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Conductor Robert Tweten has been described as leading with “verve and precision,” his pacing as
flawless,” and having a “musicality and near symbiotic accord with singers.” The Canadian native
recently returned to Canada to conduct Don Giovanni for Opera Ontario, Rigoletto for Edmonton Opera,
and Tosca for Vancouver Opera. Other recent engagements include Falstaff for Utah Opera, Le nozze di
Figaro with the Santa Fe Opera, and Die Zauberflöte for Sarasota Opera. Upcoming he will return to Utah
to conduct Rigoletto and to Vancouver for Il barbiere di Siviglia. He was last with Calgary Opera for Barber of Seville (2009).
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Alain Gauthier earned his bachelor's degree in theatre from the Université du Québec à Montréal. He has
directed several productions for the Opéra de Montréal including Suor Angelica/Il Tabarro, Il Barbiere di
Siviglia and La Bohème. He successfully remounted the Glimmerglass Opera production of L’étoile for
the Opéra de Montréal, the Cincinnati Opera, the Austin Lyric Opera, and the New York City Opera.
Among other projects, Gauthier is preparing a new production of Faust for Opéra de Montréal, and will
be presenting Pagliacci/Gianni Schicchi at the Cincinnati Opera in June 2012. This is his debut with
Calgary Opera.
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Harry Frehner has designed more
than 40 productions for Calgary
Opera dating back to 1992. In the
past six years, five of these productions have been
nominated for Betty Mitchell Awards, of which, two
have won. Last year’s three world premieres: Before
Night Falls (Fort Worth Opera), Lillian Alling
(Vancouver Opera) and The Inventor here in Calgary
were all critical successes. He has lit productions
for Edmonton Opera, Arizona Opera, Opera Lyra,
Vancouver Opera, Opera Colorado, Utah Opera,
Opera Ontario, Manitoba Opera and Pacific Opera
Victoria. His work has been seen across the country at
such companies as The Banff Centre, Theatre Calgary,
Alberta Theatre Projects, Decidedly Jazz Danceworks,
Royal Winnipeg Ballet, The Stratford and Shaw
Festivals, Ballet BC and Neptune Theatre.
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Recently invested as a Member of the Order of Canada, John Fanning is a veteran of nine seasons at the
Metropolitan Opera; roles there include John Plake in Sly, co-starring with Placido Domingo, Mr. Astly in The Gambler, Faninal in Der Rosenkavalier and the Four Villains in Les Contes D’Hoffmann conducted
by James Levine. Recent credits include the title role in Casanova’s Homecoming (Minnesota Opera),
Musiklehrer in Ariadne auf Naxos (Houston Grand Opera), di Luna in Il Trovatore (Opera de Quebec),
and Kr. Kolenaty in Makropoulos Case (Nantes/Angers in France). He was last with Calgary Opera for The Ballad of Baby Doe (2008).
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Since being personally chosen by Valery Gergiev for a production of La Traviata in St. Petersburg, Marc
Hervieux’s career has reached a new level. His 2010-2011 season is highlighted by appearances with
Opera Lyra as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, the title role in Pagliacci for Opera Hamilton
and Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus for Opera de Quebec. He was also been heard in Montreal and
Quebec in Salute to Vienna and is in demand for personal appearances in Kuala Lampur, Toronto and
Montreal following the release of his chart-topping CDs; Après Nous and Italian Arias with Nezet-Seguin.
He was last with Calgary Opera for Faust (2008).
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Peter McGillivray, who joined the Metropolitan Opera roster for the first time in the 2010-2011 season,
won 1st Prize in the CBC Competition, Deuxieme Grand Prix and Chalmers Award at the Montreal
International Competition, and the Silver Medal at the Queen Sonja competition in Oslo, Norway. Recent
credits include Schaunard in La Bohème and Dolokhov/General Belliard in War & Peace (Canadian
Opera Company), Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus (Opera Hamilton), Messiah (National Arts Centre
Orchestra and Winnipeg Symphony), Raoul in The Shadow (Tapestry) and Carmina Burana (Brott
Festival). He was last with Calgary Opera for Manon (2009).
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Soprano Sally Dibblee enjoys success on opera stages and concert halls throughout North America.
Recent engagements include Nedda in I Pagliacci with Vancouver Opera, her role debut as Cio-Cio San
in Madama Butterfly with Opera Pacific Victoria, a Toronto Symphony debut singing opera highlights and
performing Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Orquesta Sinfonica de Mineria in Mexico City. Highlights of her
2009-2010 season included Pat Nixon in the Canadian debut of Nixon in China with Vancouver Opera
and Desdemona in Otello for Edmonton Opera. She was last with Calgary Opera in the title role of Lucia
di Lammermoor (2010).
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Tenor Kurt Lehmann has been hailed as “…one of Canada’s most dependable tenors. He has the money
notes and clear, clean, romantic delivery.” His international career has taken him to Carnegie Hall for
Verdi’s Requiem as well as engagements in Toronto, Montreal, Dallas, Calgary, Vancouver, Naples,
Pittsburgh, and Detroit in repertoire ranging from Lenski in Eugene Onegin to Barinkay in Der
Zigeunerbaron. Recent credits include Flamand in Capriccio for Pacific Opera Victoria, Alfredo in La
Traviata for Manitoba Opera and Opera Lyra Ottawa and Cassio in Otello for Edmonton Opera. He was
last with Calgary Opera for Dead Man Walking (2006).
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Elizabeth Turnbull has been hailed by the press as "(one) of this country's finest singers, luminous and
rich-voiced". Her recent schedule included Messiah at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Beethoven’s
Symphony No. 9 with the Regina Symphony, Olga in Eugene Onegin for Opera Lyra Ottawa, Mother in
the world premiere of Ines for Queen of Puddings in Toronto, Emilia in Otello for Dallas Opera and
Edmonton Opera and Schafer’s Adieu, Robert Schumann for the Ottawa Symphony. Ms. Turnbull was
featured in the world premieres of Calgary Opera’s Filumena and Frobisher and was last with the
company in Little Women (2009).
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Born in Montreal, Mr. Kulish has sung with opera companies and symphonies throughout North America
and Europe. Recent engagements include Leporello in Don Giovanni under Yannick Nézet-Séguin,
Ruslan in Ruslan & Ludmilla with Toronto's Opera in Concert, First Soldier in Salome with Opéra de
Montreal. Upcoming engagements include Pistola in Falstaff with Opéra de Québec. Mr. Kulish is the
founding Artistic Director of the Green Mountain Opera Festival in Vermont, and he is General & Artistic
Director of Opera Piccola, Montreal's professional summer opera company. He was last with Calgary
Opera for Ariadne auf Naxos (2009). |
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Dionne Sellinger was a member of Calgary Opera’s Inaugural Emerging Artist Development Program and has since
returned to perform Maman in Ravels’ L’Enfant et Sortileges. She performed Rosina in Barber of Seville with Burnaby Lyric Opera, and toured The Barber of Barkerville as Rosie, a role reprised with Edmonton
Opera. Sellinger has performed Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly and Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor with
Vancouver Opera. She performed in Opera on the Avalon’s production of Albert Herring as Nancy and
next season will be back in Edmonton as Peep-Bo in The Mikado. Dionne was last with Calgary Opera for Manon (2009).
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Andrew Love received University of Toronto’s Distinguished Graduate Award in Operatic Performance in
2010. He was an inaugural member of the Calgary Opera Emerging Artist Development Program, and has won
accolades for his performances as Marcello (La Boheme, Highland Opera Studio), Papageno (Die
Zauberflote, Opera Nuova) and Sid(Albert Herring, Opera on the Avalon). Andrew covered the role of
Phillippe in Rufus Wainwright’s opera Prima Donna at Luminato Festival. Recent debuts for this Calgary
native include Opera Hamilton (Silvio, Pagliacci) and the title role of Figaro in Opera Saskatoon’s Le
Nozze di Figaro in 2011.
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Calgarian Soprano Michelle Minke is a graduate of The Royal Academy of Music opera school in London,
England, and the University of Toronto. Alumnus of Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artist Development
Program, she debuted as Film person 3 and covered the role of Anna in the world premiere of Frobisher.
Other highlights include British Youth Opera, Royal Academy Opera, the Canadian Opera Company,
Opera NUOVA, the Georg Solti Accademia, and the Center for Opera studies in Italy. She has also
performed in The Anghiari Festival (Italy), The Spitalfields festival (London), and Toronto’s International
Bach festival. She was last with Calgary Opera for Manon (2009).
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Tenor Michael Marino is a London
native who recently finished
a Masters in Performance and Literature at the
University of Western Ontario under the mentorship
of Baritone Theodore Baerg. Recent performances
include Rodolfo in La Bohème with Kitchener Opera
and Highlands Opera Studio, and Romeo in Roméo
et Juliette with Opera NUOVA. Other roles include
Davey Palmer (Siren Song) and the Mosquito/
Schoolmaster (The Cunning Little Vixen) with The Banff
Centre and Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi) with Opera
NUOVA. Mr. Marino also performed the roles of
Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni) and Sam Kaplan (Street
Scene) while studying at UWO. He is a member of the
2011/12 Emerging Artist ensemble.
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Metropolitan Opera Auditions winner John Conlon holds a Master of Opera degree from UBC where he
sang many lead roles in operas by Puccini, Massenet, Lehar, and Rossini. Conlon has appeared several
times on the Vancouver Opera stage singing the roles of the Wigmaker in Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos,
Sciarrone in Puccini’s Tosca and Marullo in Verdi’s Rigoletto. During the 2007-2008 season, Conlon
was a member of Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artist Development Program where he performed two roles in The Ballad
of Baby Doe. Recently he appeared in the Alberta Ballet production of Kurt Weill’s The Seven Deadly
Sins. |
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Brent Calis recently completed
two years with Calgary Opera’s
Emerging Artist Program and is thrilled to be joining
Calgary Opera again for this production. Calgary
Opera recently featured Calis as John Keith in last
year’s world premiere of The Inventor by Bramwell
Tovey (2011), Ambrogio in Il barbiere di Siviglia (2009), and Dashwood in Little Women (2010).
Other recent credits include Count Almaviva in Le
nozze di Figaro (Opera NUOVA 2011), Mercutio
in Roméo et Juliette (Opera NUOVA 2010), Jonathan
in Siren Song and The Forester in The Cunning Little
Vixen (Banff Centre 2009), and Aeneas in Dido and
Aeneas (Banff Centre 2008).
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Hailing from Mississauga, Ontario,
Canadian Baritone Clarence Frazer
has wowed audiences from Edmonton to London to
Florida and the Adriatic coast of Italy. This past year Mr.
Frazer finished his musical studies at the University of
Western Ontario under the mentorship of Canadian
Baritone Theodore Baerg. Recent operatic credits
include: Dandini in La Cenerentola (Opera NUOVA),
Masetto in Don Giovanni (Concert Opera Group),
Don Giovanni in Don Giovanni (COSI), and Falstaff
in Verdi’s Falstaff (Opera NUOVA). Recent concert
credits include: Bass Soloist in Bach’s Cantata 205
Der zufriedengestellte Aeolus with Maestro Timothy
Vernon and Orchestra London. He is a member of the
2011/12 Emerging Artist ensemble.
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Mark Ellis Gough is a Lyric Baritone
from the small town of Mount
Brydges, Ontario. His teachers have included Torin
Chiles, Theodore Baerg, and Todd Wieczorek and
he received his Bachelor of Musical Arts and an Artist
Diploma from the University of Western Ontario.
Mr. Gough made his European debut in the summer
of 2009 as Calchas in La Belle Héllène. Most recently
he completed a touring production of Anne Hodges’
adaptation of Hansel and Gretel in the Ottawa area
and performed Conte Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro in
the inaugural season of the Academia Europea
Dell’Opera. He is a member of the 2011/12 Emerging
Artist ensemble.
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Over the past 20 years, Donna
Sharpe has enjoyed a career
stage managing with both opera
and theatre. This is Ms. Sharpe’s tenth season with
Calgary Opera, and her selected credits include
Calgary Opera’s 2011/12 season, as well as assistant
stage managing Don Giovanni, Little Women, The Barber
of Seville, Ariadne auf Naxos, Faust, Tosca, Rigoletto,
Frobisher, La Cenerentola, Dead Man Walking and
Sweeney Todd. For the past three years she has also
stage managed with Green Mountain Opera Festival in
Vermont. Ms. Sharpe has been a stage management
instructor and continues to act as a stage management
mentor with emerging artist programs.
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Oliver Armstrong is a stage and
production manager who enjoys
working for many organizations
in Canada and abroad. For Alberta Ballet, Mr.
Armstrong has stage managed The Sleeping Beauty,
The Nutcracker, Vigil of Angels, Serenade and Fumbling
Towards Ecstasy. Other favourite positions include
Venue Manager at the Vancouver 2010 Winter
Olympics; Production Stage Manager, The Calgary
Stampede Grandstand Show; Production Manager,
One Yellow Rabbit’s High Performance Rodeo;
Red Carpet Manager, Dubai International Film
Festival; Venue Manager, Sundance Film Festival;
Venue Manager, Toronto International Film Festival.
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Nicole Bergen works as a stage
manager and assistant stage manager
in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Recent
credits include The Marriage of Figaro (Saskatoon Opera),
Aida, Lucia di Lammermoor, Manon, The Barber of Seville and Ariadne auf Naxos (Calgary Opera), Little Women,
Turn of the Screw and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Banff
Centre), Mousetrap (Vertigo Mystery Theatre) and West
of the 3rd Meridian (Dancing Sky Theatre). She also reads
voraciously, loves chocolate, walks a lot, cooks from
scratch and volunteers occasionally as an ESL teacher.
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