The Atlanta Opera: Das Rheingold, April-May, 2023

DAS RHEINGOLD

WAGNER

APR 29 - MAY 7, 2023

COBB ENERGY PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE

THE ATLANTA OPERA

Our audience is your audience.

Advertise with Encore and reach a targeted group of performing arts lovers.

ENCOREATLANTA.COM

PUBLISHER

Brantley Manderson brantley@encoreatlanta.com

SENIOR ACCOUNT DIRECTOR CHARLOTTE Hila Johnson hila@encorecharlotte.com

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Robert Viagas robert@encoreatlanta.com

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Tamara Hooks tamara@encoreatlanta.com

DIGITAL MEDIA DIRECTOR

Jennifer Nelson jennifer@encoreatlanta.com

WRITER David Cote

ENCORE ATLANTA is published monthly by B2 MEDIA, LLC. P.O. Box 1377 | Columbus, Georgia 31902 Phone 678-837-4004

Copyright © 2023 Encore Atlanta. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is strictly prohibited. Encore Atlanta is a registered publication of B2 Media, LLC. The publisher shall not be liable for failure to publish an ad, for typographical errors, or errors in publication. Publisher reserves the right to refuse any advertising for any reason and to alter advertising copy or graphics deemed unacceptable for publication.

CONTACT Hila Johnson 305-978-2922

hila@encorecharlotte.com

As one of the region’s largest Marketing Solutions Providers, Communicorp handles everything from print to digital to emerging technologies like clickable print or eCommerce storefronts. We guide clients through the maze of new marketing technologies and methodologies with a unique approach that always looks beyond yesterday’s solutions. Based in Columbus, GA, Communicorp is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aflac. To learn more about our award-winning solutions, visit Communicorp.com.

“To Strauss the composer, I take off my hat; to Strauss the man, I put it back on.” As I prepared for this production, these words from Arturo Toscanini frequently popped into my head. Though he said it about Strauss, I feel it could easily be applied to another controversial genius who many consider Strauss’ artistic parent–Richard Wagner.

Wagner is one of the most problematic artists that ever lived. Countless words have been spilled about his tantalizing gifts and as many about his unsavory character. “The sorcerer of Bayreuth” lured us into an incredible, mythological world infused with a profound understanding of the human condition. It seems impossible his own humanity could ever be called into question. How could such an unlimited imagination exist within a person of such limited views? Wagner’s well-documented racism raises the question of whether we should program his work or not. As a proud Israeli, I am especially sensitive to this question. We can have long debates over that, and we will, but for now, the short answer is obviously in front of you–we are presenting Wagner in Atlanta.

This production of Das Rheingold is a watershed moment for this company and me personally. Since my first day at The Atlanta Opera a decade ago, we started discussing the then-unimaginable idea of doing this piece in Atlanta. Ten years later, with fifty productions and a mound of obstacles along the way, we arrive at the long-awaited premiere. To say we couldn’t do it without you sounds like a cliche, but it is a truth of monumental proportions. I want to thank all of you for following our vision–a vision of real connection to the community, growth and innovation, honoring the old and nurturing the new.

As we close this exciting season, I invite you to join us for a comprehensive journey next season that will take you to some unexpected places: The Shining, co-produced with the Alliance Theatre; Frankenstein, the silver screen opera film; Rigoletto in a daring new production; our beloved La bohème; the Opera’s first-ever production of the Bard’s and Britten’s magical A Midsummer Night’s Dream; and closing with the second installment of the Ring: Die Walküre. I hope you are enjoying our journey. It has been an absolute thrill.

This production is dedicated to Speight Jenkins, the greatest Wagnerian I know.

Tomer Zvulun

Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General & Artistic Director

THE 2022-23 SEASON SPONSOR

Official Beverage of The Atlanta Opera

THE 2022-23 DISCOVERIES SERIES SPONSOR

The Molly Blank Fund of the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation

WITH ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FROM The Livingston Foundation

THE VETERANS TICKET PROGRAM SPONSOR

THIS PRODUCTION OF WAGNER’S DAS RHEINGOLD IS SPONSORED BY

*Mr. & Mrs. Carl W. Knobloch, Jr.

Howard Hunter - Gramma Fisher Foundation

Atlanta Music Festival Fund of The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta

The Halle Foundation

OPENING NIGHT SPONSORS

Dr. & Mrs. Alexander Gross

Mr. & Mrs. Paul Blackney

ADDITIONAL PERFORMANCES ARE DEDICATED IN MEMORY OF *Mrs. Lessie B. Smithgall

GREER GRIMSLEY’S APPEARANCE SPONSORED BY The Mary & Charlie Yates Family Fund

*deceased

THE ATLANTA OPERA IS GRATEFUL FOR PUBLIC SUPPORT FROM

This program is supported in part by the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs and by the National Endowment for the Arts. This program is also supported in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. GCA also receives support from its partner agency—the National Endowment for the Arts. Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners.

DAS RHEINGOLD

COMPOSER & LIBRETTIST Richard Wagner

FIRST PERFORMANCE September 22, 1869, National Theatre Munich, Munich, Germany

CONDUCTOR Arthur Fagen

STAGE DIRECTOR Tomer Zvulun

SCENIC & PROJECTIONS DESIGNER Erhard Rom

LIGHTING DESIGNER Robert Wierzel

COSTUME DESIGNER Mattie Ullrich

CAST

WOTAN Greer Grimsley

LOGE Richard Cox

ALBERICH Zachary Nelson

MIME Julius Ahn

FRICKA Elizabeth DeShong

ERDA Ronnita Miller

FASOLT Kristinn Sigmundsson

WIG & MAKEUP DESIGNER David Zimmerman

LIVE ACTION DESIGNER Ran Arthur Braun

FILMED MEDIA Felipe Barral

FILMED MEDIA Amanda Sachtleben

FAFNER Daniel Sumegi

DONNER Joseph Barron

FROH Adam Diegel

FREIA Jessica Faselt

WOGLINDE Cadie J. Bryan

WELLGUNDE Alexandra Razskazoff

FLOSSHILDE Gretchen Krupp*

SUPERNUMERARIES Catherine Campbell, Raine Hayes, Jerry Hunter, Heike Miskawi, Eva Rothenberg, Cherie Rustler, David van Mersbergen, Megan Wartell, Spiro Winset

CHILD SUPERNUMERARIES Phoebe Rose Claeys, Lucy Davis, Emmy Fortson, Maria Ramirez Garcia, Eva Harold, Lily Kennedy, Melinah Muradian, Jo Pearlstein, Natalie Poghosyan, Olivia Scott, Parker Turano

ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR Stefano Sarzani

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR Gregory Boyle

MUSICAL PREPARATION Elena Kholodova

PROJECTED TITLES Brendan Callahan-Fitzgerald

ASSISTANT SCENERY & PROJECTIONS DESIGNER Lauren Carroll

PROJECTION PROGRAMMER Erin Teachman

ASSISTANT LIGHTING DESIGNER Christopher Wong

ASSISTANT COSTUME DESIGNER & COSTUME COORDINATOR Misty Ayres

PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER Megan Bennett

ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGERS Caitlin Denney-Turner, Kristin Kelley

SWING STAGE MANAGER Raymond Menard

SUPERNUMERARY CAPTAIN Spiro Winset

CHILD SUPERNUMERARY WRANGLER Alexandra Svirshch

Performed in German with English supertitles. | Approximate running time: two hours and 45 minutes, with no intermission.

English Captions by Jonathan Dean | English Captions for DAS RHEINGOLD owned by Jonathan Dean, ©2013

The purchase of equipment for The Atlanta Opera is supported by a gift from Eva & Robert Ratonyi.

Richard Wagner DAS RHEINGOLD

Reduced version by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing | Used by arrangement with European American Music Distributors Company, sole U.S. and Canadian agent for Schott Music GmbH & Co. KG, Mainz, Germany

Scenery constructed by Dallas Stage Scenery, Inc. | Properties constructed by Gary Musick Productions and The Atlanta Opera Production Studio. Costumes constructed by Siam Costumes International Company, Carmel Dundon, Dallas Opera, and The Atlanta Opera Costume Studio.

*Member of The Atlanta Opera Glynn Studio. Sponsored in name this season by a gift from Beth & Gary Glynn, The Glynn Studio Artists also receive significant support from the Donald & Marilyn Keough Foundation, and John & YeeWan Stevens. The Studio Artist director position is funded by Jerry & Dulcy Rosenberg in honor of Tomer Zvulun.

The Met Opera

In the depths of the Rhine river , the three Rhinemaidens guard the Rhinegold, a treasure of immeasurable value. The Nibelung dwarf Alberich is dazzled by the sight of it. The girls explain that whoever wins the gold and forges it into a ring will gain power over the world, but must first renounce love. Frustrated by his unsuccessful attempts to catch one of the girls, Alberich curses love and steals the gold.

Wotan, lord of the gods, is reproached by his wife Fricka: he has promised to give Freia, goddess of youth, to the giants Fasolt and Fafner in return for their building a fortress for the gods. When the giants demand their

The Rheinmaidens protect the gold from Alberich.

SCOTT SUCHMAN / DALLAS OPERA

reward, Loge, the god of fire, suggests an alternative payment: the ring Alberich has forged from the Rhinegold, and his other treasures. The giants agree, and Wotan and Loge leave for the Nibelungs’ underground home.

Here they meet Alberich’s brother Mime, who has forged the Tarnhelm, a magic helmet that transforms its wearer into any shape. Mime tells Wotan and Loge how Alberich has enslaved the Nibelungs to work for him. Alberich appears and mocks the gods. Loge asks for a demonstration of the Tarnhelm and Alberich turns himself into a dragon, then into a toad, which the gods capture. Dragged to the surface, the dwarf is forced to summon the Nibelungs to heap up the gold. Wotan wrests the ring from his finger. Shattered, Alberich curses the ring: ceaseless worry and death shall be the destiny of its bearer.

The giants return and agree to accept the gold. The gods have to give up even the Tarnhelm, but Wotan refuses to part with the ring. Erda, goddess of the earth, appears and warns him that possession of it will bring about the end of the gods. Wotan reluctantly gives the ring to the giants, and Alberich’s curse claims its first victim as Fafner kills his brother in a dispute over the treasure. As the voices of the Rhinemaidens are heard, lamenting the loss of their gold, the gods walk toward their new home, which Wotan names Valhalla.

SCOTT SUCHMAN / DALLAS OPERA

The Giants confront Wotan.

Notes on the Program

WRITTEN

“The incomparable thing about myth is that it is always true, and its content, through utmost compression, is inexhaustible for all time.”

– Richard Wagner

J. R. R. Tolkien has been credited with saying, “I believe that legends and myths are largely made of ‘truth,’ and indeed present aspects of it that can only be received in this mode.” Tolkien here touches on a relationship that rests at the core of Wagner’s Das Rheingold, as well as his Ring as a whole: the relationship among myth, truth, and time.

The Gods ascension to Valhalla.

SCOTT SUCHMAN / DALLAS OPERA

BY Julia Brown Simmons

For Richard Wagner, what started as a project centered on Siegfried, the Germanic mythological hero, turned into a three-part drama with a prelude: the Ring cycle. The libretti for all four operas were written before Wagner began composing the music for his ambitious project. The prelude, Das Rheingold, was the final of the four libretti to be written and was completed in 1852. Although the last to be written, Wagner composed chronologically, and Das Rheingold was therefore the first piece of the Ring to be set to music. Wagner claimed that the opening music came to him in 1853 while in a dreamlike state in Italy, giving us the sound of the river Rhine that sets the stage for the opera.

Das Rheingold begins when three Rhinemaidens playing in the river are interrupted by Alberich, a lustful, power-hungry dwarf. Alberich learns that the maidens are guarding the Rhinegold, which they explain can be turned into a magic ring that makes its bearer all-powerful—as long as he renounces love. Alberich does just that: he curses love, seizes the gold, and forges a ring.

Meanwhile, the king of the gods, Wotan, has been unable to compensate Fafner and Fasolt, the giants who have helped build his castle, Valhalla. With the giants eager to take Wotan’s wife’s sister as payment, Wotan hears of Alberich’s newfound gold and decides it could be the solution to his problem. Successfully tricking Alberich, Wotan steals the gold and the ring. Furious, Alberich puts a curse on the ring: henceforth, it will inspire jealousy in its possessor and murderous envy in everyone else.

Wotan gives the gold, including the ring, to the giants. Alberich’s curse quickly goes into effect: Fafner murders Fasolt in a fight over the ring. With the danger of the ring casting a shadow over the scene, Wotan leads a procession into Valhalla as the Rhinemaidens lament the loss of the gold and condemn the gods.

On one hand, the story of Das Rehingold is a myth that speaks to a common truth, as Tolkien argues all myths do. Nietzsche, writing about the entirety of the Ring, summarized it in this way: “The tragic hero is a god who thirsts for power and who, after pursing all paths to gain it, binds himself through contracts, loses his freedom, and becomes entangled in the curse that is inseparable

from power.” That plot is, of course, universal; it is the story of the destructive and ephemeral nature of power. It is timeless, in the sense that its truths resonate in any era—from those of the distant past to those yet to come.

On the other hand, parts of Das Rheingold are strongly keyed to Wagner’s moment in history. Wagner lived in a time when the flawed figures of these myths were rising in the political ranks. In fact, it’s no coincidence how well the myths Wagner picked for his Ring map onto his moment: Wagner made alterations to the myths that cause them to reflect his times more closely. For instance, prior to Das Rheingold, no myth mentions an object of total omnipotence akin to the ring in Wagner’s opera cycle; prior myths just feature gold and magic rings. As Alex Ross puts it in his book Wagnerism, “It is surely no accident that such magic lore found new life in the late nineteenth century, when technologies of mass manipulation and mass destruction were coming into view.” Wagner’s particular version of these myths, however universal, was a product of his time.

Not only were Wagner’s choices regarding these stories a product of his time, but they were also a product of his personal politics. Wagner is justly denounced for the antisemitic and proto-fascist views that can be traced in his essays, musical works, and other writings and records. These German-nationalist views and his

SCOTT SUCHMAN / DALLAS OPERA

The Rhinemaidens guarding the gold.

devotion to writing political manifestos started to take shape around the same time that he began delving into the myths at the core of the Ring—old Germanic tales of Siegfried. This timing is also “surely no accident.” Wagner’s German-nationalist politics shaped the way myth manifests in Das Rheingold and the Ring

Wagner’s politics have perennially raised questions about how and if one should separate an artist’s work from his views. Yet, even with all the controversy surrounding Wagner and his work, the Ring has been reinvented not only in new forms on the operatic stage, but in works of popular culture like The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. Perhaps this phenomenon can be credited to the underlying truths of the myths at the core of the opera cycle. While aspects of the Ring point to the particular politics of the composer and his time, the work has managed to resurface and be transformed in ways that speak to people in the contemporary moment—so much so that the Ring itself and several of its adaptations are household names.

As Wotan and the gods enter Valhalla at the end of Das Rheingold, one might say “winter is coming.” We are only at the prelude, and more struggle, loss, and death will follow. Of course, winter is never indefinite, but, at least for this season, spring is still a long way off. So, for now, bundle up!

SCOTT SUCHMAN / DALLAS OPERA

Wotan & Loge confront Alberich in Nibelheim.

Director’s Note

WRITTEN BY Tomer Zvulun

In English there is only one word for “love.” Ancient Greeks however had eight different words to express the different facets of love. The Greek words were nuanced to love based on attraction, for family, friendship, gods, self, etc.

Stories about the human condition stir deep emotion in us because we are all familiar, as human beings, with these different forms of love. From the moment we are embraced by our mothers for the first time, as we discover erotic love, love for our children or our friends, we are never alone. We walk through the world surrounded and defined by our relationship with others.

OREL COHEN

Richard Wagner, who was a great student of the Greeks, truly understood this concept and his operas are infused by his obsession with different kinds of love.

The Greeks listed the different types of loves as: Eros, Ludos, Mania, Storge, Pragma, Philia, Agape, and Philautia. I like to group them into five, with a couple of subsets:

1. Eros: Love driven by desire and sex. Subsets of Eros are Ludus (Flirtatious love) and Mania (obsessive love).

2. Storge: love between family members. Based on belonging. A subset of Storge is Pragma (long lasting love, often based on convenience or partnership).

3. Philia: love between friends.

4. Agape: love of god, of nature, of humanity.

5. Philautia: love of self.

J.R.R Tolkien, who wrote The Lord of The Rings, is often mentioned in the same breath with Wagner as they were both such masters in creating a new world full of fantasy and mythological heroes. One of Tolkien’s best friends, another creator of magical worlds, was C.S. Lewis, who is responsible for the classic Narnia series. Lewis and Tolkien were very close and actually had a literary club called the Inklings.

Where I see a powerful connection between C. S. Lewis and Richard Wagner is not in their creation of incredible fantasies, but in their approach to LOVE. Lewis, interestingly wrote a lesser known book called The Four Loves, in which he brilliantly analyzed four different facets of love (similar to the ones listed above with the exception of the fifth one, Philautia).

Wagner’s four-opera cycle known as The Ring is such a rich masterwork because it is so complex and ever relevant. On the surface it’s packed with fantasy: dragons, giants, dwarves, treasures, caves, and one ring to rule them all.

It is the first multiverse of heroes and superheroes. The first bingeworthy cinematic series was created 150 years before Netflix and HBO.

But on a deeper level The Ring is about identity and belonging. About families: husbands and wives, fathers and daughters, brothers and sisters.

Let me share a few examples from our first of The Ring operas, Das Rheingold. When the curtain rises on this epic story, we are introduced to the most shallow of loves: Ludos: the flirtatious Rheinmaidens banter with Alberich. As the show progresses, we learn of the convenience Pragma that frames Wotan and Fricka’s love, the distorted Philia between Wotan and Loge. In later operas of the Ring we encounter the familial Storge that defines Wotan’s relationship with his children, Bruünhilde and Siegmund, and the Erotic love between Sieglinde and Siegmund. The Ring continues to be full of these relationship as the plot thickens but the most pivotal and destructive type of love we see in The Ring is introduced at the very exposition of the saga: the love for self. In order to possess the ultimate power commanded by the ring itself, Alberich and his arch nemesis Wotan (Light Alberich) must renounce love. All types of love. Love to children, brothers, spouses, parents. It’s the most tragic of all curses: having the ultimate power but betraying everyone else. This Philautia , love for self above all, is a danger to nature, to humankind, to the integrity of a family. It can only be conquered through the most sublime form of love: Agape. Love of nature, of humanity, of the world. Only when the obsession with power and self is disposed of, can the world be redeemed. That is the message of The Ring

In The Ring (and hopefully in our contemporary world) the battle between darkness and light, between selfish love and altruistic love, there is a clear winner: Nature. It is Agape that perseveres. The ring is thrown back into the Rhine River and the world order is restored. But of course, the story doesn’t end there. The struggle between Agape and Philautia is pervasive everywhere: from politics to show business. From the corporate world to the clergy world. How will our current story end? We don’t know.

... and that is why I love The Ring.

©2021 The Coca-Cola Company.

Arthur Fagen has been the Carl and Sally Gable music director at The Atlanta Opera since 2010, and continues to be in great demand as a conductor of symphony and opera both in Europe and the United States. He is a regular guest at the most prestigious opera houses, concert halls, and music festivals at home and abroad, and his career has been marked by a string of notable appearances including the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Staatsoper Berlin, Munich State Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, and New York City Opera. From 1998 to 2001, Fagen was regularly invited to be guest conductor at Vienna State Opera. On the concert podium, Fagen has appeared with internationally renowned orchestras, including Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic, Munich Radio Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie, and RAI Orchestras of Turin, Naples, Milan, and Rome.

From 2002 to 2007, he was the music director of Dortmund Philharmonic Orchestra and Opera. He serves as Chair and Professor, Department of Orchestral Conducting at Indiana University in Bloomington. A former assistant of Christoph von Dohnanyi (Frankfurt Opera) and James Levine (Metropolitan Opera), he served as principal conductor in Kassel and Brunswick, as chief conductor of Flanders Opera of Antwerp and Ghent, as music director of Queens Symphony Orchestra, and as a member of the conducting staff for Lyric Opera of Chicago. Fagen was born in New York and studied with Laszlo Halasz, Max Rudolf (Curtis Institute) and Hans Swarowsky. Fagen has an opera repertoire of more than 75 works and has recorded for Naxos and BMG. His Naxos recording of Bohuslav Martinůs works was awarded Editor’s Choice in the March 2010 issue of Gramophone Magazine.

General and Artistic Director of The Atlanta Opera since 2013, Israeli born Tomer Zvulun is also one of opera’s most exciting stage directors, earning consistent praise for his creative vision, often described as cinematic and fresh. His work has been presented by prestigious opera houses around the world, including The Metropolitan Opera, the opera companies of Israel, Buenos Aires, Wexford, Glimmerglass, Houston, Washington National Opera, Seattle, Detroit, San Diego, Minnesota, Boston, Cleveland, Dallas, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, and Wolf Trap, as well as leading educational institutes and universities such as The Juilliard School, Indiana University, Boston University, and IVAI in Tel Aviv. Since becoming General and Artistic Director in Atlanta a decade ago, he has increased the operations of the company from three to six productions per season, while stabilizing the financials. Some of his noted achievements include launching the successful Discoveries series, creating the first young artist program, tripling the company’s annual fundraising, creating a film studio, and building a theatre in a circus tent where performances were conducted safely during the pandemic. His work has attracted international attention by earning numerous awards and prizes including nomination of The Atlanta Opera for the International Opera Awards in London and the selection of his production Silent Night as both the Irish Times and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s production of the year. His focus on innovation led to an invitation to deliver a TED Talk as well as a case study being taught at Harvard Business School.

ARTHUR FAGEN CONDUCTOR

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT LA TRAVIATA, 2005

TOMER ZVULUN PRODUCTION DIRECTOR ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE FLYING DUTCHMAN, 2009

TOGETHER, LET’S MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF OUR NATION’S HEROES

The Home Depot Founda tion is proud to partner with The Atlanta Opera to honor our U.S. militar y, veterans and their families.

Erhard Rom has designed settings for more than 250 productions around the globe, and in 2015 he was named as a finalist in the designer of the year category for the International Opera Awards in London. Over the years, his designs have frequently been featured in the Prague Quadrennial International Design exhibition. Credits include: San Francisco Opera (The Marriage of Figaro, Susannah, Lucia di Lammermoor, Nixon in China, Don Giovanni, Così fan tutte), Royal Swedish Opera (Nixon in China), Seattle Opera (Semele, Eugene Onegin, La bohème), Washington National Opera (Don Giovanni, Samson and Delilah, Silent Night, Written in Stone, Così fan tutte), Wexford Festival (Silent Night), Houston Grand Opera (Rigoletto), Vancouver Opera (Dead Man Walking, Otello), Glimmerglass Festival (A Blizzard on Marblehead Neck, Later the Same Evening, Silent Night), Opera Theatre of St. Louis (Faust, Jane Eyre, Carmen), Minnesota Opera (The Shining, Dead Man Walking, Rusalka, Romeo and Juliet) Utah Opera (Moby-Dick). Other companies include; Boston Lyric Opera, Opéra de Montréal, The Atlanta Opera, and Wolf Trap among many others. In 2014 he designed the European premiere of Silent Night for the Wexford Festival and the 2015 Irish Times Theatre Awards Ceremony gave it two accolades, including audience choice and best opera production of 2014. Upcoming engagements include new productions of Elektra and Il trovatore for the Washington National Opera and Das Rheingold for Dallas Opera and The Atlanta Opera. Rom also teaches design at Montclair State University in New Jersey.

MATTIE ULLRICH

COSTUME DESIGNER

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

SALOME, 2020

Mattie has designed costumes for opera, theater, film, and dance. You may have seen her work at LA Opera, Norwegian Opera, Theater an der Wien (Vienna, Austria), Palau des les Artes (Valencia, Spain), Washington National Opera, Opera de Montreal, Florida Grand Opera, Opera Philadelphia among many others. She is known for large scale, characterdriven designs that focus on rich storytelling. Mattie’s opera highlights include the world premiere of David T. Little and Royce Vavrek’s JFK (Fort Worth Opera and Opéra de Montréal. The Israeli Opera’s Gulio Cesare performed in the medieval Crusader Fortress (Acco, Isreal). An awardwinning production of Phillip Glasses’s Satyagraha at The Ekaterinburg State Opera (Russia) and the Bolshoi in Moscow, I due Foscari a co-production with LA Opera, The Royal Opera House, Theater an der Wien, and Palau des Artes. Notable theater designs include the The Starry Messenger with Mathew Broderick, The Pride directed by Joe Mantello (Wicked), Fault Lines directed by David Schwimmer (Friends), and The Things We Want directed by Ethan Hawke.

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

Mr. Zimmerman has worked with opera companies around the world. These Include The Metropolitan Opera (NYC), Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Santa Fe Opera, Paris National Opera (France), Opera Philadelphia, Chicago Opera Theater, Minnesota Opera, The Dallas Opera, Opera Santa Barbara, International Music Festival (Macau, China), Holy City Lyric Opera (Charleston, SC), and Dutch National Opera (Amsterdam). Zimmerman’s career extends to Broadway, as well, where he has worked with such shows as Wicked, Rocky Horror, Show Boat, South Pacific, and Evita. Some of his personal clients include Renee Fleming, Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, Patricia Racette, Martha Stewart, Olympia Dukakis, and Ricky Martin. He has also worked with DIFFA Fashion Runway, Dallas Fashion and Art, and Yelp.com Fashion Magazine. Credits include spreads in Opera News, Vanity Fair, and The New Yorker. Television and film credits are Glamour Magazine’s Women of the Year, Margaret (starring Anna Paquin), and Hostiles (starring Christian Bale and Rosemund Pike).

ROBERT WIERZEL

LIGHTING DESIGNER

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR, 2011

DAVID ZIMMERMAN WIG & MAKEUP DESIGNER

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, 2022

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, 2016

Born in Santiago, Chile, and adopted at birth, Boyle is grateful to have lived and traveled all around the United States to pursue his passion for opera and happily calls Philadelphia his home. Gregory has recently directed Don Pasquale for Inland Northwest Opera in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and revival directed Michael Shell’s The Barber of Seville at Austin Opera. Additionally, he has directed a concert version of Tosca for Opera Philadelphia’s outdoor series at The Mann Center in Philadelphia. He has also produced a new production of La Favorite at The Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia and a new production of Mignon, but it was postponed indefinitely. Most recently, he worked at The Dallas Opera assisting on Tomer Zvulun’s new production of Das Rheingold. Gregory has worked with the Santa Fe Opera assisting on Stephan Barlow’s new production of The Barber of Seville for the 2022-23 season. He has worked with the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Artists at Central City Opera as a director giving young students the opportunity to explore and develop new roles in opera through a scenes program. Highlights from that summer include, Die Fledermaus, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Elixir of Love, Dialogues of the Carmelite, and A Little Night Music. Boyle has also worked with young professionals at programs including at The Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, The Santa Fe Opera, and the Herndon Foundation of Emerging Artists of Virginia Opera. Previously, Gregory has held associate and assistant director engagements at companies including Opera Philadelphia, the Santa Fe Opera, The Dallas Opera, Central City Opera, and Virginia Opera among others.

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT LA BOHÈME, 2015

Stefano Sarzani, conductor, pianist and coach, has been part of the musical staff of the Lyric Opera of Chicago since 2018: cover conductor for several productions, he has also recently conducted there Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia, Puccini’s La bohème and the show for kids and families “The Magic Victrola.” His recent engagements include concerts with the San Diego Symphony Orchestra, Symphony NH, Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana (Italy) and La bohème at Opera Idaho. He has collaborated with Central City Opera (Madama Butterfly, Billy Budd), Michigan Opera Theater (Hansel und Gretel), Opera Maine (Le nozze di Figaro) and other symphonic and operatic institutions such as Boise Philharmonic Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra, National Repertory Orchestra (Colorado), Orchestra Sinfonica di Sanremo (Italy), Den Jyske Opera (Denmark), Opéra National de Lorraine (France), Atlanta Opera, and Sarasota Opera.

Sarzani is a recipient of Career Assistance Awards (2016-2021) from the Solti Foundation U.S., which also selected him for the Elizabeth Buccheri Opera Residency Programs at both the Lyric Opera of Chicago and Michigan Opera Theater. Active also in education as a conductor, pianist and coach, his commitment to young musicians and singers brought him to collaborate and conduct with the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra, the young singers of Des Moines Metro Opera, Sarasota Opera and Classic Lyric Arts, and to conduct the ensembles of the University of Memphis. He is a graduate of Indiana University and Conservatorio G. Rossini (Pesaro, Italy).

GREGORY BOYLE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

STEFANO SARZANI ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR

Greer Grimsley is internationally recognized as an outstanding singing actor and one of the most prominent Wagnerian singers of our day. Grimsely’s reign as a leading interpreter of the god Wotan has brought him to myriad esteemed international opera houses; some highlights of this include his portrayal of the role in the entirety of Der Ring des Nibelungen with Deutsche Oper Berlin, Teatro Comunale di Bologna under Gatti’s baton, Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, New National Theatre Tokyo, the Nikikai Opera Foundation in Tokyo, San Francisco Opera, the Royal Opera Stockholm, and for Seattle Opera in three complete cycles over the past decade. This season’s engagements include returns to Seattle Opera as the High Priest in Samson et Dalila and Wotan in Das Rheingold, the latter of which he will also perform with both The Atlanta Opera and the Orchestra of the Music Makers in Singapore. In addition, Grimsley will perform Scarpia in Tosca with San Diego Opera. Future seasons include returns to The Metropolitan Opera, The Atlanta Opera, and The Santa Fe Opera for a World Premiere in 2024. Last season, Grimsley returned to San Francisco Opera as Don Pizarro in Fidelio, the Metropolitan Opera for Orest in Elektra, and Wotan in Die Walküre with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Internationally, he returned to the Royal Swedish Opera as Wotan in Die Walküre and the Bregenzer Festspiele as the Wanderer in Siegfried

American tenor Richard Cox has appeared on the stages of The Metropolitan Opera, Washington National Opera, Minnesota Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, North Carolina Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Los Angeles Opera, New Orleans Opera, Opera San Jose, Glimmerglass Festival, Wexford Festival, Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden, Palau de la Música de València, and Teatro Municipal de Santiago de Chile. He is a former ensemble member at Opera Frankfurt, where he appeared in several productions. Cox has also sung with Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, Phoenix Symphony, Orchestra of St. Luke’s at Carnegie Hall, Colorado Music Festival, I Musici de Montreal Chamber Orchestra, Bilbao Symphony Orchestra, and the Britt Festival. Cox has appeared in the Met Opera’s Live in HD presentations of Die Zauberflöte and Nico Muhly’s Two Boys. Recordings include Viktor Ulmann’s Der zerbrochene Krug at the Los Angeles Opera (released on DVD by Arthaus Musik) and Das Rheingold and Palestrina with the Frankfurt Opera (released by Oehms Classics). Cox has earned grants from the George London Foundation, Sullivan Foundation, Opera Index Inc., the Olga Forrai Foundation, Licia AlbanesePuccini Foundation, and the Shoshana Foundation. He holds degrees from Tennessee Technological University, Florida State University, and The Juilliard School. He is on faculty at Bard College Conservatory of Music.

GREER GRIMSLEY WOTAN ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

RICHARD COX LOGE

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

Zachary Nelson, a native of Annapolis, Maryland, studied vocal performance at The Catholic University of America, and later the prestigious Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia. His 2022-23 season includes role debuts as Sharpless in Madama Butterfly with the Lubbock Symphony and Mercutio in Roméo et Juliette with Florentine Opera and Opera San Antonio. He also sings the role of Leporello in Don Giovanni with North Carolina Opera, and further ahead, makes returns to Lyric Opera of Chicago and Santa Fe Opera. During the 2021-22 season, Nelson was engaged with Lyric Opera of Chicago for its production of L’elisir d’amore, appeared as Escamillo in Carmen with Palm Beach Opera, sang Marcello in La bohème with both New Orleans Opera and the Jacksonville Symphony, joined the Santa Fe Symphony for A Night at the Opera, and appeared as a soloist with the St. Barts Music Festival. The baritone made a major role debut during the summer of 2021, as the title role in Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd with Des Moines Metro Opera. Zachary Nelson was an ensemble member at Semperoper Dresden, where roles included Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro, Marcello in La bohème, Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Guglielmo in a new production of Così fan tutte. He has sung a number of roles for Santa Fe Opera, including the title role in Le nozze di Figaro, Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor, Malatesta in Don Pasquale, and most recently Marcello in La bohème. Additional career credits include: Donner in Das Rheingold, Ping in Turandot, and Marcello in La bohème with Lyric Opera of Chicago; Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus with the Seiji Ozawa Music Academy; Belcore in L’elisir d’amore with Pittsburgh Opera; and Escamillo in Carmen with Den Norske Opera in Oslo, Canadian Opera Company and San Francisco Opera.

JULIUS AHN

MIME

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT TURANDOT, 2017

Versatile tenor Julius Ahn delights audiences around the world with his unique interpretations. Of his signature role, Goro in Madama Butterfly, critics hail “As the marriage broker Goro, tenor Julius Ahn was in his element, delivering the wickedness of his character with gusto.” Ahn performed the role in his début at San Francisco Opera and returned there to reprise it, as well as with the Canadian Opera Company, Palm Beach Opera, Vancouver Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, Opera Carolina, Nashville Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas and Virginia Opera, and at the Royal Albert Hall in London. This season, Ahn brings his immaculate performance of Goro to the San Francisco Opera, The Atlanta Opera, Cincinnati Opera, and New Orleans Opera. Also this season, he will perform Borsa in Rigoletto with the Dallas Opera, Kaspar in Amahl and the Night Visitors with On Site Opera, and is thrilled to be reprising the lead role of Guang in Stuck Elevator by Byron Au Yong and Aaron Jafferis for Nashville Opera. Next season’s engagements include returns to Michigan Opera Theatre and Opera Philadelphia. Last season, Ahn returned to the Canadian Opera Company as Goro, in addition to the Metropolitan Opera for The Magic Flute. Ahn also joined Cincinnati Opera as Spoletta in Tosca, Gherardo in Tulsa Opera’s Gianni Schicchi, and Borsa in Opera Philadelphia’s Rigoletto

ZACHARY NELSON ALBERICH ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

ELIZABETH

DESHONG FRICKA

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

Mezzo-soprano Elizabeth DeShong has developed a reputation as “one of the most intelligent stage performers of her generation” (Opera News). Lauded equally for her musicianship and commanding stage presence, she has established herself as a regular on concert and operatic stages worldwide. Her repertoire includes roles such as Angelina (La Cenerentola), Suzuki (Madama Butterfly), Ruggiero and Bradamante (Alcina), Arsace (Semiramide), Komponist (Ariadne auf Naxos), Rosina (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Sesto (La Clemenza di Tito), Octavia (world première in San Francisco of Anthony and Cleopatra), Adalgisa (Norma), Fenena (Nabucco), Hermia (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Maffio Orsini (Lucrezia Borgia), Fricka (Das Rheingold). Ms. DeShong has performed extensively throughout the world with such companies as the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Los Angeles Opera, Canadian Opera Company, English National Opera, Wiener Staatsoper, Opéra National de Bordeaux, the Glyndebourne Festival, and Aix-en-Provence. The list of symphony orchestras with whom she has performed includes the Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Houston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, The English Concert, and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Melbourne Symphony. Ms. DeShong was the recipient of the Washington National Opera’s “Artist of the Year” award in 2010, for her performance as the Composer in Richard Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

THE THREEPENNY OPERA, 2021

Grammy-nominated mezzo-soprano Ronnita Miller enjoys a richly varied 2022-23 season. In the summer of 2022, she joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic as Schwertleite in Die Walküre at the Hollywood Bowl. The autumn season began with a return to San Francisco Opera as Filippyevna in Eugene Onegin, before reprising the role of Ella in X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X with Opera Omaha. Later in the season, she makes returns to Omaha, as La Principessa in Suor Angelica. In concert, she appears during the season at Carnegie Hall with Oberlin College as the mezzo soloist for Dett’s The Ordering of Moses. In the fall of 2023, she returns to the Lyric Opera of Chicago as the Marquise of Berkenfield in La fille du régiment. During the 2021-2022 season on stage and in concert, Ms. Miller joined The Metropolitan Opera as Big Stone in Matthew Aucoin’s Eurydice, and Detroit Opera as Ella in a new production of X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. She also joined the San Diego Symphony and North Carolina Symphony for Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, and appeared in recital with New World Symphony. Highlights of recent appearances include Amando in Le Grand Macabre under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle with the London Symphony Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic; and the Semperoper Dresden, as Erda under the baton of Christian Thielemann. In the summer of 2021 she curated a recital titled What the Heart Desires with tenor Nicholas Phan for the Merola Festival. She was a member of the ensemble at Deutsche Oper Berlin for seven seasons. Performances there included Mamma Lucia in Cavalleria Rusticana, Third Lady in Die Zauberflöte, Mary in Der fliegende Holländer, Madelon in Andrea Chenier, and Ulrica in Un Ballo in Maschera

RONNITA MILLER ERDA

KRISTINN SIGMUNDSSON

FASOLT

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE FLYING DUTCHMAN, 2017

Lauded for his portrayal of Baron Ochs in Der Rosenkavalier that he “dealt in revelations,” the Financial Times further praises Icelandic bass Kristinn Sigmundsson, “His tone dark and his dynamic range broad, he exuded raw power, crusty lust and comic bravado, all reinforced by a trace of gravitas.” In the 2022-23 season, Mr. Sigmundsson returns to LA Opera for Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro, sings Fasolt in Das Rheingold, and makes his Utah Opera debut as Daland in Der fliegende Holländer. Next season, he returns to San Francisco Opera for the U.S. premiere of Saariaho’s Innocence as well as for Heinrich in Lohengrin, and also returns to LA Opera for the Chamberlain in Der Zwerg. Last season, he joined the Enescu Festival as The Chamberlain in Der Zwerg, the Royal Opera House Muscat as Monterone in Rigoletto, New National Theatre Tokyo for Baron Ochs in Der Rosenkavalier, and returned to Bayerische Staatsoper for La Roche in Capriccio. He also recently returned to Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie as Ghost in Dusapin’s Macbeth Underworld, joined Indiana University Opera for Gurnemanz in Parsifal, Houston Grand Opera for Commendatore in Don Giovanni and Daland in Der fliegende Holländer, San Francisco Opera for Vodnik in Rusalka, Den Norske Opera for Dansker in Billy Budd, and the Edinburgh International Festival for Commendatore in Don Giovanni. Other recent performances include returns to Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie for La Roche in Capriccio, Staatsoper Hamburg to reprise Melchthal in Guillaume Tell, Teatro Regio Torino for Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra for Rocco in Fidelio. He also sang Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro with Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Commendatore in Don Giovanni with Budapest Festival Orchestra, and Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra.

FAFNER

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, 2022

Daniel Sumegi has performed on many of the world’s major stages, including the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Washington National Opera, and Seattle Opera. He has also appeared in the opera houses of Bonn, Cologne, Frankfurt, and Hamburg, as well as Paris, Barcelona, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, and Houston, as well as at Opera Australia in his home country. Recent engagements include König Heinrich in Lohengrin for Opera Australia, as well as company and role debuts as Rocco in Beethoven’s Fidelio with Irish National Opera, and Sergeant of Police in The Pirates of Penzance with The Atlanta Opera. This season Daniel Sumegi returned to the Metropolitan Opera to sing Porter in Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and cover Heinrich in Lohengrin. He also appeared as Escamillo in Opera Australia’s Carmen on Cockatoo Island as well as the Old Hebrew in Samson et Dalila for Seattle Opera. He is delighted to make his role debuts as Wotan and the Wander in Opera Australia’s new Ring Cycle in late 2023. His broad repertoire encompasses Monteverdi to Mozart, Beethoven to Britten, Maxwell-Davies, Michael Tippett, and Kevin Puts, with a special focus on the Germanic and Slavic composers. He participated in Ring Cycles in New York, Los Angeles, Strasbourg, San Francisco, Cologne, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Seattle, Melbourne, and Adelaide, most notably as Hagen. He also performed Hunding in concert for the Hong Kong, Atlanta, Stuttgart, and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras. Additionally, he has bowed as Baron Ochs in Der Rosenkavalier with Welsh National, Scottish, and Melbourne Operas, San Francisco, and the Metropolitan Opera; Scarpia in Tosca in Washington, Wales, Adelaide, and Knoxville; Jochanaan in Salome in Washington, Hamburg, Tel Aviv, Hong Kong, Leeds, and Sydney; Boris in Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk in Nantes and Sydney; and Klingsor in Parsifal in Hamburg, Barcelona, and Adelaide.

DANIEL SUMEGI

American bass-baritone Joseph Barron has recently appeared at the Metropolitan Opera as Happy in La fanciulla del West and covered the title role in Le nozze di Figaro, Leporello in Don Giovanni, and Police Officer in Boris Godunov. In recent seasons, Mr. Barron bowed as Don Pizarro in Fidelio with Opera North Carolina, reprised his Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia at Finger Lakes Opera, and made his role debut as Colline with Charlottesville Opera. Other notable engagements include Opera Hong Kong and New Orleans Opera as Leporello in Don Giovanni, Opera Carolina and Opera Grand Rapids as the title role in Le nozze di Figaro, Virginia Opera as Kaspar in Der Freischütz, Bard Summerscape as Basmanov in Dvorak’s Dimitrij, and the Berkshire Opera Festival as Sparafucile in Rigoletto. He has appeared at the San Francisco Opera in the world premiere of The Gospel of Mary Magdalene and with the Aix-en-Provence Festival and La Fenice as Polyphemus in Acis and Galatea. He also sang with The Glimmerglass Festival as Ramfis in Aïda, Grandpa Moss in The Tender Land, and Antonio in Le nozze di Figaro. Mr. Barron has also performed Count Rodolfo in La sonnambula, Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Seneca in L’incoronazione di Poppea, Commendatore in Don Giovanni, Enobarbus in Antony and Cleopatra, Wilhelm Reischmann in Elegy for Young Lovers, Friedrich Bhaer in Little Women, and Erste Handwerksbursche in Wozzeck. On the concert platform, Mr. Barron made his Carnegie Hall debut with the Gerda Lissner Foundation and has performed Handel’s Messiah with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Mozart’s Requiem with the Mulhouse Symphony Orchestra.

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

MADAMA BUTTERFLY, 2014

Adam Diegel made his Metropolitan Opera début as Froh in Robert Lepage’s landmark production of Das Rheingold conducted by Maestro James Levine, and later reprised the performance under Fabio Luisi. Further appearances at The Met include Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly under Plácido Domingo and Ismaele in Nabucco under Paolo Carignani. This season Diegel returns to The Metropolitan Opera, and performs with Boston Lyric Opera, Knoxville Opera, Pensacola Opera, and Opera Louisiane. Other notable U.S. engagements include: Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly at The Atlanta Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Arizona Opera, Opera San Antonio, and Kentucky Opera; Ismaele in Nabucco at Opera Philadelphia; Cavaradossi in Tosca at Vancouver Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Seattle Opera, and Arizona Opera; Don José in Carmen at Glimmerglass Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Florida Grand Opera, Arizona Opera, and Madison Opera; and Rodolfo in La bohème at Opera Omaha and Minnesota Opera. Other international appearances include: Don José in Carmen at English National Opera, San Francisco Opera and at Opera Australia’s Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour; Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly with Opera Hong Kong, Lithuanian National Opera, The Savonlinna Opera Festival, and on tour in China at the Guangzhou Opera House in Anthony Minghella’s acclaimed production; Maurizio in Adriana Lecouvreur at The National Theatre in Budapest, where he later performed Cavaradossi in Tosca; and David Alden’s new production of Luisa Miller for Opéra National de Lyon.

JOSEPH BARRON DONNER ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

ADAM DIEGEL FROH

American soprano, Jessica Faselt, is making her debut with The Atlanta Opera in the 2022-23 season. She has been praised for her “keen expression and impressive delivery” in performance with a “sound that is rich, full and luminous throughout its range.” (Seen and Heard International)Faselt was a participant of the 2022 Birgit Nilsson Masterclass in Sweden. She received the 2021 Hildegard Behrens Foundation Award, was the winner of the 2020 George London Award, and received a 2019 Sarah Tucker Study Grant with the Richard Tucker Music Foundation. She most recently appeared in the Metropolitan Opera’s 2022-23 Season as First Lady in the holiday production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute. Faselt was a member of the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program for three seasons. She made her Metropolitan Opera Debut as a Novice in Puccini’s Suor Angelica She also made her Met: Live in HD debut as Helmwige in Wagner’s Die Walküre. Following this performance she was engaged to sing Helmwige in concert with the Boston Orchestra at the Tanglewood Music Festival, with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Detroit Opera. In 2018 Faselt was a winner of the world renowned vocal competition, the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, where she was presented the Birgit Nilsson Award by the American Scandinavian Foundation. Faselt was a Studio Artist with the Florida Grand Opera and with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. Faselt received her Masters of Music from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and received her Bachelors of Music from the University of Iowa School of Music.

Praised by Opera News as “sparkling” and “pertly pealing,” Louisiana-born soprano Cadie J. Bryan is a former Marion Roose Pullin Studio Artist at Arizona Opera where she’s performed roles including Despina in Così fan tutte (2022), Musetta in La bohème (2020), Bess in Riders of the Purple Sage (2020), Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro (2019), and Chan Parker in Charlie Parker’s Yardbird (2018). This season, she returns to debut the role of Maria in Francesca Zambello’s production of The Sound of Music and makes her first festival summer appearance at the Santa Fe Opera covering the title role in Pelléas et Mélisande following The Atlanta Opera’s productions of Anonymous Lover and Das Rheingold. Recent highlights include debuts with The Dallas Opera (Hart Institute for Women Conductors), Opera Las Vegas (The House Without a Christmas Tree), and The Atlanta Opera (The Barber of Seville), as well as a return to Des Moines Metro Opera for the 2021 season as Clarine in Platée and Prilepa in The Queen of Spades. Other role highlights include Clara in Jake Heggie’s and Gene Scheer’s It’s A Wonderful Life, Marian (The Music Man), Zerlina (Don Giovanni), and Lisette (La rondine).

CADIE J. BRYAN WOGLINDE ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE BARBER OF SEVILLE, 2022

JESSICA FASELT FREIA ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

ALEXANDRA RAZSKAZOFF WELLGUNDE

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT

Alexandra Razskazoff, lauded by Opera News as a soprano of “rich, distinctive, and penetrating timbre, while possessing a lovely bloom on top”, was recently bestowed one of the most prestigious crownings in the opera world, as she was named a Grand Finals Winner of the 2022 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. Razskazoff also made her international debut in 2022 as Mimì (La bohème) at Teatro Municipal de Santiago, where she will return this year to make her role debut as Micaëla (Carmen). She also returns this season to Palm Beach Opera to cover Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), and Alice Ford (Falstaff). Other recent notable engagements have included Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Bozeman Symphony, as well as reprises of Violetta (La Traviata) with Out of the Box Opera, and Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) with Teatro Grattacielo at the Phoenicia International Festival of The Voice. She has also appeared in a series of concerts with Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Opera at Florham, Maryland Opera, Washington Opera Society, and Vero Beach Opera. Razskazoff was a Semifinalist in Operalia (Moscow) in 2022, and took first place in both the 2021 James Toland Vocal Arts Competition, and the 2020 Giovanni Consiglio International Competition. She completed her formal training in the distinguished residency programs of The Academy of Vocal Arts, Minnesota Opera, Merola Opera Program, and Santa Fe Opera, as well, holds degrees from The Juilliard School, and Peabody Conservatory.

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

GRETCHEN KRUPP GLYNN STUDIO ARTIST FLOSSHILDE

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, 2022

Glynn Studio Artists

Each of The Atlanta Opera Studio Artists is an early career professional with significant stage experience, some with lead performances and major concert appearances on their resume. This ensemble builds on The Atlanta Opera’s commitment to provide opportunities for performers at all stages in their careers.

Over the course of The Atlanta Opera’s 2022-23 season, these artists will have the opportunity to work with and learn

from established performers while also participating in this season’s productions as performers and covers. Sponsored in name this season by a gift from Beth & Gary Glynn, The Glynn Studio Artists also receive significant support from the Donald & Marilyn Keough Foundation, John & Yee-Wan Stevens, and Jerry & Dulcy Rosenberg.

BRUNO BAKER

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE BIG TENT SERIES 2021

Bruno Baker is a Latinx NYC-based American/Brazilian multidisciplinary stage director. As a returning studio artist, he continues as the Stage Directing Glynn Studio Artist with The Atlanta Opera Studio and will serve as an Assistant Director at The Metropolitan Opera. He is a recipient of the 2021 Opera America Robert L.B. Tobin Director-Designer Prize. With NYU, he directed The Glass Menagerie, Thyestes, and Strange Interlude. Previously, he was engaged on the staging staff with Park Avenue Armory, Guerilla Opera, Boston Conservatory at Berklee, and LoftOpera.

EDWIN JHAMAL DAVIS

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT CANDIDE, 2023

Praised by Voce di Meche for his “juicy, booming and room-filling bass,” Edwin Jhamal Davis is a proud native of Utica, MS. He earned his master’s degree from the prestigious Manhattan School of Music where he studied with baritone Mark Oswald. Since graduating, he has made 2021-22 debuts with On Site Opera, Florentine Opera, and Detroit Opera. In the 2021-22 season, he debuted the role of Sarastro in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte at the worldrenowned Merola Opera in San Francisco.

GRETCHEN KRUPP FLOSSHILDE

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, 2022

Gretchen Krupp, “a mezzo capable of searing delivery, powerful and ripe” (Opera Today) is gaining recognition in major competitions and festivals. She returns to The Atlanta Opera this season after a variety of roles last year, where she will cover Judith in Bluebeard’s Castle, sing Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Paquette in Candide, and Flosshilde, as well as cover Fricka, in Das Rheingold. She also looks forward to singing Mother Earth in the premiere of Amy Leventhal’s new opera Our Sacred World.

KAMERON LOPREORE

Hailed by Opera News as a “fresh voiced” tenor, Kameron Lopreore has delighted audiences all over the United States. He just enjoyed his first-year apprenticeship with Santa Fe Opera where he was seen in Carmen, The Barber of Seville, Tristan und Isolde, and Falstaff. A New Orleans native, this fall he will be featured as The Tenor in AMC’s anticipated television drama Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire. Recently, he sang Tamino in The Magic Flute and Panatellas in the world premiere of Songbird at the prestigious Glimmerglass Festival.

ALEXIS SEMINARIO

ATLANTA OPERA DEBUT CANDIDE, 2023

Italian-American soprano Alexis Seminario is a singerartist dedicated to sharing stories that empower people and inspire vulnerability. This past summer, Alexis was an apprentice artist with Des Moines Metro Opera. In the fall of 2022, Alexis will perform the soprano solo in Dvořák’s Te Deum with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra led by Valentina Peleggi. Alexis is an alum of Houston Grand Opera: YAVA and a graduate of the Vocal Arts Program at Bard Conservatory. She is a recent recipient of an Anna Sosenko Assist Trust Grant.

theatlantaoperachorus

VIOLIN

Peter Ciaschini

The Loraine P. Williams

Orchestra Concertmaster Chair

Helen Kim

Assistant Concertmaster*

Lisa Morrison

Acting Assistant

Concertmaster

Fia Durrett

Prinicipal Second Violin

Jessica Stinson

Acting Assistant Principal

Second Violin

Edward Eanes*

Felix Farrar

Robert Givens

Patti Gouvas

Shawn Pagliarini

Virginia Respess-Fairchild

Patrick Ryan

Angèle Sherwood-Lawless*

Rafael Veytsblum*

Holly Bryan†

Mary Matthews Burndrett†

Kevin Chaney†

Chelsea Cline†

Sally Gardner-Wilson†

Kim Hain†

Eva Hsu†

Alison James†

Kathryn Koch†

Kim Padgett†

Serena Scibelli†

Mayu Sommovigo†

Grace Kawamura Stubbart†

Elonia Varfi†

VIOLA

William Johnston

Principal

Catherine Allain

Assistant Principal

Ryan Gregory

Julie Rosseter*

Karl Schab*

Joli Wu

Clark Carruth†

Emma DeJarnette†

Shadwa Mussad†

Patrick Shelc†

Maggie Synder†

Meghan Yost†

CELLO

Charae Krueger Principal

Hilary Glen

Assistant Principal*

Mary Kenney

Acting Assistant Principal

David Hancock

Cynthia Sulko*

Harrison Cook†

Sarah Kapps†

David Lloyd†

Grace Sommer†

Laura Usiskin†

BASS

Emory Clements

Acting Principal

Samuel Dugo

Maurice Belle†

Adam Bernstein†

Jonathan McWilliams†

Chris Riggenbach†

FLUTE/PICCOLO

James Zellers Principal

Kelly Bryant

Piccolo

Jessica Petrasek†

RAFTERMEN / THE ATLANTA OPERA

OBOES/ENGLISH HORN

Christina Gavin

Acting Principal

Lara Saville-Dahl†

Kip Zimmerman†

English Horn

CLARINET

David Odom

Principal

Justin Stanley†

BASS CLARINET

John Warren

BASSOON

Carlos Clark

Principal

Debra Grove

John Grove†

FRENCH HORNS /WAGNER TUBA

David Bradley

Principal

Andrew Sehman

Associate Principal†

Jason Eklund

James Baker†

Camron Bryant†

Eric Hawkins†

Mackenzie Newell†

TRUMPET

Yvonne Toll

Principal

Alexander Freund

Brandon Craswell†

TROMBONE

William P. Mann

Principal

Richard Brady

Josh Bynum†

TUBA

Donald Strand

Principal

TIMPANI

John Lawless Principal

PERCUSSION

Michael Cebulski Principal

Jeff Kershner†

Scott Pollard†

HARP

Susan Brady Principal

Ellen Foster†

PERSONNEL MANAGER

James Zellers

Musicians employed in this production are represented by the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada.

*Core Musician On Leave †Non-Core Musician

To learn how to support The Atlanta Opera through a planned gift, contact Jonathan Blalock at 336-512-6832 or jblalock@atlantaopera.org

Charlie Yates: Achieving Rheingold Dreams

Lifelong Atlantan Charlie Yates has nurtured a love for opera since childhood when he joined his family for The Metropolitan Opera’s touring performances at The Fox Theater. These early experiences of splendor and excitement planted the seed of a decades-long devotion to opera.

Charlie’s parents were deeply involved with The Atlanta Opera, and he eventually followed in their footsteps. He made his career in real estate and financial services, served tirelessly at organizations, including The Metro Atlanta YMCA and The Rotary Club, and still found time to pursue his passion for golf. Charlie’s most important passion and priority have always been his wife, Mary, their two children, and three grandchildren. He wasn’t seeking additional opportunities, but he was interested when his business friend Greg Johnson invited him to join The Atlanta Opera’s board of directors in 2005. Charlie jokingly recalls Greg’s promise: “You’ll have much fun, and it won’t cost you much money. He was half right!”

Yates has been fully committed to the Opera’s board for twenty years, filling numerous positions, including president, treasurer, and development committee chair. He continues to contribute his time, energy, and financial resources, including a planned gift. Yates explains, “Mary and I are so inspired by the amazing story of The Atlanta Opera and want to be part of its long-term success that in addition to our annual and special gifts, we designated part of our charitable remainder trust to the Opera to ensure that legacy.”

Richard Wagner’s music is meaningful to Charlie, who said he was “staggered” from the first time he heard The Ring Cycle. His German professor at Washington & Lee University was a devoted Wagnerite, and so were his parents, who attended performances at The Bayreuth Festival. After experiencing The Ring in Seattle, Charlie dreamed of mounting it in Atlanta. “I wanted to grow this company so we could produce The Ring, and I wanted to sit there with my arm around my mom during Götterdämmerung.” Charlie’s dedication has helped The Atlanta Opera move closer to fulfilling that dream with brand new productions of Das Rheingold this season and Die Walküre next year.

COURTESY CHARLIE YATES

Introducing the TOMER ZVULUN FUND FOR TRANSFORMATIONAL OPERA

On Saturday, March 18, 2023, The Atlanta Opera’s Spring Gala was enjoyed by many delighted patrons at the Piedmont Driving Club. The festivities included a celebration of Tomer Zvulun’s 10 th year as the Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General & Artistic Director.

To commemorate this milestone and as a surprise to Tomer, the Tomer Zvulun Fund for Transformation Opera was announced as a new resource to celebrate and stimulate the Zvulun Era of The Atlanta Opera. More than $200,000 was raised on the spot from those attending the gala.

In the last 10 years since Tomer was selected to lead the Opera, innovation has become part of the organizational standard. Launching the Discoveries series, founding the Studio Artist program, lifting the field of opera through the 96-Hour Opera Project, expanding the education outreach, establishing the Atlanta Opera Film Studio, and so many more of Tomer’s ideas now form the foundation of The Atlanta Opera, one of the fastest growing opera companies in the world.

Will you join in supporting Tomer’s vision and raise your voice in tribute of his 10 th anniversary season? To contribute to the Fund for Transformational Opera, please contact Jessica Langlois at jlanglois@atlantaopera.org.

Richard Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman, a 2017 Tomer Zvulun production.

THE ATLANTA OPERA DIRECTOR’S CIRCLE

Cathy & Mark Adams†

Mr. & Mrs. Ronald R. Antinori

Mr. & Mrs. Paul Blackney†

Laura & Cosmo Boyd

Harold Brody & Donald Smith†

Bryan & Johanna Barnes†

John & Rosemary Brown

Connolly Family Foundation

Dr. Frank A. Critz & Dr. Ann Critz†

Mr. Robert P. Dean & Mr. Robert Epstein†

*Martha Thompson Dinos

The Gable Foundation, Inc.†

Beth & Gary Glynn

Dr. & Mrs. Alexander Gross†

Mr. John L. Hammaker

Mr. Howard W. Hunter - Gramma Fisher Foundation†

Mr. & Mrs. Michael L. Keough

*Mr. & Mrs. Carl W. Knobloch, Jr.†

Beau & Alfredo Martin†

Mary Ruth McDonald

Mr. James B. Miller, Jr.†

Talia & John Murphy†

Victoria & Howard Palefsky†

*Mr. William E. Pennington†

Jerry & Dulcy Rosenberg†

*Bruce & Karen Roth

Katherine Scott

*Mrs. Lessie B. Smithgall

Mr. William F. Snyder†

John & Yee-Wan Stevens†

Judith & Mark Taylor

Carol B. & Ramon Tomé†

Rhys & Carolyn Wilson†

Ms. Bunny Winter & Mr. Michael Doyle†

†Indicates our extraordinary donors who have committed to continue their annual giving for three years or more *deceased

ANNUAL GIVING

We are grateful for the following donors’ generous support. This list reflects gifts and annual pledges to unrestricted operating expenses, special projects, and/or endowment made between Mar 1, 2022 and Mar 17, 2023.

DIRECTOR’S CIRCLE

$200,000+

Harold Brody & Donald Smith†

John & Rosemary Brown†

Dr. Frank A. Critz & Dr. Ann Critz†

*Martha Thompson Dinos

Beth & Gary Glynn

Mr. Howard W. Hunter - Gramma Fisher Foundation†

*Mr. & Mrs. Carl W. Knobloch, Jr.†

Jerry & Dulcy Rosenberg†

*Mrs. Lessie B. Smithgall

$100,000+

Mr. James B. Miller, Jr.†

*Bruce & Karen Roth

Katherine Scott

John & Yee-Wan Stevens†

Rhys & Carolyn Wilson†

$50,000+

The Antinori Foundation

Connolly Family Foundation

The Gable Foundation, Inc.†

Mr. John L. Hammaker

Alfredo & Beau Martin†

Mary Ruth McDonald

Mr. William F. Snyder†

Ms. Bunny Winter & Mr. Michael Doyle†

$25,000+

Cathy & Mark Adams†

Mr. & Mrs. Paul Blackney†

Laura & Cosmo Boyd

Mr. Robert P. Dean & Mr. Robert Epstein†

Dr. & Mrs. Alexander Gross†

Talia & John Murphy†

Victoria & Howard Palefsky†

*Mr. William E. Pennington†

Judith & Mark Taylor

Carol B. & Ramon Tomé†

PATRON’S CIRCLE

$15,000+

Julie & *Jim Balloun†

Mr. David Boatwright†

Dr. Donald J. & Janet Filip†

*Ms. Anne Marie Gary

Mr. & Mrs. Edward J. Hardin

Mr. John Haupert & Mr. Bryan Brooks†

Mr. & Mrs. Michael L. Keough

Larry & Beverly Willson†

GOLD $10,000+

Elizabeth & Jeremy Adler†

Mrs. *Phillip E. Alvelda†

Mr. & Mrs. James Anderson

John & Wendy Anzalone†

Bryan & Johanna Barnes†

Dr. & Mrs. Asad Bashey

Mr. & Mrs. C. Duncan Beard

Mr. & Mrs. Dante Bellizzi

Mr. Frank H. Butterfield†

Mr. and Mrs. Jay M. Davis

Mr. Richard H. Delay & Dr. Francine D. Dykes†

Mr. Tomer Zvulun & Mrs. Susanna Eiland

Dieter Elsner

Ms. Louise S. Gunn

Deborah & Paul Harkins

The Hilbert Law Firm

Roya & Bahman Irvani

*Mary & *Wayne James

Dr. & Mrs. David Kavtaradze

Slumgullion Charitable Fund†

Stephanie & Gregor Morela†

Sandra & Peter Morelli†

Mr. & Mrs. Michael E. Paulhus†

Mr. Milton J. Sams†

Thomas R. Saylor

Charles T. & Donna Sharbaugh†

Mr. & Mrs. Timothy E. Sheehan

Ms. Janine Brown & Mr. Alex J. Simmons, Jr.

Christine & Mark St.Clare†

Triska Drake & G. Kimbrough Taylor

Wadleigh C. Winship Charitable Fund

The Mary & Charlie Yates Family Fund

SILVER $5,000+

Anonymous

Mr. & *Mrs. Shepard B. Ansley

Natalie & Matthew Bernstein

Dr. R. Dwain Blackston

Eda L. Hochgelerent, M.D. & Bruce A. Cassidy, M.D.†

John W. Cooledge†

Dr. Jeannette Guarner & Dr. Carlos del Rio

Mr. & Mrs. Robert G. Edge

Mr. & Mrs. Reade Fahs

Sally & Hank Fielding†

Ms. Rebecca Y. Frazer & Mr. Jon Buttrey†

Mr. Ethan Garonzik

Kevin Greiner & Robyn Roberts

Judge Adele P. Grubbs

Gena & Joey Gyengo

Mr. L. D. Holland†

Gail G. Johnson

Mr. Alfred D. Kennedy & Dr. Bill Kenny

Elizabeth Klump

Mrs. Dale Levert & Mr. George W. Levert

Belinda & Gino Massafra

Robert & Creel McCormack

Erica McVicker

Mr. & Mrs. Richard P. Nicholas III†

Clara M. & John S. O’Shea

Mr. & Mrs. Steve Paro

Baker & Debby Smith†

Mr. & Mrs. Richard Sproul

Lynne & Steven Steindel

George & Amy Taylor†

Dr. & Mrs. Nicholas Valerio III†

Benny & Roxanne Varzi

Bob & Cappa Woodward Charitable Fund

BRONZE $2,500+

Mr. James L. Anderson

Catherine A. Binns

Mr. & Mrs. Earl Blair

Ms. Donna Burchfield

Mr. & Mrs. Charles Cohn

Ms. Mary Calhoun

T. Dennis Connally

Mr. & Mrs. Matt Cook

Jean & Jerry Cooper

Mr. & Mrs. Ron L. Cundy

Mr. Mark du Mas

Drs. Morgan & Susan Horton Eiland

Mr. Thomas Emch

Mr. & Mrs. Lance Fortnow

Dr. Thomas N. Guffin, Jr.

Donna & *Richard Hiller

Stuart Jackson & Robyn Jackson

Mr. & Mrs. Gert Kampfer

Ms. Anne Morgan & Mr. James Kelley

Mr. & Mrs. Larry Kurlander

Ms. Brenda O. Lambert

Ms. Constance B. Lewis

Linda L. Lively & James E. Hugh III

Dan D. Maslia & Mimi Shetzen Maslia

*Peggy Weber McDowell & *Jack McDowell

Philip & Caroline Moïse

John & Agnes Nelson

Mrs. Betsy Pittman

Mr. Norman Prestage

Mr. & Mrs. J. Barry Schrenk

Morton & Angela Sherzer

Beverly & Milton Shlapak

Mr. & Mrs. E. Kendrick Smith

Dr. Jane T. St.Clair & Mr. James E. Sustman

Mr. Tarek Takieddini

True Colors Theatre Company

Cynthia Widner Wall

Thomas R. Williams Family

Thurman Williams

FRIEND’S CIRCLE INVESTOR $1,000+

Ms. Casey Armanino

Ms. Hope M. Barrett

Christine M. Beard

Jonathan E. Blalock

Carter Bland

Dr. & Mrs. Jerry Blumenthal

Raphael Bostic

Mr. Sean Bowen

Ms. Martha S. Brewer

Dr. Lawrence Cohen

John & Linda Cooke

Mr. & Mrs. Edward S. Croft III

Dr. & Mrs. F. Thomas Daly Jr.

Jim & Carol Dew

Mr. Michael D. Golden & Dr. Juliet R. Asher

Dr. Richard Goodjoin

James C. Goodwyne & Christopher S. Connelly

Helen C. Griffith

Atlanta Neurology

Mr. Robert & Dr. Ada Habl

George L. Hickman III

Mr. & Mrs. Harry C. Howard

Richard & Linda Hubert

Mr. & Mrs. David C. Huffman

Mrs. Cecile M. Jones

Mrs. Peter G. Kessenich

Ms. Carla Knobloch

Chris & Jill Le

Dr. & Mrs. Ellis L. Malone

Samantha & William Markle

Dr. & Mrs. Steven Marlowe

Mrs. Erin Martin

Mr. Stedman C. Mays , Jr. & Mr. Charles Bjorklund

John S. Metz

Terri & Stephen Nagler

Denis Ng & Mary Jane Panzeri

The Honorable & Mrs. George A. Novak

George Paulik

Lucy S. Perry

Ms. Hazel Sanger

Dr. & Mrs. William M. Scaljon

Adhishesh Sood

Gail & Barry Spurlock

Mr. N. Jerold Cohen & Ms. Andrea Strickland

Mrs. Hugh Tarbutton

Ms. Virginia S. Taylor

Mr. Stephen H. Thompson & Mr. Drew Mote

Mr. & Mrs. William E. Tucker

Ms. Betsy K. Wash

Rae & George Weimer

Dr. & Mrs. James O. Wells, Jr.

Ms. Kathy J. White

Adair & Dick White

*Dr. & Mrs. R. Craig Woodward

SUPPORTER $500+

Scott & Betsy Akers

Martha Allday

Dr. Raymond Allen

Paula Stephan Amis

Mr. John Baker

Mr. & Mrs. Robert O. Banker

Colonel & Mrs. John V. Barson

Mr. & Mrs. Bruce Benator

Mr. Matt Blackburn

Craig & Brenda Caldwell

Mr. & Mrs. Robert B. Church

Mr. Pete Ciaschini

Mrs. Carol J. Clark

Ms Lillianette Cook & Ms. Carol Uhl

Maureen & Michael Dailey

Mr. & Mrs. Harold T. Daniel Jr.

Mr. James M. Datka & Ms. Nora P. DePalma

Mr. Joseph V. Dawsey & Mr. Frank D. Kubanek

Mr. & Mrs. Robert R. Eckardt

Mrs. Anne J. Ederington

Mr. & Mrs. Robert F. Engeman Sr.

Ms. Ellen J. Evans

Mr. Richard D. Franco

Dr. & Mrs. David J. Frolich

John Greer

Colonel Donald Gilner

Mr. & Mrs. Richard P. Grodzicki

Mr. & Mrs. Sam Hagan

Jim & Virginia Hale

Mr. Ronald L. Harris & Mrs. Jacqueline Pownall

Terry Hong

Mr. & Mrs. Jeffrey R. Hoopes

Ms. Jan W. Hughen

Mr. Rolf Ingenleuf

Mr. & Mrs. Thomas E. Johnston

Ms. Lynne Elliott Jones

Mr. & Mrs. Edward Katze

John & JoAnn Keller

Joan & Arnold Kurth

Mr. & Mrs. Robert S. Lane

Livvy Kazer Lipson

Allan & Vaneesa Little

Dr. Jo Marie Lyons

Jeanie & Albert Marx

Mr. M. Reynolds McClatchey Jr.

Mr. Simon Miller

Mr. & Mrs. M. Sean Molley

Barbara & Mark Murovitz

Mr. & Mrs. Duane T. Nakahata

Mr. Darryl-Christopher Payne†

Dr. & Mrs. Lawrence S. Phillips

Mr. Lawrence F. Pinson

Mr. Stephen L. Rann & Ms. Dytre Fentress

Dr. & Mrs. Colin Richman

R.J. & D.G. Riffey, Jr.

Sidney & Phyllis Rodbell

Mrs. Arshia Sabet-Payman

Ms. Regina Schuber

Mr. Fred B. Smith

Mr. Paul Snyder

Judge Mike & Mrs. Jane Stoddard

Mr. & Mrs. Jeff Stratton

Steve & Christine Strong

Dr. & Mrs. William H. Stuart

Sharon Daniels Sullivan

Kay Summers

Carolyn & Robert Swain

Dr. & Mrs. Michael Szikman

Dr. & Mrs. Kenneth G. Taylor

Ms. Juliana T. Vincenzino

Alan & Marcia Watt

Ed Willard & J. R. Attaway

Kiki Wilson

Barbara Zellner

CONTRIBUTOR $250+

Dr. Catherine Allard

Mr. & Mrs. Gunnar Andersen

Mr. Paul Anderson, Jr.

Ms. Victoria Anderson

Chris Bailey

Mr. & Mrs. David S. Baker

Elena Belykh

Claire & Bryan Benedict

Daniel & Bethann Berger

Mr. & Mrs. Sid Besmertnik

Mr. & Mrs. George Beylouny

Ms. Martha Bobo

Mrs. Karen Bradford

Ms. Louise Bray

James & Nancy Bross

Lou & Tom Jewell

Mr. Thomas Budlong

Mark & Peg Bumgardner

*Michael J. & Debra M. Caldwell

Mrs. Faye Carles

Mr. & Mrs. Charles T. Carlin

Mr. & Mrs. Bruce D. Carlson

Chris Casey & Douglas Weiss

Dr. & Mrs. Harold L. Chapman, Jr.

Edward Chung

Mr. & Mrs. William A. Clineburg , Jr.

Sheela Collins

Mellisa A. Cotton

Ms. Marcia Cupery

Mr. & Mrs. Michael J. Curry

Mr. David D’Ambrosio

Carol Comstock & Jim Davis

Ms. Elizabeth A. DeAngelo

Matthew Denton

Teresa Duncan Eibel

John C. Durham

*Col. & Mrs. Edgar W. Duskin

Mr. & Mrs. David R. Dye

Eric Dykes

Allison Fichter & Phillip O’Brien

Judy & Stan Fineman

Mr. James W. Floyd

Mr. Robert J. Fornal & Mr. John A. Watson

Dr. & Mrs. David J. Frolich

Mr. John Frontera

Mr. Glen Galbaugh

Mr. Kevin Gallagher

Olga Gazman

Colonel & Mrs. Donald Gilner

Dr. & Mrs. Joseph D. Giovinco

Ms. Diana Glad

Ms. Pat Godbe

Drs. Nancy & Robert Griner

Ms. Sharon E. Hill

Mr. William Holland

Mr. & Mrs. Douglas M. Holly, Jr.

Douglas Hooker & Patrise Perkins Hooker

Ms. Betsy Horton

Dr. Dorothy M. Huenecke

Jason Ingraham

Ms. Dianne Inniss

Ms. Charlene Johnson

Mr. J. Carter Joseph

Dorothy Yates Kirkley

Seth Kirschenbaum

Dian D. Knight

Elena Kochutin

Mr. Melvin Konner

Mr. & Mrs. Gedas Kutka

Jena C. Lanham

Mr. & Mrs. David W. Larson

Melanie D. Lighthall

Mr. Scott Liniado

Mr. Roy Locklear III

Mr. & Ms. Michael W. Luz

Dr. Joe Massey

Warren Matthews

Mr. & Mrs. Francis A. Mazzocchi

Jessica Mincey

Mr. & Mrs. David N. Minkin

Mrs. George E. Missbach Jr.

Berthe & Shapour Mobasser

Dr. & Mrs. T. A. Moore

Ms. Priscilla M. Moran

Mr. Albert B. Moravitz

Carol S. Niemi

Daniel Orlich

Zuzana Osburn

Mr. John Owens

Paul Parisi

Mr. John Patchoski, Jr.

Mrs. Polly N. Pater

Horatiu V. Penescu

Victoria Peterson

Frank Pinkerton

Daniel PITTALUGA

Mary & Rex Pless

The Reverend Neal P. Ponder, Jr.

Mr. Mitesh A. Prema & Ms. Kristina Prema

*Sharon & Jim Radford

Megan Retter

Virginia Rolfes

Crista & Glenn D. Schaab

Shannon Scott

Emmanuel SEUGE

Carrie L. Shaeffer

Rob Shaw

Ms. Laurie Shock

Andrew J. Singletary, Jr.

Mary S. Slider

Jeff Smathers

Cathleen Smith

April Sneed

Paul Song

Dr. Susan Y. Stevens

Mr. Thomas Striedinger

Mr. Gary Stuart

Sarah & David Sutherland

Pierre Tarantelli

Lazaro Tenreiro

Ms. Nancy A. Thomas

Mr. & Ms. Wolfgang Tiedtke

Ms. Ellen H. Ulken & Mr. Jerald L. Watts

Ms. Parsla A. Welch

Mr. & Mrs. Robert P. White

Ms. Jone Williams & Ms. Barbara Robb

†extraordinary donors who have committed to continue their annual giving for three years or more

CORPORATE PARTNERS

$100,000+

The Coca-Cola Company

The Home Depot Foundation

$50,000+

Gas South

UPS

$10,000+

Accenture LLP

KPMG LLP

The Capital Group Companies

Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta

Hilbert Law Firm, LLC

Homrich-Berg, Inc. - Buckhead National Distributing Co., Inc. Nordson Corporation Foundation

Price Waterhouse Coopers

Warner Bros. Discovery WestRock Company

$2,500+

Anonymous

Batdorf & Bronson Coffee Roasters

BNY Mellon Wealth Management

KaneTreadwell Law LLC

Wallace Graphics

FOUNDATIONS & GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

FOUNDATIONS

$225,000+

Donald & Marilyn Keough Foundation

The Molly Blank Fund of The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation

Gramma Fisher Foundation

$50,000+

Anonymous

Atlanta Music Festival Fund of The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta

Knobloch Family Foundation

Livingston Foundation, Inc.

Mary & EP Rogers Foundation, Inc.

Rich Foundation, Inc.

The Gable Foundation

The Halle Foundation

The Sara Giles Moore Foundation

The Zeist Foundation, Inc.

$20,000+

J. Marshall & Lucile G. Powell Charitable Trust

The Capital Group Companies Charitable Foundation

The Jim Cox, Jr. Foundation

The Ray M. & Mary Elizabeth Lee Foundation, Inc.

The Roy & Janet Dorsey Foundation

$10,000+

David, Helen, & Marian Woodward Fund

JBS Foundation

The Hertz Family Foundation, Inc.

The John & Rosemary Brown Family Foundation

$5,000+

Camp-Younts Foundation

George M. Brown Trust Fund

Nordson Corporation Foundation

$1,000+

Atlanta Woman’s Club

Frances Wood Wilson Foundation, Inc.

Kiwanis Foundation of Atlanta

Mary Brown Fund of Atlanta, Georgia

The Hills Family Foundation, Mr. & Mrs. Thomas D. Hills, Trustees

The Opera Guild for Atlanta

GOVERNMENT

City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs

Fulton County Arts & Culture

Georgia Council for the Arts

National Endowment for the Arts

BARBARA D. STEWART LEGACY SOCIETY

The Atlanta Opera established the Barbara D. Stewart Legacy Society to recognize donors who have designated The Opera as a beneficiary in their estate plan. In honor of Barbara D. Stewart’s many contributions to The Atlanta Opera, our planned giving division, the Encore Society, has been renamed the Barbara D. Stewart Legacy Society.

Cathy Callaway Adams & Mark Adams

Anonymous (5)

Mr. & *Mrs. Shepard B. Ansley

Mrs. Wallace F. Beard

The Bickers Charitable Trust

Mr. Jonathan Blalock

*Jim & *Nancy Bland

Mr. Montague L. Boyd, IV

Mr. Robert Colgin

*Martha Thompson Dinos

The Roy & Janet Dorsey Foundation

Arnold & Sylvia Eaves

*Ms. Dorothy E. Edwards

*Heike & Dieter Elsner

Ms. Melodi Ford

Carl & Sally Gable

Ms. Anne Marie Gary

Mr. & Mrs. Sidney W. Guberman

Ms. Judy Hanenkrat

Richard & Fern Hartnig

The Hilbert Family Trust

Eda L. Hochgelerent, M.D.

& Bruce A. Cassidy, M.D.

Mr. L. Don Holland

Mr. Hilson Hudson

*Mrs. Joseph B. Hutchison

Gail Johnson

Mr. J. Carter Joseph

*Mrs. Alfred D. Kennedy, Sr

*Mrs. Isabelle W. Kennedy

*Donald & *Marilyn Keough

Mr. & Mrs. Michael L. Keough

Ms. Corina M. LaFrossia

Mr. & Mrs. John G. Malcolm

Mr. Robert L. Mays

Mr. & Mrs. Allen P. McDaniel

*Peggy Weber McDowell & *Jack McDowell

Mr. & Mrs. Craig N. Miller

*Miss Helen D. Moffitt

Mr. J. Robert Morring

Clara M. & John S. O’Shea

Mrs. Polly N. Pater

Mr. James Paulk

*Mr. William E. Pennington

*Mr. Bruce Roth

TRIBUTES & MEMORIALS

In Honor of Mr. Jonathan Blalock

Mr. John Thompson, II

Mr. William F. Snyder

Connor Howard

In Honor of Dr. Hal Brody & Mr. Don Smith

Jonathan Blalock

In Honor of Brother George Councill

Barbara Bonner

In Honor of Ann & Frank Critz

George & Rae Weimer

Brenda O’Neal Lambert

In Honor of Mr. Robert G. Edge

Mrs. Eleanor Crosby

In Memory of Harriet Harris

Carlquist Harris

Freya Harris

Karen Rajczi

In Honor of Mary Ruth McDonald

Jonathan Blalock

George & Rae Weimer

In Memory of Peggy McDowell

Mr. J. Carter Joseph

In Memory of Mr. Chip Johnston & Mr. Frank Monger

Mr. Johnny Thigpen & Mr. James Martin

In Memory of The Honorable

George A. Novak

Jana M. Novak

In Honor of Howard & Victoria Palefsky

Donna Burchfield & Penn Nicholson

Matt & Kate Cook

In honor of Marietta Pompilio

Dan Pompilio & Lark Ingram

In Memory of Margaret Williams

Thurman Williams

In Memory of Marya Gabrielle Williams

Jone Williams & Barbara Robb

Ms. Hazel Sanger

Mr. D. Jack Sawyer, Jr.

Anita & J. Barry Schrenk

Katherine Scott

Elizabeth N. Shapiro

*Mrs. Lessie B. Smithgall

Elizabeth Morgan Spiegel

Christine & Mark St.Clare

*Ms. Barbara D. Stewart

*Mrs. Eleanor H. Strain

Mr. Tarek Takieddini

Sandra & *Tom Teepen

Dr. & Mrs. Harold Whitney

*Mrs. Jane S. Willson

Rhys T. Wilson

Ms. Bunny Winter & Mr. Michael Doyle

Mr. Charles R. Yates, Jr. & Mrs. Mary Mitchell Yates

*Mr. & *Mrs. Charles R. Yates, Sr.

*Jay & Barbara Zellner

Mr. Tomer Zvulun & Mrs. Susanna Eiland

In Honor of Charlie & Mary Yates

Sarah & David Sutherland

Dorothy Yates Kirkley

In Memory of Jay Zellner

Mrs. Barbara Zellner

In Honor of Mr. Tomer Zvulun & Ms. Susanna Eiland

Mr. & Mrs. Larry Kurlander

George & Rae Weimer

Michael Golden & Juliet Asher

Emily Knobloch

Connor Howard

John & Yee-Wan Stevens

Mr. & Mrs. William E. Tucker

In Memory of Bill Pennington

Jonathan Blalock

In honor of Jerome & Dulcy Rosenberg

Mr. & Mrs. Jay M. Davis

BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERS

Chair

Mr. Rhys T. Wilson

Vice Chair

Mr. John L. Hammaker

Treasurer

Ms. Bunny Winter

Secretary

Mr. John Haupert

MEMBERS

Mrs. Cathy Callway Adams

Mrs. Elizabeth Adler

Mrs. Wendy Anzalone

Mr. Bryan H. Barnes

Mr. Dante Bellizzi

Mr. Montague L. Boyd, IV

Dr. Harold J. Brody

Mrs. Rosemary Kopel Brown

Mr. Frank H. Butterfield

Mr. Mario Concha

Dr. Frank A. Critz

Mr. Robert Dean

Dr. Todd Ellis

Mr. Dieter Elsner

Dr. Donald J. Filip

Mr. Kevin Greiner

Mrs. Joanne Chesler Gross

Mr. Jamael Hester

Mr. Howard W. Hunter

Mr. Andrew R. Long

Mr. Alfredo Martin

Mr. James B. Miller, Jr.

Mrs. Stephanie Morela

Mrs. Sandra S. Morelli

Mrs. Talia Murphy

Mr. Howard Palefsky

Mr. Michael E. Paulhus

Dr. Carlos del Rio

Mr. Herbert J. Rosenberg

Mr. Thomas Saylor

Mr. Charles Sharbaugh

Mr. Alex Simmons, Jr.

Mrs. Christine St.Clare

Mr. William E. Tucker

Mr. Tomer Zvulun, ex-officio

HONORARY MEMBERS

Mr. Ronald Antinori

The Very Reverend Samuel G. Candler

Mr. Robert G. Edge

Mr. Carl I. Gable, Jr.

Mrs. Nancy Hall Green

Mr. Gregory F. Johnson

Mr. Carter Joseph

Mr. Alfred Kennedy, Jr.

Mr. Michael Keough

Mrs. Emily C. Knobloch

Mr. George Levert

Mr. J. Barry Schrenk

Mr. Timothy E. Sheehan

Mr. G. Kimbrough Taylor, Jr.

Mr. Mark K. Taylor

Mr. Thomas R. Williams

Mr. Robert G. Woodward

Mr. Charles R. Yates, Jr.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Board Chair

Mr. Rhys T. Wilson

Vice-Chair

Mr. John L. Hammaker

Nominating & Board Engagement Chair

Mrs. Talia Murphy

Secretary

Mr. John Haupert

Treasurer | Finance Chair

Ms. Bunny Winter

Audit Chair

Mr. Bryan H. Barnes

Community Engagement Chair

Mr. Alex Simmons, Jr.

Development Chair

Mr. Howard Palefsky

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Chair

Mrs. Stephanie Morela

Investment Co-Chairs

Mr. Frank Butterfield

Mrs. Sandra S. Morelli

Strategic Planning Chair

Mrs. Christine St.Clare

At-Large Members

Mrs. Cathy Callaway Adams

Mr. Howard W. Hunter

Mr. Charles Sharbaugh

Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General & Artistic Director, ex-officio member

Mr. Tomer Zvulun

ADVISORY COUNCIL

Mr. Andrew J.M. Binns

Mr. Kenny L. Blank

Mrs. Inge Bledel

Ms. Mary Calhoun

Ms. Sally Bland Fielding

Mrs. Beth W. Glynn

Dr. Thomas N. Guffin, Jr.

Mrs. Erin Quinn Martin

Mr. Paul Snyder

EXECUTIVE

Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General & Artistic Director

Tomer Zvulun

Managing Director

Micah Fortson

Executive Assistant & Board Liaison

Misty Reid

ARTISTIC/MUSIC

Carl & Sally Gable Music Director

Arthur Fagen

Director of Artistic Administration

Meredith Wallace

Artistic Associate

Annie Penner Gilstrap

PRODUCTION

Director of Production

Robert Reynolds

Associate Director of Production

Meggie Roseborough

Senior Technical Director

Terry Harper

Technical Director

Joshua Jansen

Assistant Technical Director

Ben Cole

Production Coordinator

Jocelyn Gresham

Production Finance Coordinator

Robbin Anderson

Production Stage Manager

Megan Bennett

Assistant Stage Managers

Caitlin Denney-Turner

Kristin Kelley

Chorus & Orchestra Manager

Chris Bragg

Orchestra Librarian

Phil Parsons

Lighting Supervisor

Marissa Michaels

Costume Shop Director

Sarah Burch Gordon

Costume Shop Manager

Cristine Reynolds

Cutter/Draper

Fiona Leonard

First Hand

Paula Peasley-Ninestein

Stitcher

Hauzia Conyers

Alison Hergen

Allison Hines

Stefanie Pifer

Jenn Rogers

Wardrobe Supervisor

Kelly Chipman

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & EDUCATION

Director of Community Engagement & Education

Jessica Kiger

Education Manager

Kendall Roney

*denotes members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees - Local 927

Dressers

Cynthia Clark

Nicole Kennedy

Marianne Martin

Brett Parker

Christy Pringle

Jenn Rogers

Gibron Sheppard

Wig & Makeup Assistant

Oran Wongpandid

Wig & Makeup Crew

Michael Briseno

Steven Smith

Costume Contractor

Carmel Dundon

Community Engagement & Education Coordinator

Jonesia Williams

New Works Administrator

Cara Consilvio

†denotes members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees - Local 859

DEVELOPMENT

Chief Advancement Officer

Paul Harkins

Associate Director of Development

– Leadership Giving

Jessica Langlois

Associate Director of Development

– Major & Planned Gifts

Jonathan Blalock

Annual Giving & Events Coordinator

Gloria Lin

FINANCE

Director of Finance

Kathy J. White

Controller

Inga V. Murro

ADMINISTRATION

Director of Human Resources

Kenneth R. Timmons

Development Operations Coordinator

Diana Burns

Senior Institutional Giving Officer

Elana Grossman

Database Manager/Analyst

Gokul Parasuram

Development Project Manager

Aaron Walker

Staff Accountant

Camelia Johnson

Bookkeeper

Ruth Strickland

MARKETING, COMMUNICATIONS, & AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT

Director of Sales & Marketing

Rebecca Brown

Director of Communications & PR

Michelle Winters

Senior Manager, Ticketing Services

Renee Smiley

Guest Services Concierge

Emily Crisp

THE ATLANTA OPERA FILM STUDIO

Creative Services Manager

Matt Burkhalter

Sales & Marketing Manager

Ashley May King

Box Office Associate

Chauncey Sims

Felipe Barral Film Associate

Director of The Atlanta Opera Film Studio

Amanda Sachtleben

GLYNN STUDIO ARTISTS

Bruno Baker

Edwin Jhamal Davis

Gretchen Krupp

Kameron Lopreore

Alexis Seminario

CONCESSIONS

Concession stands are located in the center of the lobbies on all three levels. Food and beverage items are prohibited inside the theater. Thank you for your cooperation.

RESTROOMS

Restrooms are located on house right and house left of all three lobbies. Family restrooms are also located on house right of all three lobbies. Mobility-impaired patrons may use any of our restrooms.

PREPAID PARKING

On the performance page on the Cobb Energy Centre website there is a link to purchase parking in advance. Day of parking is available for $15 (credit or debit card only). There are 1,000 on-site parking spaces; 700 in a four-level deck and 300 more in a surface lot.

EMERGENCY INFO

In the event of an emergency, please locate the nearest usher who will direct you to the appropriate exit.

ELEVATORS

Elevators are located on each side of the lobbies on all levels.

LOST & FOUND

Items are turned into the Synovus Box Office on the day of a performance. To inquire about a lost item, please call Public Safety at 770-916-2911.

SMOKING

Smoking is prohibited inside the building.

SPECIAL ASSISTANCE

Persons requiring access assistance are asked to contact the Ticketmaster at 800-982-2787 for advance arrangements.

Audio clarification devices are available to our hearing impaired guests at no charge. This is on a firstcome, first-served basis and are available at the main desk in the lobby. Wheelchairs are available upon request. All items require a form of identification to be held until the item is returned.

COBB ENERGY CENTRE RULES & REQUESTS

• All patrons, regardless of age, must have a ticket in order to be admitted to the performance. Please be aware that not all performances are suitable for children.

• Infants will not be admitted to adult programs. Parents will be asked to remove children who create a disturbance.

• There is no late seating allowed. Closed-circuit monitors are provided in the lobby as a courtesy to latecomers.

• Please turn off all cellphones prior to the beginning of each performance.

• Please limit conversation during the performance.

• Cameras (including use of cellphone camera) and audio and video recording devices are strictly prohibited at all times.

• Leaving while the show is in progress is discourteous and we ask that you refrain from doing so.

• Please unwrap all candies and cough drops before the performance.