to Jamibeth’s career as a stage director, she is also an accomplished casting director and general manager working with various companies in New York before subsequently starting her own company, Jamibeth Margolis Casting. Select casting credits include the Broadway and National Touring Companies of Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, Miss Saigon, Cats, and Jane Eyre and many others. Additionally, she is the resident casting director at National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, where she’s cast many productions, such as Harmony and their Yiddish production of Fiddler on the Roof. She also teaches musical theater, acting, and audition technique in studios all around New York City and serves on the BFA Acting Faculty at Pace University. Member: Actors’ Equity Association, the Casting Society of America, and the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and ATPAM. She served as a Tony Awards Voter for three Broadway seasons. Member: Lincoln Center Directors Lab. She holds a degree from Ithaca College in Drama/Directing. Current as of August 31, 2023 FULL PRESS KIT LATEST NEWS REPRESENTATIVES PRIMARY Aaron Sanko