Voice Teacher

Elizabeth Byrne, soprano has established herself as one of the most exciting dramatic sopranos of her generation. She has performed leading roles at The Metropolitan Opera both in New York, Tokyo & Seoul, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Dallas Opera, Opernhaus Zurich, Staatstheater Stuttgart, Canadian Opera Company Toronto, Staatstheater Luzern, Scottish Opera in Glasgow and The Edinburgh Festival, English National Opera in London, the Glyndebourne Festival and in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem & Haifa with the Israeli Philharmonic to name but a few.

Ms. Byrne has worked with such conductors as James Levine, Zubin Mehta, Seiji Ozawa, Sirs Antonio Pappano, Andrew Davis, Richard Armstrong, Charles Mackerras, Mark Elder and Bernard Haitink, Dr.Jane Glover, Bruno Bartoletti, Claudio Desderi, Edo de Waart, Leonard Slatkin, Maurizio Arena and Lothar von Zagrosek. She established herself firstly in the Italian repertoire, most notably as Tosca, as well as the title role in Manon Lescaut, Minnie in La Fanciulla del West, Leonora in Il Trovatore, the role of Amelia in both Un Ballo in Maschera and Simon Boccanegra, Aïda, Maddalena di Coigny in Andrea Chenier, Elena and Margarita in Boito’s Mefistofele and lesser known roles such as Asteria in Boito’s Nerone and the title role of Lucretia by Ottorino Respighi. Her first foray into the German repertoire was singing Gerhilde and 3rd. Norn at Welsh National Opera.

In the latter part of her performing career, Miss Byrne excelled in many German roles such as the title role in Salome (Glimmerglass Opera) and Leonore in Fidelio. Her Wagnerian repertoire includes the roles of Sieglinde, Brünnhilde, Senta, Isolde, Ortrud, Gutrune, Gerhilde, Ortlinde and Fricka Her Brünnhilde at the Edinburgh Festival earned her The Herald Award for outstanding performance as well as a Royal Philharmonic Society award nomination. An excellent musician, she created the role of Blanca in the world premiere of James Macmillan’s Ińes de Castro which was also broadcast on BBC-TV. and the role of The Stepdaughter in Hugo Weisgall’s Six Characters in Search of an Author recorded by New World Music. The Edinburgh Festival production of Siegfried was also filmed for the BBC and she has recorded the role of Respighi’s Lucretia on the Bongiovanni label.

Ms. Byrne received her musical education in her native UK. She graduated from The Birmingham School of Music and then continued her postgraduate studies at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester where she studied with Frederic Cox. She was invited to join The National Opera Studio which was the forerunner of the Jette Parker YAP at The Royal Opera House,Covent Garden where she worked with such luminaries as Tito Gobbi, Hans Hotter, Graziella Sciutti and Regina Resnik. This was followed by a years study at The International Opera Studio in Zurich under the direction of Marc Belfort. Ms. Byrne emigrated to the USA in 1989 after her marriage to her husband James, a native Chicagoan. She continued her vocal studies with the legendary teacher Margaret Harshaw until her death in 1997. Ms. Byrne was a member of the Voice Faculty at De Paul University School of Music from 2009-2017.

Voice Teacher

Nicole Cabell, the 2005 Winner of the BBC Singer of the World Competition in Cardiff and Decca recording artist, is one of the most sought-after lyric sopranos of today. Her solo debut album, “Soprano” was named “Editor’s Choice” by Gramophone and has received an incredible amount of critical acclaim and several prestigious awards, including the 2007 Georg Solti Orphée d’Or from the French Académie du Disque Lyrique.

This season Nicole Cabell makes both a company and a role debut when she sings Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with the Royal Swedish Opera and returns to Tucson to perform Poulenc’s Gloria and a solo recital.

Last season Ms. Cabell returned to the BBC Proms for a concert of George Walker’s Lilacs, before performing the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro with the Pittsburgh Opera. Further opera performances included Bess in Porgy and Bess with Opera Carolina and North Carolina Opera and concerts of Clara in the same opera with the NDR and Alan Gilbert at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. In concert, Ms. Cabell sang Messiah with the Seattle Symphony, Vaughan-Williams’ Sea Symphony with the Atlanta Symphony and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Rochester Philharmonic.

Nicole Cabell’s past season included a triumphant return to the San Francisco Opera in her role debut as Fiordiligi in Così Fan Tutte, performances in London and on tour in the United States with the London Symphony Orchestra and Simon Rattle performing George Walker’s Lilacs (a piece she repeated for her return with the Cleveland Orchestra with Franz Welser-Möst), a solo recital with Cincinnati’s Matinee Musicale and concerts of Barber’s Knoxville, Summer of 1915 and Mahler’s 4th Symphony with the Tucson Symphony, Handel’s Messiah with the Philadelphia Orchestra and with the Apollo Chorus of Chicago on the occasion of their 150th anniversary, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Cincinnati May Festival and Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem with the Buffalo Philharmonic. In the summer she joined the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Andris Nelsons for Barber’s Knoxville, Summer of 1915 and for Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni before going to the Grand Teton Music Festival for Mimi in La Bohème with Donald Runnicles.

Voice Teacher

Tenor Allan Glassman has thrilled audiences throughout America and Europe for decades with his vibrant timbre and committed interpretations of roles. Critics exclaim “his very presence on stage made those around him sound better.” A regular at The Metropolitan Opera, Mr. Glassman triumphed as Herod in a production of Salome and has since been heard in The Met’s productions of Billy Budd as Red Whiskers; Die Frau ohne Schatten as The Hunchback Brother; Salome as the First Jew; Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk District as The Shabby Peasant; and in productions of Boris Godunov, The Great Gatsby, Carmen, Elektra, Káťa Kabanová, The Ghost of Versailles, Mussorgsky’s Khovanshchina, and Wozzeck.

Mr. Glassman has performed the role of Herod in Salome to wide acclaim in opera venues throughout the world. Critics wrote: “His fear and distress seemed to come from his heart and soul.” Some notable engagements as the patriarch include productions with San Diego Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Opera San Antonio, the Ravinia Festival (under the baton of Maestro James Conlon), with Cape Town Opera in Cape Town, South Africa, and most recently with Los Angeles Opera. This season, he returns to The Metropolitan Opera for their productions of Die Zauberflöte and Hänsel und Gretel.

Mr. Glassman’s impressive career includes many titular roles in some of opera’s most notable works, including Samson in Samson et Dalila at the former Opera Pacific, Sacco in Sacco and Vanzetti at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Hoffmann in Les contes d’Hoffmann, and Idomeneo at Los Angeles Opera, where he was double cast with the esteemed Plácido Domingo. Hailed as the Otello of his generation: “Glassman is a full-on Verdian tenor… Glassman is more than equal to the demands of the role, conveying Otello’s pain and suspicion vividly.” In past seasons, he has performed the role with Opera Company of Philadelphia, Arizona Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Dallas Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, and at Chautauqua Opera. Other highlights from his leading roles résumé include Don José in Carmen, Cavardossi in Tosca, and Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly with New York City Opera; and Canio in Pagliacci with Arizona Opera, Chautauqua Opera, Palm Beach Opera, and Nashville Opera.

Additional engagements from recent seasons include the roles of Herald in Assassinio nella cattedrale and Shuisky in Boris Godunov with San Diego Opera; Nick in La fanciulla del West and Monsieur Taupe in Capriccio in his début at Santa Fe Opera; Pollione in Norma with Palm Beach Opera; Walter Engelmann in Frau Margot with Fort Worth Opera; Dick Deadeye in H.M.S. Pinafore with Arizona Opera; The Witch in Hänsel und Gretel with Portland Opera; Boris in Kát’a Kabanová, Shuisky in Boris Godunov, and Caláf in Turandot all with Florida Grand Opera; and productions of Wozzeck, Das Rheingold, and Elektra with Lyric Opera of Chicago.

International performances include Manrico in Il trovatore with the Deutsche Oper Berlin; Samson in Samson et Dalila at the New Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv; the Prince in Rusalka in the Czech Republic; title role in Verdi’s Ernani, Don José in Carmen, and I vespri siciliani with L’Opéra de Nice; I vespri siciliani with Den Norske Opera; Cavaradossi in Tosca at the Belleayre Music Festival; Carmenwith Opera Valencia in Spain; and the Prince in Rusalka with Oper Frankfurt.

Sought after by orchestras, both domestic and international, Mr. Glassman maintains an active concert calendar. Notable engagements include: Prince Osaka in Mascagni’s Iris with the Münchner Philharmoniker, Verdi’s Requiem with L’Opéra de Nice, Mahler’s Lied von der Erde with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Xalapa in Mexico, Rusalka with The Fort Worth Symphony, Erik in Der fliegende Holländer in concert with the Syracuse Opera, Das Lied von der Erde with Grand Rapids Symphony, and Boito’s Mephistofele with Boston Concert Opera.

Voice Teacher

American soprano Alexandra LoBianco, who “gave an impassioned performance” in the title role of Aida at Seattle Opera (Seattle Times), has established herself as a dramatic soprano of distinctive versatility, musicality, and consistency. The current season will include performances of Lady Macbeth in Verdi’s Macbeth for a role and house debut with Boston Lyric Opera, as well as concert appearances with the Madison Symphony Orchestra.

Hailing from Saint Petersburg, Florida, LoBianco began her journey in opera with a foundation in voice, theater, and clarinet. Her talent quickly garnered recognition, winning first prizes at the Liederkranz Vocal Competition and the Irene Dalis Competition in 2011 and the Altamura International Vocal Competition and the William Sullivan Foundation Awards in 2013. These early successes laid the groundwork for a distinguished career on the international stage.

LoBianco has performed with numerous opera companies of note, while taking on some of the most challenging roles in the repertoire. Career highlights include Leonore in Fidelio with the Vienna State Opera and North Carolina Opera, Brünnhilde in Die Walküre and Siegfried with Seattle Opera and North Carolina Opera, Minnie in La fanciulla del West with Des Moines Metro Opera, and the title role in Turandot with Des Moines Metro Opera, Palm Beach Opera, and Maryland Lyric Opera. She has also appeared as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana with Seattle Opera, Alice Ford in Falstaff with Santa Fe Opera, and Marianne Leitmetzerin in Der Rosenkavalier at The Metropolitan Opera, which was featured in the Met’s Live in HD broadcast series. The artist has also performed Chrysothemis and the Fourth Maid in Elektra and Helmwige in Die Walküre at Lyric Opera of Chicago, the title role in Tosca at both North Carolina Opera and Minnesota Opera, and Amelia in Un ballo in maschera at Florida Grand Opera.

Recent seasons have also included performances as Leonora in Il Trovatore with Opera Colorado, the Mother in Hansel and Gretel with Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Foreign Princess in Rusalka with the Canadian Opera Company, and the title role in Tosca with Seattle Opera and Portland Opera. In a stunning international turn, LoBianco stepped in for an ailing colleague as Leonore in Fidelio for her debut with the Wiener Staatsoper while under contract for the title role in Turandot. Subsequent appearances with the Wiener Staatsoper included performances as Helmwige in Die Walküre and a Brünnhilde cover, while on tour in Japan.

Ms. LoBianco’s repertoire also includes Sieglinde in Die Walküre, the title roles in Suor Angelica and Madama Butterfly, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Mimì in La bohème, Magda Sorel in Menotti’s The Consul, and Brünnhilde in Jonathan Dove’s abridged Ring Cycle.

Voice Teacher

Baritone Jeffrey Mattsey is renowned worldwide for the signature baritone roles that define his prominent career. He has been a house favorite at The Metropolitan Opera for more than 20 years and over 100 performances. Recently, he performed the role of Mayor Shinn in The Music Man: In Concert with Pacific Symphony, Uncle John in The Grapes of Wrath with Michigan Opera Theatre, and Alfred Doolittle in My Fair Lady: In Concert with Utah Symphony. Additionally, he reprised the role of Germont in La Traviata with Northern Lights Music Festival.

After making his Metropolitan Opera début in Les contes d’Hoffmann, Mr. Mattsey returned to the house as Marco in Gianni Schicchi, Mercutio and Paris in Roméo et Juliette, Silvano in Un ballo in maschera, Schaunard in La bohème, Joe Castro in La Fanciulla del West and Marullo in Rigoletto. After enjoying his 100th performance with the company as Señor Cascada in The Merry Widow, Mattsey returned to The Met as Montano in Bartlett Sher’s new production of Otello, Marullo in the Rat-pack inspired setting of Rigoletto, and for their productions of Die Fledermaus and L’elisir d’amore. Most recently he joined the esteemed house to reprise the role of Señor Cascada in The Merry Widow, sing the role of Padre Parson in The Exterminating Angel, and for their productions of Cosí fan tutte, Romeo et Juliette, La Fanciulla del West, Gianni Schicchi, Otello and La Traviata.

Voice Teacher

American Tenor Norman Reinhardt is widely recognized as one of today’s leading operatic artists, with a distinguished career spanning over two decades on the international stage. He has appeared at many of the world’s foremost opera houses, including the Berlin Staatsoper, Teatro Real Madrid, Theater an der Wien, Houston Grand Opera, Dresden Semperoper, and the Salzburg Festival.

In addition to his acclaimed performance work, Norman is the co-founder of Living Opera Media, where he produces genre-defying recordings and reimagines traditional operatic repertoire through bold, interdisciplinary collaborations. Through the Living Opera Foundation, he mentors and equips the next generation of opera singers and creative professionals.

In 2024, Norman was appointed Artist in Residence at Northwestern University, where he continues to unite performance, innovation, and mentorship in service of the evolving operatic landscape.

Voice Teacher

Viktoria Vizin has displayed the elocution and musicianship to lift her entrance to the top. While she has devoted a significant portion of her concert schedule to the great works of song literature and has performed this repertoire to international acclaim, she is perhaps best known for her work with major orchestras and opera companies in the world’s foremost music center's such as the Metropolitan Opera NY, London ROH, Wiener StaatsOper, Budapest State Opera House, Teatro Alla Scala, London's East End among others.

Her opera roles include Carmen (Metropolitan Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Phoenix Metropolitan Opera, Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Taipei Opera, Beijing Opera, Hungarian State Opera, Wiener VolksOper, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Aalto Theater,Vlaamse Opera, Opera am Gars Festival), Judit (Oregon Symphony, Serbian Music Festival, Hungarian State Opera, BartokPlus Opera Festival), Donna Elvira (Teatro alla Scala, Bartok Plus Festival), Charlotte (Scottish Opera, UK), Dejanira, Nerone, Nina (Senza Sangue), Gutrune, Marguerite (MUPA, Palace of Arts, Hungary) Adalgisa (Megaron Theater Greece, Aalto Theater, Deutsche Oper am Rhein Germany), Dulcinee (Den Jyske Opera, Denmark, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, Italy) Rosina, Idamante (Opera Maghiara, Romania), Maddalena (Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden, Deutsche Oper am Rhein Germany), Preziosilla (Vlaamse Opera Belgium, Grand Theatre de Luxembourg), Tosca (Miskolc and Budapest State Opera, Hungary), Amaranta, Jadwiga (Wexford Opera Festival, Ireland), Mrs. Meg Page, Contessa di Ceprano (Arena di Verona, Italy), Dorabella, Composer, Phèdre (Budapest State Opera, Hungary), Cherubino (Wiener StaatsOper, Austria, Karlsruhe Opera Festival, Germany), Pauline (Covent Garden, COC, Dallas Opera), Melibea (Canadian Opera Company), Isabella (Central City Opera Company), Clairon, Fox, Hansel (Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Germany), Hannah Glawari (Bartok Plus Opera Festival), Waltraute (Teatro Massimo, Italy), 1st Norn, Flosshilde, Schwertlaute (Lucerne Festival, Switzerland), Rossweisse (Grand Theatre de Geneve, Switzerland).

Her theatrical appearances include Carmen Disruption by Tony Award winner Simon Stephens (Almeida Theatre, Londons East End, UK), A Festive Comedy with Krisztian Gergye Dance Theater (Manhattan Dance Theater) and The Witch by Gertrud Andrasi and Viktoria Vizin (Kodaly Festival, Hungary).

Viktoria has appeared in numerous concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, Dorothy Chandler Concert Hall, McAninch Arts Center, Opera i Rebild, Franz Liszt Academy of Music, Romanian Athenaeum, Roy Thomson Hall and Palace of Arts.

Her live broadcasts contain Vlaamse Opera - Carmen, Metropolitan Opera Rigoletto, Hungarian State Opera - Hypolite et Aricie, Così fan tutte, Carmen, Palace of Arts - La Damnation de Faust, Hercules, Messiah, Incoronazione di Poppea, BBC (ROH) - Carmen, Hungarian TV - Mozart Requiem, Teatro Massimo - Götterdämmerung.

Voice Teacher

Hailed as “incandescent” (Boston Globe) and “for the ages” (Schmopera), Greek-Canadian soprano Soula Parassidis has garnered widespread critical acclaim for her electrifying performances worldwide. Highlights for 2025 include her debut as Chrysothemis in Strauss’ Elektra in Verona and the launch of Echoes of Empires: SAPPHO, featuring music by British composer Granville Bantock, in collaboration with iconic Greek fashion designer Daphne Valente and L.A.-based deep-tech company Hidonix, followed by the re-release of All is Bright, her debut album in collaboration with the Orchestra Filarmonica di Benevento.

In 2024, Soula made her Festival d'Aix-en-Provence debut in Gluck’s Iphigénie en Aulide/Iphigénie en Tauride under the baton of Emmanuelle Haïm and directed by Dmitri Tcherniakov, a production she reprised for her Greek National Opera debut with conductor Michael Hofstetter. 

During the 2023 season, she starred in the title role of Iphigénie en Tauride in three major productions celebrating the Maria Callas Centennial: Olympia City Music Theatre “Maria Callas” in Athens, directed by Thanos Papakonstantinou and conducted by George Petrou; Boston Baroque, under Martin Pearlman and directed by Mo Zhou (streamed on IDAGIO); and Stadttheater Bern, directed by Silvia Paoli.

“I do not state this lightly: this is an Iphigénie for the ages, and whenever she was off-stage I longed to see her on the stage again." - Schmopera

Other notable opera engagements include Soula's Asian debut in La Clemenza di Tito with the Taipei Symphony Orchestra, Handel's Teseo at Theater an der Wien, Les Pecheurs de Perles at Opera Holland Park, Don Giovanni in Guangzhou China, and the title role of Vanessa by Samuel Barber at the Opéra-Théatre de Metz Métropole, where she also sang the Gräfin Madeleine in Capriccio by Richard Strauss, marking her debut in the lyric dramatic fach. In 2019, she sang Elettra in Idomeneo at Teatro Massimo Palermo and Helmwige in Die Walküre at Opéra National de Bordeaux. She made her debut in Korngold's Violanta at the Teatro Regio Torino and participated in the Guangzhou Opera's 10-year anniversary gala in 2020, performing Wagner's Wesendonck Lieder. Soula was also a member of the ensemble of Oper Leipzig for three seasons, where she performed a variety of leading repertoire and returned on several occasions with the company as a guest soloist.

Soula is equally at home in orchestral repertoire with highlights including her debut with the Czech Philharmonic at the Prague Rudolfinum in Henri Dutilleux's Correspondances, a performance that was also broadcast on Radio France. She also performed Wagner's Wesendonck Lieder at the Attersee Festival, Bachianas Brasileiras at the Berliner Waldbühne, and New Year’s concerts at the Teatro Massimo Palermo. Further debuts include appearances at the Gewandhaus Leipzig, Berlin Philharmonie, Wüttembergische Philharmonie, RTÉ Concert Orchestra and the Orchestre National de Capitole de Toulouse, where she performed Mahler's 4th Symphony.


“Parassidis gave a fierce dramatic and vocal performance, perfectly in tune with Pearlman and the orchestra." 
- Bachtrack
Amidst her career as a soprano, Soula Parassidis founded Living Opera in 2020, a multimedia company that increases the audience for opera. Soula has collaborated with organizations such as Medici TV, IDAGIO streaming, Les Arts Valencia, and Stagetime Arts, gaining recognition in popular press outlets like Forbes, Newsweek, Fast Company, and Yahoo Finance, solidifying Soula's role as a visionary in the industry. In addition to her artistic pursuits, Soula is an advocate against human trafficking, collaborating with organizations like the Exodus Road and NCOSE in the USA.

“Parassidis met the challenge head-on: every aspect of her performance injected life into the music, and even the less dramatically interesting moments felt like the most important thing in the world.” 
- Schmopera

Soula Parassidis was born in Vancouver, Canada and first trained as a classical flutist and actor. She earned a Bachelor of Music from the University of British Columbia, and subsequently received generous support from the Canada Council for the Arts, and was a multiple prize winner at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, which helped lay the foundation for her multifaceted career. With her unique timbre, glamorous stage presence, and unwavering dedication to her craft, Soula continues to captivate audiences worldwide, leaving an indelible mark on the international operatic landscape.

Artistic Director & Conductor

2027 Season: Hansel & Gretel, Albert Herring, Dido & Aeneas, Purcell, and The Rape of Lucretia, Britten

Codrut Birsan serves as the Artistic Director of Chicago Summer Opera. Born in Brasov, Romania, he began piano lessons at age 6. By age 17, he was one of the accompanists for Opera Brasov. While a voice student at the Academy of Music in Bucharest, Birsan was also a piano accompanist for the Academy’s opera class. Birsan moved to the United States in 2005. He obtained a Master of Music degree in Voice at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, while also collaborating as a vocal accompanist in that setting.

Stage Director:

2027 Season: Don Giovanni, Dido & Aeneas and The Rape of Lucretia

Mark Ross Clark is an award-winning international director, teacher, author and clinician. He is Artistic Director of the British Opera Academy in England, where he has recently presented masterclasses and workshops at the Royal Academy of

Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Drama. He is founder and Artistic Director of the Louisiana Opera and recently resigned as Professor of Music and Director of Opera and Musical Theater at the University of Louisiana after 17 years so he can continue to accept opportunities abroad and will be residing in the UK. He is a frequent adjudicator of the Metropolitan Opera Auditions, with directing credits throughout the US and abroad, particularly in Italy, England, Mexico, Brazil and the Far East, of well over 100 operas, operettas, musicals and plays.

Author of several books including Singing, Acting, and Movement in Opera and Guide to the Aria Repertoire (Indiana University Press) and The Broadway Song

(Oxford University Press), his next book is currently being published by IUP. Dr Clark regularly presents workshops internationally, most recently at the Berklee School of Music, Boston Conservatory. He has brought together and “synergized” his vast background experience in the Arts, integrating essential principles of the Alexander Technique as a certified international teacher, in his popular Singer-getics workshops.

Clark began his career as a singer after earning two university degrees in both voice performance and vocal pedagogy. He toured internationally with the Roger Wagner Chorale and several major symphony orchestras (soloing with the LA Philharmonic, LA Sinfonia, Pasadena and Pacific Palisades, Cincinnati Symphony, Vancouver Symphony and Dayton Symphony), toured with his own televised group that he created, ‘Sing Out America!’ with soprano Janet Payne and pianist Robert Hunter, and sang in Germany at the Giessen Stadttheater for 3 years. He studied with the acclaimed singer/actor Giorgio Tozzi and was apprentice to opera directing guru Wesley Balk, earning his doctorate in Opera Production (Music and Theatre) at the University of Washington, where he subsequently served as Director of Opera. After joining the faculty as Head of Opera at the renowned Indiana University, he directed or produced over 80 operas in 10 years and taught all of the opera workshop programs and opera history for conductors, directors and singers. He has produced numerous students who have sung leading roles at the Metropolitan Opera and other major opera houses (including Lawrence Brownlee, Jaimie Barton, Kate Lindsey, Ailyn Perez and Kyle Kettelsen), as well as many graduates who are now leading their own opera programs throughout the US and Canada.

Stage Director:

2027 Season Hansel and Gretel

Marinette Gomez is a young, up and coming opera director focused on building connection and shared experience through music and performance. A Young Artist Director at Lyric Opera of Chicago for their 24/25 season, she works with the staging staff throughout the season, and is mentored by the visiting and in-house directors. 

As a solo director, she has directed various opera scenes for University of North Florida’s Opera Scenes Workshops. In Fall 2021 she was the Director and Producer of a contemporary music recital, culminating in her staging of Samuel Barber's A Hand of Bridge. In Fall 2023 she directed Bold City Opera’s inaugural production of Puccini’s Suor Angelica. This Spring 2025, she will direct Chicago Opera Theatre’s Premier of the Vanguard Initiative’s new work: Remedios Varios by Carlos R. Carrillo. 

The start of her journey was at the University of North Florida, where she was the Assistant Director and Stage Manager for the opera program from 2020-2023. Outside of UNF, Marinette has worked with the Jacksonville Symphony on their symphonic staging of Puccini's La Bohéme with director Gregory Keller, and Mozart’s The Magic Flute with Kristine McIntyre. Summer programs include Chicago Summer Opera, and Glimmerglass Festival.

In Fall of 2023, she assisted Paul Curran at Rice University of their Eugene Onegin. Particularly interested in acting, she attended six of his acting classes. This past Spring, she was the Directing Fellow at the Metropolitan Opera, where she was on the directing staff, and mentored by both visiting and resident Stage Directors. This Summer, Marinette was a Young Artist Director at the Glimmerglass Festival for Pagliacci with Director Brenna Corner.

Stage Director:

2027 Season The Crucible

A stage director noted for his “gorgeously constructed stage pictures,” Josh Miller has served on the directing staff of The Glimmerglass Festival, Virginia Opera, Palm Beach Opera, The Fort Worth Opera Festival, Wolf Trap Opera Company, Opera San Antonio and Austin Shakespeare. Miller is a winner of the American Prize in Opera Directing, The Charles Nelson Reilly Prize. He is Dean and Faculty at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia. 

directedbyjoshmiller.com

Conductor:

2027 Season Lucio Silla and The Crucible

James Setapen, Director of the Academy and Conductor-in-Residence at the Music Institute of Chicago, has a broad background and interests, which include positions as music director, associate conductor, guest conductor, university professor, opera coach and conductor, mentor to young musicians, conducting teacher, and public speaker.

From 1988 to 2007 he was Music Director and Conductor of the Amarillo Symphony Orchestra. His very successful tenure included raising and sustaining the quality of performance, developing community interest and knowledge in the orchestra, and establishing innovative and accessible programs. During his tenure the Symphony premiered several works, expanded its outreach into the community, initiated an outdoor Labor Day concert with fireworks, and was the subject of two television documentaries which were each broadcast in over one hundred markets throughout the country.

Setapen has guest conducted many orchestras and opera companies throughout the country, including those of Denver, Baltimore, Indianapolis, Orlando, and Honolulu. He has also conducted in several cities in Italy, Germany and Austria. Recent guest engagements have included the Milwaukee Symphony, the Park Ridge Fine Arts Symphony, the Northbrook and Racine orchestras, and the University of Chicago orchestra. Setapen was Music Director of Summer Music Monterey, a program for middle school and high school music students, for seven summers. He has also worked with the youth orchestras of Oakland, Denver, and Amarillo. He was recently guest conductor for the Vermont All-State Orchestra, the Milwaukee High School Honors Orchestra, and the Northeast Kansas Honors Orchestra.

He and his daughter Ilana were guest conductor and violin soloist with the "Musical Offering of Venice" Chamber Orchestra and were also featured as soloist and conductor with the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado.

Former Associate Conductor of the Denver Symphony and the Omaha Symphony, Setapen won first prize in the Oakland Symphony's American Conductor's Competition, and as the San Francisco Examiner reported, was "...the consensus choice of the six judges, the orchestra and the audience...[he displayed] undeniable power and vitality - conductorial authority - that won him the prize."

James Setapen received his Bachelor of Music with Distinction and a Performer's Certificate in Clarinet from the Eastman School of Music, and a Master of Music in Opera Direction from the Cleveland Institute of Music. He has also studied conducting with Boris Goldovsky and Max Rudolf, with Carl Melles at the Salzburg Mozarteum, with Franco Ferrara in Siena, Italy, and in Krakow, Poland with Christoph Eschenbach. Setapen has been on the faculty of the Conductor's Institute at Bard College in New York.

Conductor:

 2027 Season La Rondine

Benjamin Firer is the newly appointed Music Director of the Harper Symphony Orchestra in Palatine, Illinois. Based in Chicago, he joined the faculty of Northeastern Illinois University as Orchestra Director in 2017 and also serves as Assistant Conductor with the Rockford Symphony Orchestra and conductor of the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies Philharmonic.

A dynamic and sought-after guest conductor, Benjamin has made appearances with numerous ensembles nationally and internationally including symphony orchestras of Budafok Dohnányi, Milwaukee, Altoona, Champaign-Urbana, DuPage, Miami, Fargo- Morehead, Orchestra de la Francophonie. He previously served as conducting staff with the Quad Cities Symphony, Dubuque Symphony Orchestra and the Pennsylvania Chamber Orchestra.

Passionate about inspiring the next generation of musicians, Benjamin has held conducting positions with the nations’ leading youth orchestras including the New York Youth Symphony, Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras, and the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies. A committed educator, he was engaged as a teaching artist through the Yale University Music in Schools Initiative, providing instruction at the John C. Daniels Magnet School while serving as Music Director of the Yale-Saybrook College Orchestra.

Benjamin’s talents and contributions have been recognized through various accolades: Recently he was awarded “Orchestra of the Year” by the Illinois Council of Orchestras for his performances with the Quad City Symphony Youth Orchestra. Additionally, Benjamin is the Recipient of the 2024 Williamson Music Education Grant.

Benjamin was selected as an Emerging Conductor with the Peninsula Music Festival, Conducting Fellow for the Atlantic Music Festival and a scholarship recipient from the National Orchestral Institute. He has garnered awards including The American Prize in Conducting, The Woolsey Concerto Competition, Yale Chamber Music Competition, Ellen Battell Stoeckel Fellowship, and the Long Island University Conductors Award. Recognized for his musical entrepreneurship, he was granted the SUNY Thayer Fellowship in the Arts and the Emma Peters Hooper Endowed Award. As an orchestral musician he has recorded for the Naxos and Albany labels. Benjamin received his Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting from Northwestern University and a Master’s Degree from Yale University.

Stage Director: 

2027 Season Lucio Silla

They graduated in stage direction at the Academy of Teatro alla Scala and in Musicological and Performing Arts Disciplines at the University of Milan.

 For more than twenty years they have worked as a director both in Italy and abroad. They have collaborated with the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York, Cirque du Soleil, Shanghai Opera House and many others.

 Since 2002 they have been offering my consultancy in the corporate field for event creation, team building, public speaking and leadership.

In 2014 they founded the company Op.64_Solocanto whose aim is training in contemporary opera and its dissemination. 

 With their partner Pilar Bravo, we also take care of corporate events with music as a founding element.

Stage Director:

2027 Season Don Giovanni and La Rondine