MINNESOTA OPERA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Patron Services Coordinator
Bass Allen Michael Jones is rapidly building an exciting and varied up-and-coming career. During the summer of 2021, Mr. Jones joined the Santa Fe Opera, singing Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin, as well as covering Snug in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Van Helsing in the world premiere of The Lord of Cries. In the summer of 2022, Mr. Jones will rejoin Santa Fe Opera, singing Officer in Il barbiere di Siviglia, as well as covering the roles of Zuniga in Carmen, and Pistola in Falstaff. During the 2021-2022 season, Mr. Jones made his role debuts as Ferrando in Il trovatore and the Father in Blue with Toledo Opera (COVID19), performed as the bass soloist in Handel's Messiah with Dayton Philharmonic, and sings Zuniga in Carmen at Minnesota Opera. Mr. Jones also will cover the role of the Father in Blue at Seattle Opera, reprises the role of Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin with Dallas Symphony under the baton of Fabio Luisi and returns to Minnesota Opera in 2023 as Il Commendatore in Don Giovanni.
As a Resident Studio Artist with Minnesota Opera for the 2020-21 season, where he was scheduled to cover Osmin in Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Prince Gremin in Eugene Onegin, Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola, and the Father in Jeanine Tesori's award-winning new opera, Blue. He was also slated to make his house debuts at Minnesota Opera, singing as Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin, Police Buddy No. 3 in Blue, and Singer Ranger in The Shining (all canceled due to COVID19) but now he is scheduled to sing Man in Don't Tread On Me: A Century of Racism and Superintendent Budd in Albert Herring.
In the spring of 2020, he was scheduled to make his Atlanta Opera debut as L'imperial commissario in Madame Butterfly (COVID19 rescheduled to fall 2022), and his house debut with Washington National Opera as Police Buddy No. 3 in Blue (COVID19).
In 2020, Mr. Jones finished his second year as a Studio Artist with Michigan Opera Theatre, performing the roles of Masetto in Don Giovanni, Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin, Balthazar in Amahl and the Night Visitors, Maximillian in Candide, and Policeman/Man in Suit/Man in the Barn in Ricky Ian Gordan's highly celebrated Grapes of Wrath.
The summer of 2020 would have been Mr. Jones's second season with the Glimmerglass Festival, where he was slated to reprise the role of Masetto in Don Giovanni and cover the roles of Harold in Wagner's Die Feen and Commendatore in Don Giovanni. In their 2019 festival season, Mr. Jones covered the Father in Blue, Joe in Show Boat, Suleyman Pasha in The Ghosts of Versailles and performed the role of the Commissario in La traviata. In 2018, Mr. Jones was a participant in the American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) in Graz, Austria where he was a finalist in their Meistersinger Competition.
Also a gifted composer, Mr. Jones is a proud graduate Morehouse College where he received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music Composition before going on to earn his Master of Music Degree in Vocal Performance from Georgia State University.
Former Minnesota Resident Artist Ana De Archuleta has firmly established herself as one of the most sought after managers in the operatic field. Representing a thriving roster of vocalists, conductors, and directors worldwide, ADA Artists can be seen at the Metropolitan Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, English National Opera, Grand Thé tre de Genève, the Salzburg Festival, the Aix-en-Provence Festival, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Washington National Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, and South America. She is a business member of OPERA America and the American Symphony league, and was invited to be a member of the 2015-2016 Women's Opera Network Steering Committee and a panelist for the National Endowment of the Arts 2017 Arts Works Opera Grants.
Cuban-American tenor Andres Acosta continues to stand out through his strong vocal presence and magnetic acting. In the 2021-2022 season, Acosta returns to both Madison Opera for his role debut as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor and to Houston Grand Opera for the world premiere of The Snowy Day. Acosta workshops the role of the Pigeon Keeper in Santa Fe Opera's commission of The Pigeon Keeper by David Hanlon and Stephanie Fleischmann. Additionally, he makes house debuts with Bard SummerScape Festival, San Antonio Opera, and Florentine Opera. Acosta makes his house debut with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis in the world premiere of Awakenings.
In the 2019-2020 season, Acosta made his Ravinia Festival debut in Bernstein's Mass, his Atlanta Opera debut as Alejandro in Frida, reprised the role of Arcadio in Florencia en el Amazonas in his house debut with Pittsburgh Opera, made his Houston Grand Opera debut as Father Matias in El Milagro del Recuerdo, reprised the role of Timothy Laughlin in Fellow Travelers in his house debut with Madison Opera, and was scheduled to return to Minnesota Opera and debut with The Glimmerglass Festival as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni. He was also scheduled to debut with Florida Grand Opera in Fellow Travelers and make his international debut as Tony in Francesca Zambello's production of West Side Story.
Mr. Acosta's 2018-19 season included his highly acclaimed portrayal of Timothy Laughlin in Minnesota Opera's production of Fellow Travelers by Gregory Spears, and he reprised the role of Arcadio in Florencia en el Amazonas with Pensacola Opera. In concert he debuted with the Cincinnati Symphony for their autumn Pops Concert, the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra in Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti, and LOFTrecital for Bernstein's Songfest. Acosta joined Theatre Latté Da's national tour of Peter Rothstein's All is Calm as Victor Granier. He also competed as a semifinalist in Houston Grand Opera's Eleanor McCollum Competition.
In the 2017-2018 season, Acosta was an Apprentice at the Merola Opera Program and then joined the Resident Artist Program at Minnesota Opera. His season included covering and performing excerpts of Duca in Rigoletto, Gennaro in Lucrezia Borgia, Nicias in Thaïs, Beppe in Rita, and Ernesto in Don Pasquale.
Acosta is a recipient of Opera America's 2018 Career Blueprints grant and a Gerda Lissner and Sullivan Foundation Award semifinalist. He received an Encouragement award as a Central Regional finalist for the Metropolitan Opera National Council competition in 2017 and won awards in the Dorothy Lincoln Smith competition and the National Society of Arts and Letters competition. He was awarded the Judy George Junior Young Artist First Prize Award in the 2015 Young Patronesses of the Arts competition and is recognized as a Braulecht Estate Endowed and Music Guild Scholar.
Acosta attended Indiana University for his master's degree in music as a student of Carol Vaness. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in arts from Florida State University where he studied with David Okerlund.
Job Titles:
- Executive Assistant to the President
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- Member of the Officers Team
- Secretary
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Patron Services Representative
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- Principal Coach & Chorus Director
AMERICAN BARITONE CHARLES H. EATON, a top-prize winner in the 2021 Lotte Lenya Competition, makes his recital debut with The Musicians of Ma'alwyck in the 2021-2022 season (featuring Finzi's By footpath and stile performed with string quartet). He covers the role of Mr. Lindquist in A Little Night Music at Arizona Opera, and returns to Minnesota Opera to perform Moralès in their brand new production of Carmen directed by Denyce Graves. In the 2022-2023 season, he will join the Resident Artist Program at Minnesota Opera and make role debuts as Argante in Rinaldo, the Corporal in La fille du régiment, and Masetto in Don Giovanni. He will also cover the role of Bryce in the world premiere of Edward Tulane by Paola Prestini and Mark Campbell.
In the 2019-2020 season, Mr. Eaton made role and company debuts as Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia with New York City Opera in Bryant Park, William Dale in Silent Night with Minnesota Opera, and Vitellius in Hérodiade with New Amsterdam Opera. He returned to Madison Opera as Carl-Magnus in A Little Night Music, and to Minnesota Opera to create the roles of Arnold Rothstein and George Gorman in the world premiere of Joel Puckett's The Fix. He also returned to The Glimmerglass Festival for the 2019 summer season to perform Steve / Max in Show Boat and cover Figaro in The Ghosts of Versailles.
In the 2018-2019 season, Mr. Eaton made multiple company debuts, including German Sentry/Soldier #3 in Silent Night with The Glimmerglass Festival as a member of the young artist program, Samuel in The Pirates of Penzance with Park Square Theater, and Moralès in Carmen with Madison Opera. He also made his concert debut with The Mankato Symphony Orchestra as Riff in West Side Story.
In May of 2017, Charles completed a second year as a resident artist with Opera Colorado, where he performed Figaro in the touring production of The Barber of Seville, Bello in La fanciulla del West, and Enrico in the student matinee production of Lucia di Lammermoor. In the previous season, he sang the Father in the touring production of Hansel and Gretel and Governor Bellingham in the student matinee of the world premiere of The Scarlet Letter. He returned to Des Moines Metro Opera in 2017 for a second summer as an apprentice, where he sang Mr. Lindquist and covered Carl-Magnus in A Little Night Music. In their 2016 season, he covered Lescaut in Massenet's Manon and participated in the ensemble of Gluck's Orphée et Eurydice.
Charles is a graduate of the University of Connecticut (in his hometown of Storrs, CT) where he received his Bachelor of Music degree in 2013. He received his Master of Music degree from the University of Minnesota, and in his second year of studies was a participant of the ECCO Program, which facilitated hours of coaching and exchange between promising young artists in the School of Music and the music staff at Minnesota Opera.
Mr. Eaton was a finalist in the 2021 Opera Ithaca Edward M. Murray Vocal Competition, a semi-finalist in the 2020 Premiere Opera Foundation / NYIOP International Voice Competition, a semi-finalist in the 2019 Mildred Miller International Voice Competition, a second-place winner of the 2019 American Prize Competition, a district winner of the 2016 Metropolitan Opera National Council Competition, and the first-place winner of the 2015 Thursday Musical competition in Minneapolis, MN.
Job Titles:
- Campaign and Annual Giving Manager / Marketing and Communications
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Digital Marketing Associate
Job Titles:
- Artistic Director of the Wexford Festival Opera
- Director for Vancouver Opera
David Agler is Artistic Director of the Wexford Festival Opera. He has previously served as Music Director of the Vancouver Opera, Principal Conductor of the Australian Opera, Resident Conductor of the San Francisco Opera, Principal Guest Conductor of the Oper der Stadt Köln, conductor and Administrator of the Spoleto Festival, Artistic Director of the Opera Festival of New Jersey, and Music Director of the Syracuse Opera.
Notable opera companies with whom he has appeared include the Santa Fe Opera, Seattle Opera, The Western Australian Opera, The Netherlands Opera, Reggio Emilia, Pittsburgh Opera, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Opera Theater of St. Louis, Edmonton Opera, Manitoba Opera, and L'Opera de Montreal.
As a symphonic conductor, he has led concerts with the San Francisco Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony, Warsaw Philharmonic, National Arts Center (Ottawa) Orchestra, CBC Vancouver, Netherlands Radio Symphony, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Chamber Symphony and Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony.
Recent guest conducting engagements include productions of Dead Man Walking and Ariadne auf Naxos for Calgary Opera, Un Ballo in Maschera for Opera Colorado, Tosca, Bluebeard's Castle, and Romeo et Juliette in Vancouver, Tosca for Opera Pacific, Transatlantic for the Minnesota Opera, Manon and Salome for L'Opera de Montreal, Manon for the State Opera, Pretoria, South Africa and for the Florentine Opera, Milwaukee, The Cunning Little Vixen for Portland Opera, Si j'etais Roi by Adolph Adam for the Wexford Opera Festival, Orphee ed Eurydice by Gluck and Il Barbiere di Siviglia for Opera Colorado and New York City Opera, Gluck's Il Trionfo di Cielia.for Teatro Comunale Rossini in Lugo, Italy, Le Nozze di Figaro for Opera Colorado and the New National Theater, Tokyo, Madama Butterfly for L'Opera de Montreal, Die Zauberflöte for the New York City Opera, Dialogues of the Carmelites for the Calgary Opera, La Boheme for Boston Lyric Opera, and The Rape of Lucretia for the Opera Festival of New Jersey. He has also led concerts with L'Orchestra Metropolitain in Montreal and the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, and with the BBC Northern Ireland Orchestra. This past season, he conducted Puccini's Turandot for the Utah Opera.
This season, he will return to the Minnesota Opera to lead the world premiere of William Bolcom's Dinner at Eight, after which he will debut with San Diego Opera conducting La Traviata.
As Music Director for Vancouver Opera, Mr. Agler earned special acclaim for productions of repertoire from the twentieth century, including Peter Grimes, The Makropolous Case, The Dialogues of the Carmelites, Jenufa and Susannah.
Doug Scholz-Carlson recently made his directing debut in Minnesota Opera's La fanciulla del West at the company that first introduced him to opera when he joined the chorus of La Cenerentola in 1998. Doug sang in the chorus and later served as assistant director for numerous productions. Minnesota Opera audiences know his fight choreography from various shows including Otello, Carmen, The Handmaid's Tale, Wuthering Heights and the world premieres of The Shining, The Grapes of Wrath and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Silent Night. Doug is Artistic Director of the Great River Shakespeare Festival in Winona, Minnesota, where he has directed productions including Macbeth and Cymbeline and played roles including Henry in King Henry V, Feste in Twelfth Night and Edgar in King Lear. Recent directing credits include Lucia di Lammermoor for Portland Opera, Pittsburgh Opera and Austin Lyric Opera, The Turn of the Screw for Palm Beach Opera and Madison Opera and Brundibár for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and Palm Beach Opera. Also known as a fight choreographer, Doug's fights have appeared in productions at theaters including New York City Opera, Opera Philadelphia, Utah Opera, Guthrie Theater, Children's Theatre Company and the Seattle Police Department. As an actor, Doug has performed at theaters including the Guthrie Theater, Repertory Theater of Saint Louis, Utah Shakespeare Festival and the Seattle Repertory Theater. Upcoming projects include Roméo et Juilette at Austin Lyric Opera, The Barber of Seville at Madison Opera and a traveling production of The Pirates of Penzance for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Coordinator
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- Patron Services Representative
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- Patron Services Representative
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- Marketing and Communications Director
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- Strategic Growth Director
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- Associate Institutional Giving Director
Job Titles:
- Patron Services Representative
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- Civic Engagement Assistant Director
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- Associate
- Production Director
Hadleigh Adams is a United States based baritone who has received international acclaim for his performances on stage and in concert. He is renowned for his dynamic stage presence and ability to draw true, honest characters in his performances. His broad repertoire spans from Baroque and Bel Canto through Britten and contemporary composition. He has collaborated with some of today's greatest artists on the concert platform and on the opera stage.
New-Zealand born, Hadleigh began his operatic studies at the University of Auckland gaining a bachelor of music, with first class, first division honors and then completed his masters of music at the New Zealand School of Music. From here he was invited to join the New Zealand Opera as a Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist. In 2009 he relocated to Australia as the inaugural Gertrude Johnson Scholar at The Opera Studio, Melbourne. He then received a full three-year scholarship to London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama where he studied with Rudolf Piernay and Janice Chapman, gaining a Masters of Music with Distinction, and completed the Opera Program with first class, first division honors.
Following his studies, Hadleigh performed in concert at London's St Martin-in-the-Fields, the London Song Recital series, and has performed at the Wigmore Hall as a Voiceworks series artist. Whilst studying at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Hadleigh made his debut at London's Royal National Theatre singing the role of Christ in Jonathan Miller's production of Bach's St. Matthew Passion, to critical acclaim.
Following these performances, Hadleigh was invited to join the Merola Opera Program, at the San Francisco Opera. After his time Hadleigh was invited to join the San Francisco Opera as an Adler Fellow, the first New Zealander to ever hold the position. During his two-year tenure with the company Hadleigh appeared in over 75 MainStage performances, and over 20 concert performances. His final performance with the company was in the role of Schaunard in la Boheme.
Hailed by the New York Times as "sturdy", "dynamic", and "excellent", Aubrey Allicock continues to make his mark among important opera companies and symphonies both at home and abroad. A Grammy nominee for his participation in John Adams's Doctor Atomic as General Groves, Mr. Allicock adds to that nominee list a BBC Music Magazine Award for Opera.
Recent and upcoming: He made his Los Angeles Philharmonic debut under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel in works by Mozart; debuted with New Orleans Opera in Champion and reprised the title role in Le nozze di Figaro with the Salzburger-landestheater. This past season's engagements include Bernstein Songfest in Carnegie Hall conducted by Marin Alsop; a debut with Opéra de Montréal in Champion; and, a reprise of Figaro with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. This season he return ed to Glyndebourne as Argante in Rinaldo, revisits the role of Young Emile in Champion with Michigan Opera Theater; and, debuts the role of Dick Hallorann in The Shining with Lyric Opera Kansas City. He makes his Minnesota Opera debut in 2021 and returns to Seattle Opera for a third season.
He debuted at the Concertgebouw in John Adams's El Niño and made his Washington National Opera debut in a reprise of Terence Blanchard's Champion as the Young Emile in the spring of 2017. He returned to Europe to make his BBC debut as General Groves in Doctor Atomic and recorded the work for Nonesuch Records. Mr. Allicock was reengaged with the Bard Music Festival as Janusz in Stanislaw Moniuszko's opera Halka, sung in Polish; made his Opera Philadelphia debut in the fall of 2017 in We Shall Not Be Moved, music by Daniel Bernard Roumain with Bill T. Jones directing and a reprise at the Apollo Theater in New York and Dutch National Opera. Mr. Allicock completed a return engagement at the Wexford Festival in Delius's Koanga; a return engagement with Seattle Opera in the title role of Le nozze di Figaro and was Cadmus/Somnus in Semele with Opera Omaha in a James Darrah production. He returned to Opera Theatre of Saint Louis as Bulbul Fakh in Jack Perla's Shalimar the Clown, after the novel by Salman Rushdie; and, sang with the Bard Music Festival in Busoni's Turandot in concert.
His triumph in 2014-15 season at the Metropolitan Opera as Mamoud in The Death of Klinghoffer brought him world-wide recognition that season. This auspicious debut was followed by a Carnegie debut in a reprise of his roles from the Ojai Festival as Tonic and Don Giovanni in Steven Stucky's The Classical Style with Robert Spano conducting and where he was named a candidate for the Warner Music Prize. In addition, he made his Komische Oper Berlin debut that season as Escamillo and made an unscheduled Glyndebourne debut as Argante in Rinaldo with Ottavio Dantone conducting in a Robert Carson production.
In 2013 he returned to Opera Theatre of St. Louis for the world première of Terence Blanchard's Champion, as the young Emile Griffith, the world-renowned prizefighter and made his Phoenix Symphony and New York Philharmonic Youth Concert debuts that season in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9.
He has sung the roles of Tiridate (Radamisto) under the baton of Julian Wachner and director James Darrah; the Forester (The Cunning Little Vixen) with Anne Manson conducting and the U.S. première of Peter Maxwell Davies' Kommilitonen! as the Grand Inquisitor. In the 2010-2011 season Mr. Allicock joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera covering the roles of Astarotte (Armida) and Marullo (Rigoletto).
Mr. Allicock has appeared on several occasions with the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis making his role debut as Mamoud (The Death of Klinghoffer); performed the Mad Hatter and Duck in the U.S. première of Unsuk Chin's Alice in Wonderland; and, Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin. He has also covered the title role of Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro as well as the role of Figaro in The Ghosts of Versailles.
He has performed with the Ojai Music Festival, Wexford Festival Opera, the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra, the South Bohemian Chamber Philharmonic and with Concerts-Austria as bass soloist in Mozart's Coronation Mass at Karlskirche. Mr. Allicock has also had the honor of sharing the stage with Academy Award winning actor Louis Gossett, Jr. in Chamber Music PLUS's production of New World: Portrait of H.T. Burleigh which featured the music of Antonín Dvořák.
Mr. Allicock received his Artist Diploma from The Juilliard School; M.M. from Indiana University; holds a B.M. from Grand Canyon University and was a Gerdine Young Artist with Opera Theatre of St. Louis.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Youth Programs Music Director
Puerto Rican tenor Javier Abreu has been described as a commanding force on stage, incorporating a rich, sweet and agile voice, with ample acting skills. Opera News described him as "… a natural Rossini singer," and The Washington Times stated "his high, supple lyric voice possesses great conviction."
Javier Abreu's engagements in the 2008-2009 season currently include the title role in Rossini's Le Comte Ory with Tacoma Opera, a concert version of The Death of Klinghoffer with The Juilliard Opera Center, and conducted by its composer, John Adams, his debut with The Minnesota Opera as the Cat in the American premiere of Jonathan Dove's The Adventures of Pinocchio, and his debut at the Gran Teatro del Liceu in Barcelona, as El Enano Salnés in the world premiere of Enric Palomar's La cabeza del bautista. Upcoming engagements for the 2009-2010 include his debut with Fort Worth Opera and his return to The New Israeli Opera as Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia.
Among his contracts for the 2007-2008 season figured his role debut as Ernesto in Don Pasquale with Anchorage Opera, Count Libenskof in Il viaggio a Reims with The New Israeli Opera, Telemaco in Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria with the Greenwich Music Festival and Ramiro in La Cenerentola with both New Jersey Opera and Opera Fairbanks. In addition, he was seen in concert with the New York Festival of Song and sang the tenor solo in the Messiah for the Pennsylvania Ballet.
Mr. Abreu's 2006-2007 season included four company debuts: Pedrillo in Die Entfürung aus dem Serail with Florida Grand Opera, Almaviva in Cedar Rapids Opera Theater's Il barbiere di Siviglia, his role debut as Lindoro in Theater Basel's L'italiana in Algeri and Alexis in Gilbert and Sullivan's The Sorcerer with Bard Summerscape. During the 2005-2006 season, the tenor garnered critical acclaim for his portrayal of two of Rossini's leading men: Count Libenskof in Il viaggio a Reims with New York City Opera and the title role in Le Comte Ory with the Wolf Trap Opera. This season also included his European debut as Count Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Stuttgart Stattsoper, Pedrillo in The Abduction from the Seraglio with Opera Omaha, a solo appearance with New York Festival of Song, and the tenor solo in Carmina burana with the National Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of maestro Emil de Cou. In the 2004-2005 season, Mr. Abreu made his New York City Opera debut in the world premier of Charles Wuorinen's Haroun and the Sea of Stories, as well as his Wolf Trap Opera debut as Tobias in Sweeney Todd and his much praised performance as Don Ramiro in La Cenerentola. With American Opera Projects, he sang the role of Pepe in a reading of Jorge Martín's new opera, Before Night Falls, based on the book by Reinaldo Arenas.
Additional operatic roles for Mr. Abreu include the title roles in Albert Herring, La clemenza di Tito, Plateé, Nadir in Les pêcheurs des perles, Beppe in I pagliacci, Flute in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Belmonte in The Abduction from the Seraglio, Pilade in Handel's Oreste, and both Daniel Buchanan and Sam Kaplan in Street Scene.
Also sought after as a concert singer, the tenor has appeared with the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra and the Brazos Valley Symphony. His awards include Second Place at the 2002 Great Lakes Region of the Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions and Finalist of the Macallister Awards the same year. He is also the recipient of a 2003 Richard F. Gold Career Grant given by the Shoshana Foundation of New York, and a Third Place at the 2005 Liederkranz Foundation Competition. Most recently, he was awarded the Olsen Artist Debut Award by Florida Grand Opera and was nominated for a Richard Tucker Career Grant. Other prizes include the Second Place in the Junior Division of the 1998 Palm Beach Opera Competition. Mr. Abreu made his Alice Tully Hall debut as the tenor soloist in Rossini's Petite messe solennelle with the Julliard Choral Union. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Universtiy of Miami. After finishing a Master of Music degree at the University of Houston, he worked as a Young Artists with the Pittsburgh Opera Center for two years. Mr. Abreu is also a recent alumnus of the Juilliard Opera Center.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Officers Team
- Treasurer
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- Resident Artist / Finance
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- Assistant Technical & Facilities Director
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Technical & Facilities Director
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- Luminary Arts Center Director
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Vice President, Production / Production & Facilities
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Associate
- Production Director
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Costume Crafts and Dye Head
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- Associate Patron Relations Director
Bass-baritone Kyle Albertson is renowned not only for his versatile voice, confidence, and style, but also for his ability to bring a character to life on stage. Of his recent role debut as Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia at Fort Worth Opera, The Dallas Morning News raved: "With a drop-dead gorgeous bass-baritone, Kyle Albertson is younger than the usual Dr. Bartolo, but he's no less delightful an object of mockery. When he turns on his falsetto to demonstrate an aria from his youth, he sounds like the famously out-of-tune Florence Foster Jenkins." This season, Mr. Albertson will be making quite a large number of debuts, including a role debut of Sharpless in Madama Butterfly at Northern Lights Music Festival, Donner in Das Rheingold with the Minnesota Opera, in its first production of the opera, Lieutenant Horstmayer in Silent Night with Opera San Jose, and DeGuiche in Cyrano with Michigan Opera Theatre. He also will be making a house debut at Lyric Opera of Chicago for its production of Das Rheingold.
Recent operatic engagements include performances with the Metropolitan Opera as Masetto in Don Giovanni and for productions of Le nozze di Figaro, Die Zauberflöte, Dialogues des carmélites, The Merry Widow, and two productions of Manon; with Houston Grand Opera, he performed the role of Sacristan in Tosca and Mr. Rodriguez in Past the Checkpoints with Houston Grand Opera's HGOco; with Atlanta Opera, the Sergeant of Police in Pirates of Penzance; a Dallas Opera debut as Zuniga in Carmen; a Fort Worth Opera debut singing Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Lyndon B. Johnson in the workshop of David T. Little's opera JFK; a role debut as the title role of Sweeney Todd with Syracuse Opera; the role of Rucker Lattimore in Cold Sassy Tree with Sugar Creek Opera Festival; and the roles of the Prison Warden in Dead Man Walking, Hobson in Peter Grimes, and the Duke in Roméo et Juliette all with Des Moines Metro Opera.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Advancement / Development
Rising coloratura soprano Leah Brzyski is quickly establishing herself as a noteworthy performer throughout the United States.
In the 2020-21 season, Ms. Brzyski joined Minnesota Opera's Resident Artist Program to sing the role of Miss Wordsworth in Albert Herring. She returns for the 2021-22 season to sing the roles of Frasquita in Carmen and Jeannette in Joseph Bologne's The Anonymous Lover.
A recent graduate of the prestigious Yale University, she was seen in the roles of Königin der Nacht in Die Zauberflöte, Sandmädchen and Taumädchen in Hänsel und Gretel, and as the title role in Stravinsky's Le Rossignol. In 2020, Ms. Brzyski made her debut with Bel Cantanti Opera and Opera Ithaca as the leading roles in Don Pasquale and Cendrillon (Viardot). She has also performed as a soloist with esteemed companies including the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Lansing Symphony Orchestra, Opera Grand Rapids, Orchestra New England, and The New Haven Symphony Orchestra.
Attracting praise for her versatility, Ms. Brzyski is also a passionate performer of contemporary opera. She premiered works for the Pulitzer Prize nominated composer Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon in the opening year of the VIPA Festival (Valencia, Spain) and will premiere one of his newest compositions in 2021 with the Cygnus Ensemble in New York. She will then make her international debut as a soloist at the Beijing Modern Music Festival. Last season, Ms. Brzyski joined Bel Cantanti Opera to create the role of Sylvestra in the debut of Frances Pollock's new opera, Briscula.
Ms. Brzyski has also had great success in the competition circuit winning 1st place in the 2020 Grand Junction Symphony Guild's Young Artist Competition, the Dorothy Lincoln Smith Competition D.C. Chapter, and The American Prize Competition. She won 2nd place in the Opera Ithaca Competition (2019), 3rd place in the Hal Leonard Competition (2017), Encouragement Award Winner in the Pasadena Vocal Competition (2021), Young Artist Winner of the Harold Haugh Light Opera Competition (2017), District Winner of the Metropolitan National Council Auditions (2020), and was a Major Prize winner in the Opera Index Competition (2019).
Ms. Brzyski has been seen as a Young Artist with Central City Opera, Utah Festival Opera, and Charlottesville Opera. This year she joins the Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Program where she will cover the role of Tytania (A Midsummer Night's Dream) and premiere the role of Agave in Corigliano's new opera The Lord of Cries.
Job Titles:
- Associate Individual Giving Director
As an Apprentice Artist at Santa Fe Opera for two seasons, his assignments included Les contes d'Hoffmann, La traviata, Le nozze di Figaro, Gluck's Alceste, and the world premiere of Paul Moravec's The Letter. Mr. Albertson is a graduate of the Resident Artist Program at Minnesota Opera. During his time there, he performed in Un ballo in maschera, L'italiana in Algeri, Roméo et Juliette, Les contes d'Hoffmann, Le nozze di Figaro, La donna del lago, and Lakmé, to which critics hailed "Kyle Albertson made an imposing Nilakantha, bringing life to a character that is barely two-dimensional." With the Merola Opera Program, Mr. Albertson sang the role of Geronimo in Cimarosa's Il matrimonio segreto and as a member of the Aspen Opera Theater Center, Mr. Albertson performed Escamillo in Carmen, Besso in Giasone, Harašta in The Cunning Little Vixen, and Count Monterone in Rigoletto.
Job Titles:
- Honorary Director
- PRESIDENT's COUNCIL
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Patron Services Representative
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- Company Artist Assistant Director
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Member of the Officers Team
- Vice Chair
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Member of the Board of Directors
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- Chairman
- Member of the Officers Team
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Praised for his creamy, bright, smooth voice, Canadian baritone Phillip Addis has established himself as a leading interpreter of opera, concert, and recital with his spell-binding, daring, yet sensitive performances throughout Canada, the United States, Europe and the Far East.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Luminary House Technician
Job Titles:
- Youth Programs Music Director / Production
Robert Ainsley began his musical career at the age of eleven, studying the piano and violin at Durham School, in England. He became a Licentiate of Trinity College of Music, London, in solo piano performance at age 17 and won the National Schools' Chamber Music Competition twice. Subsequently, Mr. Ainsley was awarded the organ scholarship to St. Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he studied with Dr. Peter Hurford, Dr. John Butt, and David Sanger. He also directed the chapel choir for three years, conducting and playing in many major venues around the world.
In 1999, he graduated with a degree in Mathematics, and later that year became the senior organ scholar at Christ Church, Greenwich, Connecticut. During his time on the East Coast, he also served as assistant conductor and accompanist of the New Haven Chorale and Greenwich Choral Society, and completed a Master's degree in solo piano performance at Mannes College of Music, New York City. After serving as Maestro Joseph Colaneri's assistant in the opera department for a year at Mannes College of Music, Mr. Ainsley joined the Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. His two years in the program culminated in his acting as assistant conductor and pianist for Wagner's Die Walküre with Maestro Valery Gergiev and Plácido Domingo.
Job Titles:
- Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- General Director
- Member of the Officers Team
- President
Job Titles:
- Access and Civic Engagement Director
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- Member of the Prestigious Adler Fellow Program at San Francisco Opera
A native of St. Paul Minnesota, soprano Sara Gartland earned raves as Lisa in Des Moines Metro Opera's production of Queen of Spades. James Sohre with Opera Today exclaimed, "DMMO has hitched its wagon to the sublime talents of soprano Sara Gartland and the annual outcome could not be happier. . . Ms. Gartland proved once again to be a perfect fit for the role at hand, the torn, lovelorn, and fatally frustrated Lisa. Her radiant, full-bodied soprano was made for the passionate outbursts required by the tortured heroine, and she gave such consistent pleasure that one only wished Tchaikovsky had given her more to sing."
Job Titles:
- Youth Programs Music Director
Job Titles:
- COVID Safety Manager & Production Operations Coordinator
Named Best Opera Conductor in Italy 2016 by GBOSCARS and winner of the II Competition for Conductors City of Granada, Sergio Alapont is one of the leading conductors of his generation.
Recent Opera highlights include The Merry Widow at the Fondazione Arena di Verona, a new production of Idomeneo at the Opera du Rhin in Strasbourg; Assistant Conductor in Poliuto at the Glyndebourne Opera Festival conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra; Gala Concert at the Gran Teatre del Liceu de Barcelona; Gala Concert with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid at the Teatro Real de Madrid; La forza del destino at the Las Palmas Opera; Lucia di Lammermoor at the Teatro Comunale di Treviso and Teatro Comunale di Ferrara; Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the Den Norske Opera in Oslo; Otello at the Teatro Calderon of Valladolid; Roméo et Juliette and Aida in Sassari; Don Pasquale at the Las Palmas Opera; Attila at the Teatro Massimo Bellini of Catania; Don Bucefalo at the Wexford Opera Festival; Il cappello di paglia di Firenze at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and Wexford Opera Festival; Opera Gala with the soprano Ainhoa Arteta at the Palau de la Música de Valencia; Poliuto at the Teatro Nacional de Sao Carlos of Lisbon; Gianni Schicchi, Cavalleria Rusticana, and La Traviata at the Orizzonti Festival; Don Giovanni at the Opera Tenerife, Cenerentola in Treviso and Ferrara; Una cosa rara at the Palau de Les Arts in Valencia and at the Teatro Calderón of Valladolid; Le nozze di Figaro at the Teatro Massimo Bellini of Catania; Il Barbiere di Siviglia in Pamplona; Il barbiere di Siviglia and Norma in Sassari; Cavalleria Rusticana at the Illica Festival; Norma in Ferrara and Treviso; Le nozze di Figaro with the Haifa Symphony Orchestra; Tosca in Skopje; Don Pasquale at the Teatro Comunale di Treviso, Teatro Comunale di Ferrara, and Festival of Pollença; Don Pasquale, Don Giovanni, and La traviata at the Festival of Santanyí; and La traviata in Poznan. He assisted Marco Armiliato in several productions at the Metropolitan Opera, including Madame Butterfly, La bohème, and Sly. And Semyon Bychkov invited him as Assistant Conductor for several symphonic programs.
Alapont has also worked extensively as a guest conductor at such orchestras including London Philharmonic Orchestra, Arena di Verona, Orchestre National d'Ile de France de París, Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of The Norwegian National Opera, The Orchestra of the Scottish Opera, Orchestra Sinfonica della RAI of Turin, Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Orchestra del Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, Orchestra dei Pomeriggi Musicali of Milan, Orchestra del Teatro Massimo Bellini di Catania, Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, Haifa Symphony Orchestra, Bach-Collegium Stuttgart, Spanish Radio Television Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta de la Comunidad Valenciana (Palau de Les Arts), Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia, Real Filharmonia de Galicia, Filarmónica de Gran Canaria, Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife, Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León, Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra, Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias, Orquesta Ciudad de Granada, Monterrey Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta de Cámara de Bellas Artes in México, Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá or Orquesta Filarmonica de Jalisco, among many others.
He has conducted in prestigious Festivals as Shanghai Opera Week, Quincena Musical Donostiarra, Euro Arts - Leipzig, Carintischer Sommer, Mahler Festival - Dobbiaco, Ravello Festival, MITO Festival, and Varna Summer International Music Festival. He has collaborated with singers as Celso Albelo, Désiree Rancatore, Ainhoa Arteta, Dimitra Theodossiou, Isabel Rey, Fabio Armiliato, Lorenzo Regazzo, Roberto de Candia, Bruno Praticò, Yolanda Auyanet, Ofelia Sala, Juan Jesús Rodríguez, Carlos Chausson, Jorge de León, Tomas Mohr, Plácido Domingo, María José Montiel, Juan Francisco Gatell, Erika Miklosa, Maximilian Schmitt, Judith Van Wanrojj or Juan Pons, and with soloists such as Nemanja Radulovic, Pavel Berman, Boris Berman, Pablo Sainz Villegas, Sunao Goko, Anna Tifu, Detlef Roth, Paula Murrihy, and Measha Bruggergosman.
He has recorded for the discographic labels EGT and UNIVERSAL. And he has also recorded for Spanish National Radio and Television, RAI, RTÉ Ireland, and Euroradio.
In September 2008, he debuted at the Großer Saal of the Vienna Musikverein.
Future engagements for Mr. Alapont include Oviedo Filarmonía, Haifa Symphony Orchestra, Navarra Symphony Orchestra, Janacek Philharmonic Ostrava, Orquesta de Valencia, Le nozze di Figaro at the Teatro Comunale di Treviso, Teatro Pergolesi of Jesi and Teatro Comunale di Ferrara, Carmen at the Opera de Oviedo, Wallonie Royal Chamber Orchestra and his USA debut conducting La Rondine at the Minnesota Opera.
He has studied orchestral conducting in New York with Maestro Marco Armiliato and in Pescara with Maestro Donato Renzetti, finishing his studies with the qualification "Cum Laude".
Alapont studied in depth the operatic repertoire with Maestro Marco Armiliato and he also pursued conducting studies with Jorma Panula (Royal College of Music of Stockholm), Helmuth Rilling (Bachakademie of Stuttgart), and Masaaki Suzuki (Bach Collegium of Japan). He also receives advice from conductors, including Maestro Semyon Bychkov and Maestro Antonio Pappano.
Hailed by Opera News as "powerful in both voice and bearing" and particularly noted for his commanding stage presence and expressive vocalism, bass-baritone Seth Carico is distinguishing himself internationally as an accomplished American singer. Opera Today praised "the dynamic presence of Carico, whose ringing baritone gave much pleasure." He effortlessly capitalizes on his dramatic training, bringing a unique sensitivity to operatic characters at disparate ends of the theatrical spectrum. Carico's 2020-2021 season included several important debuts, including Orest in Elektra with Stadttheater Klagenfurt, Fortnum Roscoe/Johnson Evesham in the world premiere of Dai Fujikura's A Dream of Armageddon with New National Theatre Tokyo, and Tonio in Pagliacci with Aalto-Musiktheater Essen. This season, he returns to Deutsche Oper Berlin for Turnage's Greek, makes his Dallas Opera debut as the Minskman in Flight, joins the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra Amsterdam as Astradamors in Le grand macabre and Snow Queen/Reindeer/Clock in The Snow Queen and makes his house and role debut as Don Giovanni with Dutch National Opera.
In recent seasons, Mr. Carico has built a robust repertoire with Deutsche Oper Berlin, where he was in the Ensemble from 2010-2019. With Deutsche Oper Berlin, he has performed Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro, Leporello in Don Giovanni, Sancho Pansa in Don Quichotte, The Doctor in Wozzeck, Kolenatý in The Makropulos Affair, Saint-Bris in Les Huguenots, The Traveler, et al. in Death in Venice, Oberthal in Le Prophete, Gunther in Götterdämmerung, Redburn in Billy Budd, the Police Commissioner in Lady Macbeth from Mtsensk, Klingsor in Parsifal, Dulcamara in L'elisir d'amore, Sonora in La Fanciulla del West, Abimélech in Samson et Dalila, and Kassandra in Oresteia, a role for which he was nominated for the 2015 German National Theater Prize, "Der Faust," for Best Male Singer. In addition, he has portrayed Junius in The Rape of Lucretia, Biterolf in Tannhäuser, Farfarello in L'amour des trois oranges, Panthée in Les Troyens, the villains in Offenbach/Champert's Hoffmann, Andrew Cunanan in the world premiere of Brandt Brauer Frick's electronic opera Gianni, and The Father in the world premiere of Aribert Reimann's L'invisible.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Soprano, Symone Harcum begins her 2022-2023 season as a Company Artist at Minnesota Opera. There she will make two role debuts as Armirena in Handel's Rinaldo and Donna Anna in Mozart's Don Giovanni. She will also make her debut with the Lyric Opera of Chicago singing the role of Sandra in the world premiere of Will Liverman's Factotum. Last season, Symone appeared with Minnesota Opera as Léontine in The Anonymous Lover and Micaëla in Bizet's Carmen, Virginia Opera as La Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro, and made her debut with the Glimmerglass Festival in the role of Micaëla in Carmen.
In the summer of 2021 she rejoined the Des Moines Metro Opera as an apprentice artist where she sang the role of Mascha and covered Lisa in Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades. During the 2020 season she participated in Virginia Opera's alternate season initiative, "Stayin' Alive" where she participated in socially distanced performances in the community and sang Girl in Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti. The cancelled 2021 season would have seen her Minnesota Opera debut in the role of Girlfriend 2 in the award winning opera, Blue.
As a member of 2019-2020 The Herndon Foundation Emerging Artist Program at Virginia Opera, she sang the role of Clorinda in La Cenerentola and covered the title role and sang The High Priestess in Aïda. In the fall of 2020, she was a finalist in both the Tri-Cities Opera Competition and the New York International Opera + Premiere Opera Vocal Competition. Most recently, Symone was named the first place winner of the 2021 Opera Ithaca Competition.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Administration and Board Relations
Job Titles:
- Interim Marketing and Communications Associate / Patron Services
Houston native Vanessa Alonzo has performed with the greatest mariachi musicians in the world including Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, Mariachi Los Camperos, and Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlan. She studied mariachi and voice under the direction of the late Alfonso Guerra at the community-based program Multicultural Education and Counseling through the Arts (MECA). In 2019, Alonzo created the role of Lupita for the world premiere of Houston Grand Opera's El Milagro del Recuerdo/The Miracle of Remembering, which is a prequel to Cruzar la Cara de la Luna/To Cross the Face of the Moon, the first mariachi opera in the world. Cruzar la Cara de la Luna/To Cross the Face of the Moon premiered in 2010 with Houston Grand Opera with the world-renowned Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán.
She reprised the role of Lupita in Cruzar La Cara De La Luna across the United States, with companies such as El Paso Opera (2019); Houston Grand Opera, New York City Opera, and Teatro Nacional Sucre in Quito, Ecuador (2018); Fort Worth Opera (2017); Arizona Opera (2014); as well as the 2013 tri-city tour with San Diego Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and Lyric Opera of Chicago. Additionally, at Thé tre du Ch telet in Paris, France in 2011.
In 2015, Alonzo created the role of Juana in Lyric Opera of Chicago's El Pasado Nunca Se Termina/The Past Is Never Finished, which she also performed at Houston Grand Opera and San Diego Opera. She reprised the role at Fort Worth Opera in their 2019 season. Alonzo was invited to perform with Grammy Award winning Mariachi Los Camperos for the Houston Grand Opera Ball in 2019.
In 2020, she captivated the audience at the Fort Worth Rodeo representing Fort Worth Opera. Alonzo was an opening act for Graciela Beltran in Arlington, Texas. She was awarded Grand Champion Vocalist Award in the Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza national vocal competition. Her travel and performing credits include tours to Ireland, Mexico, Norway, and Vietnam. In 2002, she performed for the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Television credits include El Show de Cristina on Univision as a participant in Festival de Rancheras and an appearance as a finalist on Estrella TV's Tengo Talento, Mucho Talento in season 4.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Creative Development Program Manager