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Biographies of the Artists |
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Imre Palló
( Conductor) — Maestro Imre Palló was born in
Budapest, Hungary into a musical family. His father
was the leading baritone of the Budapest State Opera
as well as its General Director. Mr. Palló made his
American debut in 1973 with the National Symphony
Orchestra in Washington D.C. and shortly thereafter
became Principal conductor of the New York City
Opera. He has conducted for numerous opera companies
both here and abroad, including the Canadian Opera
Company, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia,
Portland and San Francisco Operas to name only a
few. His international career includes appearances
with Frankfurt Opera, where he was Principal guest
Conductor from 1987 – 1992, Vancouver Symphony,
Bavaria State Orchestra Munich and many more. Mr.
Palló is currently the Chair of the Instrumental
Conducting Department at Indiana University School
of Music. |
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Vincent Liotta (Stage Director and Choreographer)
— Vincent Liotta has been both a professional stage
director and a dedicated educator for more than 15
years. Recently appointed as a Fulbright Senior
Scholar, he is the head of the Opera Stage
Directing program at Indiana University where he
teaches stage directing, acting, and operatic
literature. Recent professional projects
include Madama Butterfly for the Hungarian State
Opera in Romania and the Lyric Opera of Chicago, La
Fanciulla del West at the Canadian Opera Company
(Toronto), Turandot at the El Paso Opera, and
a new production of Die Fledermaus at the
Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre. In 1993, Mr. Liotta
co-founded the Utah Festival Opera. His professional
productions have covered the entire history of
operatic repertory from Cavalli to John Corigliano.
Notable works include directing the world premieres
of Mollicone’s Coyote Tales, a new version of
Frank Loesser’s Greenwillow, and Edwin
Penhorwood’s Too Many Sopranos, and the
American premiere of Dragon of Wantley. In
addition, his works with the musical theater include
a new libretto for Victor Herbert’s operetta,
Naughty Marietta and Viva Verdi, an original
biographical evening about the life and work of
Guiseppe Verdi. He has created productions at major
American companies including San Francisco, Houston,
and Santa Fe, and has collaborated with Harold
Prince on productions of Turandot, Don
Giovanni, and the world premiere of Willie
Stark. |
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C. David Higgins,
has been designing scenery since 1972 when he began
working at the Indiana University School of Music as
a master scenic artist. Now a faculty member, he
teaches set design and has been designing opera and
ballet scenery and costumes across the globe for
theaters in the United States, England, Italy,
Iceland, and Korea. With over 150 productions to his
credit, he has been described as one of America’s
finest scenic painters by Opera News magazine
and is best known for his detailed, Italianate
painting style. |
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Bryon
Grohman (Don Ramiro) — A native of Hazleton,
Pennsylvania, tenor Bryon Grohman is a doctoral
candidate studying with James McDonald. Recent
operatic roles include Joe in Puccini’s La
Fanciulla del West with Glimmerglass Opera, Don
Narciso in Rossini’s Turco in Italia with the
Indiana University Opera Theater, Pastore in the
Chicago Lyric Opera’s production of Monteverdi’s
L’Orfeo, and Spoletta in the Opera Theatre of
St. Louis production of Puccini’s Tosca. Mr.
Grohman made his Boston Symphony debut in Oliver
Knussen’s Where the Wild things Are with the
composer conducting. As a Tanglewood Music Center
Vocal Fellow, he sang the role of Rinuccio in
Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi and, at the request
of Seiji Ozawa, returned to Tanglewood for the 2000
season performing the role of Fenton in Verdi’s
Falstaff. Recent concert engagements have
included W. A. Mozart’s Requiem, Beethoven’s
Ninth Symphony, and Britten’s St. Nicholas
Mass. Future: Reverend Parris in Ward’s
The Crucible with Boston Opera. |
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Brian
Stucki (Don Ramiro) — Brian Stucki, tenor, is a
native of Olympia, WA. He has most recently
performed the roles of Don Narciso in The Turk in
Italy and Belmonte in The Abduction from the
Seraglio for IU Opera's 2003-04 season, as well
as Alfredo in La traviata with Washington
East Opera. Mr. Stucki receives vocal training from
Costanza Cuccaro. A press review of his portrayal of
Tamino in 2000 described his voice as "achingly
tender... a sweet union where the lines between
voice and music are miraculously blurred". Other
roles include Ernesto in Don Pasquale, an upcoming
Almaviva in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, and more
recently Rodolfo in L'Opera Piccola Chicago's
production of La Bohème. As an oratorio
soloist, Stucki has sung with the IU Chamber
Orchestra and Choirs' performance of Die
Schopfung, the Utah Bach Choir, and the Utah
Symphony. Mr. Stucki is also an accomplished
cellist, having released a CD recording of
Rachmaninoff works on the Tantara label. |
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Kory Bickel
(Dandini) —
Kory
Bickel, baritone, is currently a third year master’s
candidate at IU, where he is a student Costanza
Cuccaro. While at IU, Bickel has performed the
roles of Masetto in Don Giovanni, Dr.
Malatesta in Don Pasquale, and Prosdocimo,
the poet, in Il Turco in Italia. Last
summer, Bickel was an Apprentice Artist at the Des
Moines Metro Opera. Bickel received his bachelor’s
degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia,
where he was named the national winner of the 2002
Music Teacher’s National Association Collegiate
Voice Competition, a title that lead to his New York
solo debut at Weill Recital Hall in March of 2003.
Performance credits at the University of Missouri
include Guglielmo in Così fan tutte and Falke
in Die Fledermaus with the Columbia Civic
Orchestra. In addition, Bickel performed the role
of John Potts in the world premiere of Michael
Ching’s opera, Corps of Discovery.
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Cody
Fosdick (Dandini) — A native of Spring, Texas,
Cody Fosdick is a Performer Diploma candidate in
Voice studying with Costanza Cuccaro. This is the
baritone’s debut performance at IU. He received his
bachelor’s degree from the University of Mary
Hardin-Baylor. Fosdick has performed roles
including Falke in Die Fledermaus, Jim in
The Gift of the Magi, the Pirate King in The
Pirates of Penzance, and Pooh-Bah in The
Mikado. Recently, he attended the American
Institute of Musical Studies program in Graz,
Austria. While there, he performed under the
conductor Edoardo Muller in an orchestra concert
featuring Italian Opera songs. |
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Benjamin Gelfand (Don Magnifico) —
Bass-Baritone Benjamin Gelfand received his
Bachelors in voice from the Ohio State University,
where he studied with Karen Peeler and was seen as
Simone in Gianni Schicchi and as Gideon in
Little Women In his third year at IU, he has
performed as Dr. Grenvil in La traviata, Don
Geronio in The Turk in Italy, The Sacristan
in Tosca, and most recently as Benoit in
La Bohème. He is a student of Giorgio Tozzi. |
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Jason
Plourde (Don Magnifico) — Jason Richard Plourde,
baritone, is in his 3rd year of studies
at Indiana University where he pursuing his Master
of Music in Voice and Opera. While at IU Mr.
Plourde has performed the roles of Swallow (Peter
Grimes), William Jennings Bryan (The Ballad
of Baby Doe), Baron Mirko Zeta (The Merry
Widow) and the Marquis (La traviata).
Other roles include Count Almaviva (The Marriage
of Figaro), Ben (The Telephone), Gasparo
(Rita), Le Podestat (Dr. Miracle), Dr.
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Jekyll and Hyde, the
musical), Dr. Craven (The Secret Garden) and
most recently Henry Higgins (My Fair Lady).
Mr. Plourde has also appeared in various concert
works including W. A. Mozart’s Requiem, Haydn’s
Lord Nelson Mass, Five Mystical Songs by
Vaughan Williams and the Fauré Requiem. Mr. Plourde
has also been a 3 time participant in the Portland
Opera Repertory Theatre’s Young Artist Program
(2000, 2002, and 2003) and was a member of Janiec
Opera Company at the Brevard Music Center this past
summer. A student of Timothy Noble, Mr. Plourde is
also the recipient of the I. Pizzetti Memorial
Scholarship. |
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Georgina Joshi (Clorinda) — A native of
Indiana, Joshi received her Bachelors of Music from
the Royal College of Music, London, where she
studied with Eiddwen Harrhy. Most recently,
Georgina has sung for the gala opera night at the
Beamaris Festival with the Welsh Chamber Orchestra
conducted by Anthony Hose, she also performed the
role of the first Harlot in Handel’s Solomon
for the Bloomington Early Music Festival conducted
by William Jon Gray. Georgina is currently pursuing
her Masters degree in Vocal Performance at Indiana
University, where she studies with Alan Bennett. Clorinda
will be her first role with the Indiana University
Opera Theater. |
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Kristen Robinson (Clorinda) —
Kristen Robinson is a soprano originally from
Reading, PA. She received a Bachelor of Music from
Ithaca College and is currently pursuing a master's
degree here at Indiana University. She performed
the role of the 1st Niece in Peter Grimes last year
with the IU Opera Theatre and also sang Eva in Die
Schopfung with the University Chorale. She is a
student of Alan Bennett. |
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Jamie
Barton (Thisbe) — Mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton is
enrolled in the Master of Music voice program. A
native of Rome, Georgia, Jamie completed her
Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance at Shorter
College, also in Rome. This is Ms. Barton's debut
to the IU Opera Theater. She has performed such
roles as Prince Orlovsky in Die Fledermaus
and Maria in The Most Happy Fella, and
recently made her Spivey Hall debut as the alto
soloist in Brahms' Alto Rhapsody. She was the 2004
second place finalist in the MTNA National Young
Artist Competition. In January she will perform the
role of Dame Doleful in the opera Too Many
Sopranos for the National Opera Association in
New York. Jamie Barton is a student of Brian Horne. |
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Kristin Brouwer (Thisbe) — A native of Okemos,
Michigan, mezzo-soprano Kristin Brouwer makes her
Indiana University Opera Theater debut as Thisbe.
Ms. Brouwer is a first year master degree student
studying with Andreas Poulimenos. Recent operatic
roles include Dorabella in W. A. Mozart’s Così
fan tutte, the Third Lady in Mozart’s Die
Zauberflöte, Leonora in Scarlatti’s Il
Trionfo dell’Onore, The Duchess in Gilbert and
Sullivan’s The Gondoliers, and The Third
Friend in The Ballad of Baby Doe. Ms.
Brouwer completed her undergraduate studies in vocal
performance at New England Conservatory. |
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Jennifer Feinstein (Angelina also known as
Cinderella) — A mezzo-soprano from Cranston, RI,
Jennifer Feinstein is in her first year of study for
a Masters of Music in Vocal Performance. She
completed her undergraduate studies at Indiana
University in 2004 and previously appeared in IU
Opera Theater productions as Flora in La Traviata,
Martha in The Secret Garden, Mama McCourt in
The Ballad of Baby Doe, and Ilona Ritter in
She Loves Me. She has also sung at the
Spoleto Vocal Arts Symposium, Brevard Music Center,
and the Charley Creek Vocal Workshop. Ms. Feinstein
is a student of Professor Alan Bennett. |
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Lisa
LaFleur (Angelina, also known as Cinderella)
Mezzo-soprano Lisa LaFleur, originally from
Lafayette, Louisiana, is performing her first role
at Indiana University. Before she moved to
Bloomington to start her Master of Music degree in
Voice Performance, she graduated Summa Cum Laude
with her Bachelor of Music Education degree from
Loyola University New Orleans. At Loyola she
performed Dorabella in Così fan tutte and
Prince Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus. Also in
New Orleans, she sang with the New Orleans Opera
Chorus in productions of Cavalleria Rusticana,
Pagliacci, Pontalba (World Premiere)
and Don Giovanni, as well as in the St. Louis
Cathedral Concert Series as mezzo soloist in
Vivaldi’s Gloria, J. S. Bach’s Christlag
in Todesbanden, and Duruflé’s Requiem.
She was a 2004 Gulf Coast Regional Finalist in the
Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and
holds a Friends of Music scholarship from IU. Lisa
is currently in the studio of James McDonald. |
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John
Glann (Alidoro) — John Glann is making his IU
Opera debut in the role of Alidoro. The baritone
from Huron, Ohio, is currently pursuing a Performer
Diploma in the voice studio of Andreas Poulimenos.
Roles include Ford, Escamillo, Belcore, W. A.
Mozart's Figaro and Count Almaviva, and Enrico in
Lucia di Lammermoor. Upcoming engagements
include performances with the Indianapolis Opera,
the Toledo Symphony, and the role of Jesus in the
world premier of Pilatus, composed by Robert
Samels. Mr. Glann attended Bowling Green State
University, Oklahoma City University, and was a
Resident Artist with the Toledo Opera. In 2002, he
received a Young Singer Encouragement Award from the
Metropolitan Opera National Council and was a
regional finalist in the National Association of
Teachers of Singing Artist Awards. |
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David
Swain (Alidoro) — Bass-Baritone David Swain
graduated in 2003 from Texas Tech University with a
Bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance. He is
currently pursuing a Master’s degree from Indiana
University and is currently a graduate assistant at
IU. He has performed the roles of Masetto in Don
Giovanni, Baron Douphol in La traviata,
El Gallo in The Fantasticks and more
recently, Cesare Angelotti in IU’s summer
production of Tosca. Mr. Swain studies with
James McDonald. |
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Enjoy the pre-concert informance
one hour before each performance
Stage Director Vincent Liotta will present his thoughts
Musical Arts
Center Lobby |
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Curtain time for IU Opera
Theater is promptly at 8 p.m., by which time all
opera goers should be in their seats.
Latecomers
will be seated at
the discretion of the management. Thank you for
your cooperation. |
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