Yuval Sharon has amassed an unconventional body of work that expands the operatic form. He is founder and Artistic Director of The Industry in Los Angeles and the newly appointed Gary L. Wasserman Artistic Director of Michigan Opera Theatre. With The Industry, Mr. Sharon has directed and produced new operas in moving vehicles, operating train stations, Hollywood sound stages, and various “non-spaces” such as warehouses, parking lots, and escalator corridors. From 2016-2019, Mr. Sharon was the first Artist-in-Residence at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, creating nine projects that included newly commissioned works, site-specific installations, and performances outside the hall. His residency culminated in a major revival of Meredith Monk’s opera ATLAS, making him the first director Monk entrusted with a new production of her work. The first American ever invited to direct at Bayreuth, Mr. Sharon distinguished himself with a boldly progressive Lohengrin in 2018, using subtle dramatic direction to completely overhaul the opera into a critique of entrenched power structures. He is the recipient of the 2014 Götz Friedrich Prize in Germany for his production of John Adams’s Doctor Atomic. He also directed a landmark production of Song Books at the San Francisco Symphony and Carnegie Hall. In 2017, Sharon was honored with a MacArthur Fellowship and a Foundation for Contemporary Art grant for theater. Photo credit: Casey Kringlen

Mexican-born conductor Roberto Kalb has served as Music Director of Detroit Opera since 2022. He conducted Detroit Opera’s performances of The Cunning Little Vixen in May 2024 and two concerts featuring the Detroit Opera Orchestra and Resident Artists in the fall of 2023. He conducted Yuval Sharon’s new production of La bohème at Detroit Opera in 2022. Additional 2023–24 season performances for Roberto included house debuts at Santa Fe Opera (L’elisir d’amore) and Atlanta Opera (Rigoletto), concerts with the Kansas City Symphony and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and Cavalleria rusticana/Pagliacci at Lyric Opera of Kansas City. Season highlights in 2022–23 included performances at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, San Diego Opera, and San Francisco Opera.   In 2019, Roberto concluded a five-year tenure as resident conductor and head of music at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL), where he led the world premiere of Tobias Picker’s Awakenings (2022); he also conducted OTSL’s critically acclaimed run of Rigoletto (2019) in collaboration with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. Roberto has also conducted at companies including Opéra Orchestra National Montpellier, Florida Grand Opera, Kentucky Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Opera Maine, and Tulsa Opera.   He has conducted performances with the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México, Orquesta Carlos Chavez in Mexico City, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Palm Beach Symphony, and the Orquestra Sinfonica da USP in São Paulo, Brazil.    Roberto holds degrees from the University of Michigan and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and in 2021 was awarded the prestigious Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award. He is married to soprano Mané Galoyan.   Photo credit: Simon Pauly

Jason H. Thompson designs for opera, dance, theater, theme parks, commercial, architecture, and corporate events. He recently received two LA Drama Critics Circle Awards for Revenge Song and Vietgone. Jason has also been awarded the Kinetic Lighting Award for Outstanding Achievement in Theatrical Design. He has received two Ovation Awards for Chavez Ravine and Venice. Key projects include: Lost Highway (Oper Frankfurt); Die Walküre (Karlsruhe, Germany); Tri Sestri (Vienna State Opera); Tarzan and Frozen Sing A-Long (Shanghai Disneyland); Twilight: Gods (Detroit Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago); A Trip to the Moon and Young Caesar (LA Philharmonic); Hopscotch, Invisible Cities, Crescent City (The Industry); Cage Songbooks (San Francisco Symphony, Carnegie Hall, New World Symphony), Cunning Little Vixen (Cleveland Orchestra, Vienna). On Broadway: Baby, It's You! Additionally, Jason has worked at a number of New York and regional theaters including: the Public Theatre, Center Theatre Group, the Geffen Playhouse, the Guthrie, KC Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, Signature Theatre in DC, South Coast Repertory Theatre, and many others. He’s also created four video installations for the Petersen Auto Museum in Los Angeles. Jason is a member of United Scenic Artists, Local 829, and a company member of The Industry, an independent artist-driven company creating experimental productions that expand the definition of opera. He and his wife, Kaitlyn, co-founded PXT Studio, a company specializing in merging art and tech for opera, theater, and other live events.

Ann Closs-Farley has been designing for opera, theater, film and TV for more than 25 years. The diversity of her work and interest is where her talent lies. She loves all aspects of costume design: history, fashion, textiles, technology, mechanics, human reflection, spirit, and most of all, story. She is interested in discovering and learning new ways to re-invent and create transformative ways to make costumes speak to the imagination. In addition to her work in design and art, Ann passionately espouses ideas of using recyclable and thrift store materials in her work. She has a keen interest in current technologies and finds ways to incorporate them into all her creations.

Cristina Waltz is an independent makeup artist specializing in beauty and special effects. Her work often incorporates both elements to achieve detailed realism or creating colorful and elaborate character designs. Cristina mentored under Ve Neill and learned the ability to balance being a creative artist with the logistic thinking of a good department head. She got her start working with Ve’s longtime friend and client, Pee-wee Herman. Together, they worked to design the makeup for his re-envisioned stage show on Broadway and Los Angeles. From there, Cristina has developed a unique style to call her own. Over the years she has accumulated a diverse list of credits including department head ranging from film, television, commercial, music video, and stage. Cristina is a member of IATSE Local 706. Her Guild Awards include “Best Makeup for Feature Film” for Bombshell and “Best Commercial Makeup” for FX Networks’ American Horror Story Promo Campaigns. She was nominated for an Emmy Award for her work on HBO's Pee-wee Herman Stageshow.

Born in England, Joanne Middleton-Weaver came to the United States in the late 1980s. She began apprenticing with Elsen Associates at what was then Washington Opera, now Washington National Opera. Joanne has since designed at many opera companies throughout the U.S. during her 30-year career: Glimmerglass Opera, Sarasota Opera, Palm Beach Opera, and Des Moines Metro Opera, to name a few. She has designed for Detroit Opera since 1995. Her credits there include La bohème, The Passenger, Frida, Margaret Garner, Cyrano, Faust, and make-up design for X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X.  

Known for her versatility and energy on the podium, Detroit Opera veteran Chorus Master Suzanne Mallare Acton has more than 160 production credits covering seven languages. In addition to her chorus work, Suzanne has conducted over 35 productions for the company, including West Side Story, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Carmen, The Music Man, The Pirates of Penzance, The Mikado, Die Fledermaus, La traviata, A Little Night Music, a staged version of Carmina Burana with members of Cirque du Soleil, The Medium, A View from the Bridge, Les pêcheurs de perles, and Frida. Additional conducting credits include My Fair Lady and La traviata for Dayton Opera; The Merry Widow and Madama Butterfly for Artpark; Tosca for Augusta Opera; La traviata, L’elisir d’amore, and Gianni Schicchi for Verdi Opera Theatre; and Frida for El Paso Opera. Suzanne was guest conductor for the Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings, Birmingham-Bloomfield Symphony Orchestra, Lexington Bach Festival, Rochester Symphony Orchestra, Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra, and Dearborn Symphony Orchestra. She premiered Too Hot To Handel at the Detroit Opera House, Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre, and The Orpheum Theatre in Memphis. For 25 years, Suzanne was artistic director of Rackham Choir. Under her leadership, the Rackham Choir received the prestigious 2008 Governor’s Awards for Arts & Culture for outstanding contributions to arts and culture in Michigan. Suzanne has been recognized by Corp! Magazine as one of Michigan’s 95 Most Powerful Women. In 2014, she was one of 12 women selected as WJR’s Women Who Lead.

With “much elegance and youthful tone” (Financial Times), mezzo-soprano Samantha Hankey is increasingly lauded for her powerful stage presence, paired with a voice admired for its “dusky focus and hypnotic allure.” (The Times). Hankey’s 2023–24 season includes debuts in leading roles at the Royal Opera House (Dorabella, Così fan tutte), Detroit Opera (Fox, The Cunning Little Vixen), and Lyric Opera of Kansas City (Santuzza, Cavalleria Rusticana). She performs as soloist with Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and returns to the Metropolitan Opera as Stéphano in Roméo et Juliette (Met Live in HD) and Opernhaus Zürich as Dorabella in Così fan tutte. Last season, Hankey appeared in Ainadamar at Scottish Opera, made debuts at Santa Fe Opera (Mélisande, Pelléas et Mélisande) and Lyric Opera of Chicago (Hänsel, Hänsel und Gretel), performed her Carnegie Hall recital debut, and starred as Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier at The Met (Live in HD). She held a Fest contract at the Bayerische Staatsoper from 2019 to 2021 and has performed at Den Norske Opera, Dallas Opera, Grand Théâtre de Genève, Bard Festival, Wigmore Hall, Lincoln Center, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She co-developed the lead roles in David Herzberg’s The Rose Elf and The Wake World. Hankey received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School. Her awards include multiple prizes at the Glyndebourne Cup and Operalia Competitions, a Career Grant from the Richard Tucker Music Foundation, Grand Finals of the Metropolitan Opera National Council, and Dallas Opera Guild Vocal Competition. Photo credit: Daniel Welch

Armenian soprano Mané Galoyan is the Second Prize winner of the 2021 Operalia Competition, where she also won the Zarzuela Prize and the Rolex Audience Prize. Her current season includes Suor Angelica and Lauretta in a new production of Il Trittico with Donald Runnicles at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with the Wiener Staatsoper, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with the Canadian Opera Company, Violetta in La traviata with Santa Fe Opera and Deutsche Oper Berlin, and Suor Angelica with the Bayerische Staatsoper. In concert, she will sing Rachmaninoff’s The Bells with Swedish Radio Orchestra, and a holiday concert with the Basel Symphony Orchestra. In the 2022–23 season, Mané performed the title role in Luisa Miller with Oper Köln, Berthe in Le prophète with Aix-en-Provence Festival, Avis in The Wreckers with Houston Grand Opera, Donna Anna with Atlanta Opera, and Violetta with Deutsche Oper Berlin and Seattle Opera. She also performed The Bells with Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Bard Festival, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Seattle Symphony, a concert of arias with the Prague Symphony Orchestra and Plácido Domingo in Bad Hofgastein, Austria, and Taneyev’s cantata At the Reading of a Psalm (1915) with the American Symphony Orchestra. Mané holds two degrees from the Yerevan State Komitas Conservatory in Armenia, where she was named the 2013 winner of the President of the Republic of Armenia Youth Prize. She is married to conductor Roberto Kalb. Photo credit: Simon Pauly

American bass-baritone Michael Sumuel, lauded as having “vocals that are smooth and ingratiating” (Daily Camera), performs this season as Reginald in the Metropolitan Opera’s co-production of X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X and Sharpless in Madama Butterfly at Houston Grand Opera. Concert dates include Mozart’s Requiem (New York Philharmonic, Music of the Baroque), Handel’s Messiah (San Francisco Symphony), Bach’s Christmas Oratorio (Les violons du Roy), Bach’s Magnificat (Music of the Baroque), Bach’s St. John Passion (Seattle Symphony), Fauré Requiem (National Symphony Orchestra), and Christus in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion (Washington National Cathedral). Recent performances include Belcore in L’elisir d’amore (Metropolitan Opera), Elviro in Xerxes (Detroit Opera), Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro (Pittsburgh Opera), and concert performances of Mozart’s Requiem (Cincinnati Symphony), Bach cantatas BWV 61 and 140 (Handel and Haydn Society), and Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass and Florence Price’s Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight (Pacific Chorale). Other recent highlights include Michael’s LA Opera debut as Jesus in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, a semi-staged production conducted by James Conlon with choreography by the Hamburg Ballet, Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro (Seattle Opera), Escamillo in Carmen (Santa Fe Opera), the King in Massenet’s Cinderella (Metropolitan Opera), Leporello in Don Giovanni (Opera San Antonio) and Escamillo (Chicago Opera Theater). A native of Odessa, Texas, Michael is an alumnus of the Houston Grand Opera Studio, Merola Opera Program at San Francisco Opera and the Filene Young Artist program at Wolf Trap Opera. He resides in San Francisco with his wife and young son.  

David Cangelosi made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2004 as Mime in Wagner’s Das Rheingold, conducted by James Levine, and has returned to the Met in multiple roles over the past 18 years. He has performed his signature role of Mime with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Washington National Opera, Opéra de Montreal, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, he performed Mime in Das Rheingold and Wagner’s Siegfried with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, and later recorded the same roles with the New York Philharmonic on the Naxos label. In the 2020–21 pandemic season, Cangelosi made a role debut as Loge in Das Rheingold at the famed Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. Recent and upcoming engagements include The Nose (2023) with Chicago Opera Theater, Siegfried with Juneau Lyric Opera, a role debut as Eisenstein in a new production of Johann Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus for Western Plains Opera, a role debut of Edrisi for Chicago Opera Theater’s production of Karol Szymanowski’s King Roger (2022), and a 2022 holiday run of The Magic Flute with the Metropolitan Opera. Having performed the roles of Mosquito/Schoolmaster in the original Cleveland Orchestra production of The Cunning Little Vixen in Cleveland and Vienna, David is delighted to make his debut with Detroit Opera in this highly acclaimed Yuval Sharon production.

After completing his studies at the Juilliard School, American bass Alex Rosen made his international debut with Les Arts Florissants, under the direction of William Christie, in two tours of Haydn’s Creation and Handel’s Acis and Galatea. During the 2023–24 season, Alex joins Théâtre de Caen’s tour of David et Jonathas in Nancy, Paris, Luxembourg and Lille. Other engagements include a Japan/South Korea tour with Les Arts Florissants performing St. John’s Passion and Handel’s Messiah with Accentus. He performs the role of Alidoro in La Cenerentola with Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse and joins Detroit Opera for The Cunning Little Vixen as Parson/Badger. The 2022–23 season included Seneca/Console in L’incoronazione di Poppea (Aix-en-Provence Festival, Opéra Royal at Versailles, and Palau de les Arts Fundacio de la Comunitat in Valencia), Haydn’s Die Schöpfung for Theater Basel, Purcell’s The Fairy Queen for Drottningholms Slottsteater as well as the role of Melisso in Alcina with Musiciens du Louvre on a tour of Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. Alex was also a part of a European tour of Ariodante with Il Pomo d’Oro as well as concerts of Messiah with the Orchestre Opéra Royal de Versailles with Franco Fagioli conducting.  

Bass Andrew Potter has garnered increasing demand across the country for his larger-than-life stage presence and voice to match. Opera Today hailed his recent performance in L’elisir d’amore: “With his huge, all‐encompassing bass voice and precise comic timing he nearly stole the show.” Andrew’s current and recent performances include house debuts at Seattle Opera (Abimelech, Samson et Dalila, world premiere of Sheila Silver and Stephen Kitsakos’s A Thousand Splendid Suns), and Portland Opera (Vodnik, Rusalka). Other performances this season include Livermore Valley Opera (Belcore, L'elisir d’Amore), Indianapolis Opera (Scarpia, Tosca), Opera Grand Rapids (Pirate King, Pirates of Penzance) and Pacific Opera Project (Superflute, a new take on Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte). Potter recently performed Simone (Gianni Schicchi, Tulsa Opera), Sarastro (The Magic Flute, Eugene Opera), Sparafucile (Rigoletto, Opera Orlando), Commendatore (Don Giovanni, Indianapolis Opera), and René (Iolanta, Pacific Opera Project). Concert engagements included Mozart’s Mass in C Major for Mid-Ohio Civic Opera, and Verdi’s Requiem for Michigan State University. Other roles include Prince Gremin (Eugene Onegin), Poo-Bah (The Mikado), Sulpice (Daughter of the Regiment), Dr. Dulcamara (L’elisir d’amore), The Bonze (Madama Butterfly), Hunding (Die Walküre), Fafner (Das Rheingold), and Colline (La bohème), Escamillo (Carmen), Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte, and Ferrando (Il trovatore).

Hailed as “confident and charismatic” (Bachtrack), Nigerian-American soprano Victoria Lawal enjoys a diverse repertoire, ranging from staple works of the canon to stage plays and world premieres. With a growing emphasis on Italian opera, Victoria most recently covered Norina in Don Pasquale at Festival Napa Valley as a Maria Manetti Shrem Fellow. Victoria also joined the Festival Orchestra Napa singing excerpts as Magda (La Rondine), Contessa (Le nozze di Figaro) and the title role of Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia. Victoria makes her Detroit Opera debut as the Rooster in The Cunning Little Vixen directed by Yuval Sharon and conducted by Roberto Kalb. In the 2022–23 season, Victoria debuted the role of the High Priestess in Aida with Tulsa Opera; jumped in for opening-night and subsequent performances of Heartbeat Opera’s critically acclaimed Lady M; and joined Opera Theatre of Saint Louis for the summer season, where she covered the roles of Despina (Così fan tutte), Mrs. Hayes (Susannah), and the title role of Treemonisha. In the 2021–22 season Lawal performed recitals with pianist Mark Robson in a program featuring songs by Julianna Hall, Respighi, Chabrier, Barber and Theodosia Roussos. On film, Victoria starred in The Knock, a world premiere, commissioned by the Glimmerglass Festival. Hailed as “smooth-voiced yet strong” (New York Times), Lawal debuted the role of Marzelline (Marcy) in Heartbeat Opera's touring production of Fidelio. She originated the role of Opal in the world premiere of The Body Female, commissioned by LA Opera.

Mezzo-soprano Rehanna Thelwell is quickly becoming known for her magnetic performances and expressive vocal power in a wide variety of repertoire. A recent graduate of the Washington National Opera Cafritz Young Artist program, she made her mainstage debut at Washington National Opera performing the title role of Carmen during her final year in that program. During the 2023–24 season she sang the role of Katie Ellen in San Francisco Opera’s Omar and Hippolyta in Atlanta Opera’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Rehanna’s performances include her debut at Dutch National Opera as Girlfriend/Congregant 3 in Jeanine Tesori and Tazewell Thompson’s Blue, roles that she reprised at Washington National Opera. Recent performances includes a role debut as Dinah/Anna I in Madison Opera’s double-bill of Trouble in Tahiti/The Seven Deadly Sins and a debut with the Washington Chorus for Undine Smith Moore’s Scenes from the Life of a Martyr and the Duruflé Requiem, and Scenes from the Life of a Martyr with Exigence Ensemble (Detroit). She has performed with Lyric Opera of Chicago as Ruby/Sinner Woman in Fire Shut Up in My Bones, a role she premiered with Opera Theatre Saint Louis in 2019, for which Opera News praised her as a “standout” among the supporting cast. She made her debut with Opera Philadelphia as Jocasta in Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex. Photo credit: Caitlin Oldham

Lana Lanzanas, a sophomore at Troy Athens High School, joined the Detroit Opera Youth Chorus in August 2023. She sang the role of Bar 2 in DOYC’s performance of Odyssey at the Detroit Opera House on April 20, 2024. She also performed the role of Glinda (Good Witch) in Warren Civic Theatre’s Wizard of Oz in March 2022. She was also nominated for a Sutton Foster Award for her performance of A Tomb with a View at her school theater production at the Fisher Theatre in May 2023. Lana loves to sing, plays the piano and guitar, and writes her own songs. For the past several years she has performed as opening act at 2022, 2023 and 2024 concerts of Michigan- and Ohio-based Filipino-American artists. Lana received a scholarship to attend a three-week camp at the Interlochen Center for the Arts this summer. Lana is also a member of the swim team at Troy Athens High School.

Jonathan James Crane is a treble singer from LaSalle, Ontario. The seventh-grader is very proud of his multi-ethnic Canadian, American, and South African heritage. Jonathan is completing his first year with the Detroit Opera Youth Chorus, during which he  played First Mate in Ben Moore and Kelley Rourke’s opera Odyssey in April. He is grateful for the experience and everything that he has learned this season. Jonathan is an anthemist for the Windsor Spitfires and Windsor Express and sings with his church choir. Jonathan has performed as Beagle in The Battle of Boat with the Singer’s Theatre. Jonathan studies voice with Lesley Andrew. He is looking forward to playing Pepík in Detroit Opera’s mainstage production of The Cunning Little Vixen. He was recently cast as Brian in Pistachio Pier and is NYC bound. He also enjoys playing piano, golf, and traveling. He wishes to thank his family, friends, and everyone who has supported and encouraged him.  

Lucia Flowers is a current Michigan local and recent graduate of the University of Michigan where she received her Masters in Vocal Performance under Dr. Louise Toppin. She is also a proud graduate of SUNY Fredonia, where she studied under Julie Newell. Flowers has been seen on the Detroit Opera stage in their recent productions of Aida starring Angel Blue and Christine Goerke, Lileana Blain-Cruz’s Faust, and Ragnar Kjartansson’s creation, BLISS, re-staged by artistic director, Yuval Sharon. Additional recent credits include the Soprano Soloist in The Messiah with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Cunegonde in Syracuse Opera’s production of Candide, Musetta in University of Michigan’s La boheme, Frasquita in Carmen with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra,  Morgana in University of Michigan’s Alcina, Cunegonde in University of Michigan’s Candide, Amy in Mark Adamo’s Little Women with the Western New York Chamber Orchestra, Patience in Patience with the College Light Opera Company, Lady Larken in Once Upon a Mattress with the College Light Opera Company, and Marian Paroo in The Music Man with the Western New York Chamber Orchestra. During her time with the Brevard Janiec Opera Company she sang the role of Clorinda in La Cenerentola, the Baroness in Candide, and was one of the soloists in the musical review Sondheim on Sondheim. Upcoming engagements include a return to Detroit Opera in 2024, to perform the role of The Grasshopper in Yuval Sharon's production of The Cunning Little Vixen.

Lillian Fellows is a 17-year-old soprano with a sparkling coloratura and an unwavering passion for opera. She began her operatic journey with the Detroit Opera Youth Chorus in 2018 and has since starred in a series of performances at the Detroit Opera House. Her appearances include the Queen in Maker of Illusions, Zelda in The Very Last Green Thing, and Poor Rabbit in The Secret World of Og. Additional performances include ensemble and understudy roles in La bohème, Hansel and Gretel, and The Grapes of Wrath. The Cunning Little Vixen will be Lillian’s eighth opera at the Detroit Opera House.