Amelia Arguelles is currently pursuing a Master’s of Music degree in Collaborative Piano from the University of Michigan, where she is a student of Dr. Ana María Otamendi. Particularly enthusiastic about opera, she has assisted in productions of Jonathan Dove’s The Enchanted Pig and Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi. She also has served as the pianist for several opera scenes programs featuring the works of Mozart, Handel, Rossini, and Puccini. Originally from Plattsburgh, NY, Arguelles is a graduate of the Crane School of Music, where she received her BM in Piano Performance.

BIO TO COME

Hailed by the New York Times as “vocally robust” and “lyrically malevolent,” American bass-baritone Joseph Barron is sought after for his portrayals in both the dramatic and comedic repertoire. He regularly sings with the Metropolitan Opera and has appeared recently in Rigoletto, Don Giovanni, The Marriage of Figaro, Salome, Tannhauser, Turandot, and many others. Barron, who is married to FLO Artistic Director Stephanie Havey, has also sung with FLO in the mainstage productions of The Barber of Seville (Bartolo) and Aida (Ramfis). This is the third season Barron will lead a masterclass for FLO’s Young Artists. To learn more, visit https://www.uiatalent.com/artists4/joseph-barron.

 Beverly Bauman’s previous credits with FLO include serving as stage manager for Gianni Schicchi and assistant stage manager for Two Corners, Aida, and The Barber of Seville. Some of her favorite credits as a stage manager are Blackfriars Theatre's Sweeney Todd, Cabaret, and Imagination Station with Mrs. Kasha Davis. Other notable credits in Rochester include serving as stage manager of JCC Centerstage's production of School of Rock and assistant stage manager of An American in Paris, and stage manager/sound designer of The Company Theatre's Macbeth and co-creator of Great Expectations.

Ethan Beckwith-Cohen took his first Garth Fagan Dance (GFD) class at age three. Born and raised in Rochester (NY), he has studied at GFD, Rochester’s School of the Arts, Bush Mango Youth Project, Borinquen Dance Theatre, and FuturPointe Dance to name a few. He holds a BFA in Dance from University of the Arts and has created many dance works and curated multiple community-based projects. Beckwith-Cohen was recently appointed co-director of the GFD Student Ensemble. He last appeared with FLO in their return to indoor mainstage production of Verdi’s Aida in 2023.

After receiving both her Bachelor’s and Master’s of Music in Vocal Performance from Rice University, soprano Georgia Belmont is thrilled to be making her FLO  debut, singing Countess Ceprano and covering Gilda in Rigoletto, as well as Léontine in The Anonymous Lover. She sang the role of Edith in Kentucky Opera’s 2024 production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance and made her Los Angeles Philharmonic debut as the soprano soloist in Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Wing on Wing. Belmont joined Opera Theatre of Saint Louis’s 2024 festival season as a Gerdine Young Artist. She made her North American theatrical debut in Pasadena Playhouse’s 2023 production of Sondheim’s A Little Night Music as Mrs. Nordstrom. To learn more, visit https://georgiabelmontsoprano.com.

Tenor Liam Blecha is thrilled to be a part of Rigoletto, marking his first-ever production with FLO. Blecha just finished his sophomore year at the Eastman School of Music, where he is a student of Professor Anthony Dean Griffey. Previous operatic roles include Cornelio in Silent Light by Paola Prestini (2024) and Chorus/Tenor Cover in Evidence of Things Not Seen by Ned Rorem (2025). Blecha would like to thank his family, friends, and incredible castmates for their unwavering support!

Having just completed his second year at Baldwin Wallace University studying Voice Performance, baritone Charles Bohrer is thrilled to be returning to his hometown to perform with FLO this summer. Some of his recent role credits at Baldwin Wallace University include Vicomte Cascade (The Merry Widow), Tiridate, King of Armenia (Radamisto), and Car Man (Speed Dating Tonight!). Bohrer currently studies under Professor of Voice Nancy Maultsby and Director of Opera Studies Scott Skiba and is an active member of Motet Choir under the direction of Dr. Dirk Garner at Baldwin Wallace University.

 Bass-baritone Andrew Boisvert has been hailed as “thundering” (San Diego Story) with a “deep warmth” (The Rutland Herald). 2025 performance highlights include making his Opera Company of Middlebury debut as Simone in Gianni Schicchi, as well as covering Colline in their production of La bohème, singing as the Bass Soloist in the Verdi Requiem with the Schenectady-Saratoga Symphony Orchestra, joining Sarasota Opera to cover Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia, and covering Bartolo again in Le nozze di Figaro. Boisvert’s past engagements include Il Carceriere in Cedar Rapids Opera’s Tosca (2024), Zuniga in Indianapolis Opera’s Carmen (2023), Il Commendatore (cover) in Sarasota Opera’s Don Giovanni (2023), and Il re di Scozia in Opera Neo’s Ariodante (2022). To learn more, visit https://www.andrewboisvertbass.com.

Tenor Christopher Bozeka is recognized for his “expressively captivating” performances as well as his “beautiful, piercing tone.” In the 2024-2025 season, he sang with the Metropolitan Opera as the Kill Chain: Mission Coordinator in Grounded and covered The Hunchback in Die Frau ohne Schatten and Don Basilio in Le nozze di Figaro. He returned to Opera Las Vegas and Sarasota Opera singing Count Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia, a role he has performed many times. He has appeared as a soloist with Northwest Florida Symphony Orchestra, Musiqa, and YOSA Philharmonic, and will take his Rossinian ability to new heights as Elvino in La sonnambula with Teatro Nuovo. Other roles performed include Rodrigo in Otello (Central City Opera), Le comte Ory (Opera Southwest and Lyric Opera of Chicago cover), and Nemorino (Livermore Valley Opera and Houston Grand Opera).

Bozeka recently made his solo stage debut at the Metropolitan Opera, going on as Abdallo in Nabucco, which was broadcast live on Sirius XM radio. Other Metropolitan Opera assignments include cover of the Second Priest in The Magic Flute, Pit Singer–Tenor 2 in Dean’s Hamlet, and cover of Triquet in Eugene Onegin. Additional roles include Fourth Jew in Salome (Houston Symphony and Houston Grand Opera) and cover of Otto Bader and Josef Bader in Zigman’s Émigré (New York Philharmonic). To learn more, visit www.christopherbozeka.com.

A native of Charlotte (NC), Daria Clarke began her technical training at the age of seven. Six years later she joined Charlotte Performing Arts Academy, where she met her longtime mentor Siara Fuller and toured for many years. She received her BFA in dance with a concentration in choreography and performance from the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Upon discovering GFD, she was intrigued by the blending of Africanist movement qualities with European dance styles. She has been a GFD dancer since 2021. Clarke was last seen on FLO stages in the 2023 Aida production.

Sabrina Cmelak, a native of Southern California, received her BFA in dance and BA in psychology at Fordham University in partnership with the Ailey School. Prior to college, she studied at Riverside Ballet Arts, The Debbie Allen Dance Academy, The Yuri Grigoriev School of Ballet, and more. Cmelak has had the opportunity to work on FX’s Fosse/Verdon and toured in Debbie Allen’s Twist: An American Musical. She joined GFD in 2021 and became a principal dancer in 2022. Cmelak danced in FLO’s 2023 Aida production and was part of the company’s world premiere performances of B. E. Boykin and Jarrod Lee’s Two Corners in 2024.

Grammy-nominated baritone Joshua Conyers has been singled out by Opera News for his “deliciously honeyed baritone that would seduce anyone”; by The New York Times as having “a sonorous baritone” that “wheedled and seduced,” and by The Washington Post for giving a "show-stealing" performance. A native of The Bronx (NY), he is known for his captivating performances and recognized as one the promising young dramatic voices of today.

Conyers’s busy 2023-24 season included performing and covering Reginald in X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X in productions with Seattle Opera and the Metropolitan Opera, Handel’s Messiah with the New York Philharmonic; Beethoven Symphony No. 9 with the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera; Hollis in the world premiere of B.E. Boykin and Jarrod Lee’s Two Corners (FLO), and his role debut of Scarpia in Tosca with Opera Wilmington. During the current season, Conyers has sung the role of Hassan in Edmond Dede’s Morgiane in a special presentation with Opera Lafayette in collaboration with Opera Creole and the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, was seen with Piedmont Opera as Pierre Cauchon in The Trial at Rouen, and will make his role debut as Falstaff. Concert appearances will include the Crumb American Songbook ll with the New American Symphony, Handel’s Messiah with the Phoenix Symphony, and a recital with the Brooklyn Art Song Society. To learn more,  visit www.joshuaconyers.com.

Grant Crowson is excited to be working with Finger Lakes Opera this summer. Previous stage management credits include La Calisto, Pagliacci, and the world premiere of Rumpelstiltskin and the Unlovable Children at Glimmerglass Festival and Lucidity at Opera Ithaca. He is working toward his B.F.A. in Stage Management at Ithaca College. Grant would like to thank his family and partner, Riley, for always supporting him.

BIO TO COME

Marieke de Koker is a South African mezzo-soprano based in the New York City area. Recent appearances include the title role in Iolanthe, Susan (The Marriage Counselor), Béatrice (Béatrice et Bénédict), Liza Elliott (Lady in the Dark), and Cloud in the world premiere of Iceland. De Koker has performed in recitals and world premieres with WQXR radio, Brooklyn Theatre TV, Gauteng Philharmonic Orchestra, RSG Radio, Johannesburg Opera, the International Contemporary Ensemble's Ensemble Evolution, and many more. She has received awards from the International Opera Awards Foundation, SOI Cedolins International Opera Competition, Hal Leonard Vocal Competition, Nightingale Opera Theater Competition, among others. De Koker is a founding board member of Opéra Queens and volunteers as Publishing Team Lead of the Àkójọpọ̀ Music Foundation for Pan-African Art Music. To learn more, visit https://www.mariekedekoker.com.

Genevieve Dilan is a Filipino-American assistant director and artistic administrator in opera. A recent graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory, she holds a dual-degree in Psychology and Vocal Performance, studying as a mezzo-soprano with Timothy LeFebvre. Throughout her academic career, Dilan gained valuable experience assisting director Stephanie Havey on several productions at Oberlin Conservatory. Her experience extends to institutions including the Glimmerglass Festival, Sarasota Opera House, Kentucky Opera, and the Brevard Music Festival. 

Kiera Duffy has performed as a soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, London Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, and the Metropolitan Opera among many others. A sought-after interpreter of the works of European modernists as well as contemporary composers, she frequently collaborates with composers such as Philip Glass, Missy Mazzoli, and more. For the last seven years, Duffy has served as Professor of the Practice at the University of Notre Dame, where she coordinates Undergraduate Voice Studies, produces Opera ND, and teaches in the Graduate Sacred Music Program. She joined the voice faculty at Eastman in 2024. To learn more, visit https://www.opus3artists.com/artists/kiera-duffy/

 Jonathan Ellwanger is a tenor from Baltimore (MD), who just completed his junior year at the Eastman School of Music, where he studies with Professor Anthony Dean Griffey. He has been in many Eastman Opera Theatre productions, including Silent Night (Zacarias), Things Not Seen, Dido and Aeneas, and Dialogues of the Carmelites.

Currently working as the costume shop manager at Nazareth University, Mary Farmer holds a BFA in costume technology from Wright State University. She worked as a stitcher and First Hand at Geva Theatre Center and as a draper for Rochester City Ballet, FLO, and Finger Lakes Music Festival. Farmer has designed for Garth Fagan Dance, Blackfriars Theatre, The Jewish Community Center, Roberts Wesleyan College Community Players, and Nazareth College. Design credits include A Few Good Men, Mary Poppins, West Side Story, Les Misérables, and Beauty and the Beast, as well as FLO’s prior productions of Die Fledermaus, La bohème, The Barber of Seville, Aida, Così fan tutte, and Gianni Schicchi.

Cris Frisco is a collaborative musician equally at home in the worlds of classical and popular music. In recent seasons, he has worked as a conductor or pianist on Broadway and with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Santa Fe Opera, McCarter Theatre Center, and Opera Delaware, among others. From 2021-2023, he was the Director of Music and Director of the Handorf Company Artist Program at Opera Memphis. Frisco is currently the Music Director of Mannes Opera and Assistant Professor of Music at Mannes, has held faculty roles at Westminster Choir College, Rutgers University, CUNY, the New School for Drama, and as he does with FLO, has served on staff with many festivals. To learn more, visit www.crisfrisco.com.

Jason Garcia-Kakuk is a tenor from Queenstown (MD). He was most recently seen as H in Eastman Opera Theatre’s winter production of H&G, a Great and Terrible Story (Allen Shawn). In 2024, he was seen at Opera Baltimore portraying the role of Mr. Angel in Mozart’s The Impresario, featuring a reinvented libretto by Eric McKeever. Garcia-Kakuk also performed in their production of Tchaikovksy’s Eugene Onegin as Triquet and covered Lensky. Notable past roles include Pelléas in Debussy’s Impressions de Pelléas with Temple University Opera Theater and Odoardo in Handel’s Ariodante with Curtis Opera Theatre. Garcia-Kakuk holds his B.M. in Voice Performance from Temple University and is currently pursuing his M.M. in Voice Performance at the Eastman School of Music under the tutelage of Anthony Dean Griffey.

 A native of Brooklyn, (NY) soprano Izabella Gozzo just completed her Bachelor’s of Music in Vocal Performance at the Eastman School of Music. During the 2024-2025 season, Gozzo performed in the ensemble of both H&G, a Great and Terrible Story by Allen Shawn and Ainadamar by Osvaldo Golijov. In the 2023-2024 season, Gozzo made her Kodak Hall debut in Eastman Opera Theatre’s production of Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites. She spent the summer of 2024 at Chicago Summer Opera, where she performed as First Witch in Dido and Aeneas. Gozzo is excited to join FLO as an Apprentice Artist covering Léontine and performing in the ensemble of Joseph Bologne’s The Anonymous Lover. Gozzo also excels as a pianist and, in her free time, enjoys reading and hiking. 

Baritone Steve Groth is a classical vocalist, collaborative pianist, and educator from Wisconsin.  Some recent operatic credits include Tonio in Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci, Alfio in Mascagni’s Cavalleria rusticana, Antonio in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro, Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff, Dandini in Rossini’s La cenerentola, King in Montsalvage’s Puss in Boots, and Escamillo in Bizet’s Carmen. 

As a recitalist and chamber musician, Groth has performed a wide variety of oratorio repertoire and chamber music and frequently premieres new compositions by living composers. He holds undergraduate degrees in Music Education and French from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, graduate degrees in Vocal Performance and Collaborative Piano from the University of Missouri-Columbia (2017), and Vocal Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Colorado-Boulder (2020). Groth is thrilled to return to FLO for his first Summer Festival, following his performance as Osmin in The Billy Goats Gruff this past fall. To learn more, visit https://www.stevegrothbaritone.com.

Ally Hasselback is thrilled to be working with Finger Lakes Opera for a second season, serving as the Stage Manager for Rigoletto. Ally is a proud Equity Stage Manager who has worked across the country in opera, musical theater, dance, and live events for the past 15 years. She is currently the Assistant Production Manager and Stage Management Mentor at the University at Buffalo’s Department of Theatre and Dance and works with the exceptional Rick Haug. Eternal thanks always to her family, and friends who are family, for their constant support and love. 

Having worked in professional theater for 20 years, Rick Haug has worked on over 75 productions around the world. He is excited to return to FLO for a fourth Summer Season.  Professional credits include the National tours of The Wizard of Oz, Shrek the Musical, Spring Awakening, and The Gazillion Bubbles Show. He has also served as Technical Director for Three Musketeers, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, and Murder on the Orient Express at Shea’s 710 Theatre in Buffalo. He is a loving husband and father and also a proud union member with IATSE Local 10 in Buffalo.

Named FLO’s new Artistic Director in January 2025, Stephanie Havey is an award winning stage director who is consistently lauded for her eye-popping stage pictures, brisk dramatic pacing, and convincing theater that makes the most of every minute. Trained as a mezzo-soprano, she turned her attention to stage directing over twenty years ago and was the creative force behind FLO’s productions The Barber of Seville, Così fan tutte, Aida, and Gianni Schicchi. In 2024, she was named Director of Opera Theater at Oberlin College’s Conservatory of Music.

Havey has staged productions for Seattle Opera, Opéra de Montréal, Dallas Opera, Utah Opera, Arizona Opera, Opera Omaha, Madison Opera, New York City Opera, and Hawaii Opera Theatre, among others. She has created new productions for Boston Lyric Opera, The Philadelphia Orchestra, Pittsburgh Opera, Atlanta Opera, Lyrique-en-mer International Festival de Belle-Ile, Curtis Institute of Music, Manhattan School of Music, and more. Havey has staged new works with OPERA America’s New Works Forum and spent three seasons as the Resident Stage Director for the North American New Opera Workshop. She is currently in development for a new work with Jennifer Jolley through the 2023 OPERA America Discovery Grants for Women Composers program.

2025 marks the third season Havey will join the Houston Grand Opera as a dramatic coach for the Butler Opera Studio and the Young Artists Vocal Academy. Prior to her appointment at Oberlin, she served as a guest instructor for professional and academic Young Artist training programs all over the country, including OPERA America’s Career Blueprints, Curtis Institute of Music, Mannes School of Music at The New School, Manhattan School of Music, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and, of course, was the Director of FLO’s Young Artist Program from 2022-2024.

Havey and her husband, bass-baritone Joseph Barron, live in Cleveland, OH.

Kiara Jolié Haywood, born and raised in Queens (NY), began her dance training at Step By Step Dance Studio where she went on to teach for many years. She graduated from the Professional Performing Arts High School, where she studied with the Ailey School and has trained in Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Hip Hop, Contemporary, Horton, West African, and Modern. She received her BFA in Dance from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and has performed works by Katie Swords, Thurman and Tommie-Waheed Evans, Shayla-Vie Jenkins, Annie Rigney, and more. Haywood joined GFD in 2022 and appeared in both FLO mainstage productions of Aida (2023) and Two Corners (2024). 

A graduate of Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama, Andrew Hunt is a multifaceted lighting designer who has crafted illumination for more than 100 performances and more than 70 architecture and installation projects. He has worked with the RPO, Pittsburgh Ballet, Pittsburgh Opera, Houston Met Dance, Elisa Monte Dance, Jon Lehrer, Karin Payson Design, WATG/Wimberly, Overland Partners, Streetsense, Handel Architects, Ethelind Coblin, Bero Architects, and Jeffrey Beers International, among others. Hunt is interested in tugging at the heart and mind through our emotions. He believes that theater should be beautiful – though not innocuous. He once designed a comedic romantic opera as a K-Pop music video. To learn more, visit www.adghunt.com.

Riley J. Israel is a stage manager currently residing in Ithaca, NY. This is his second season working with FLO. Recent credits include The Turnaway Play, Do You Feel Anger? (The Kitchen Theatre Company), Good People, Toliver & Wakeman (Franklin Stage Company), and Voices of Ukraine (The Cherry Artspace). Educational credits include Titanic: The Musical and The Last Days of Judas Iscariot (Ithaca College). He'd like to thank his family and his partner, Grant, for their continuing support and love. 

Rochester tenor Daniel Kamalić has been praised for his “big, stunning voice” (Berkshire Fine Arts). Recent engagements include the roles of Rodolfo in La bohème (Buffalo Opera Unlimited), the title role in Werther with Modern Vintage Opera, Sam in Susannah with Delaware Valley Opera, Danilo (cover) and St. Brioche in The Merry Widow (Geneva Light Opera), Anthony in Sweeney Todd with Opera51 in Boston, and new works by Ed Cionek, Calliope Tsoupaki, and Iris Karlin. To learn more, visit www.kamalic.com.

American mezzo-soprano Karen Kelley is originally from Jefferson City (MO). She has a Master of Music in Opera Performance from Arizona State University. In 2023, Kelley debuted as an Apprentice Artist with Sarasota Opera, performing La Madre in Puccini's Madama Butterfly. She also performed with the Santa Fe Opera as an Apprentice Artist, covering Mary in Wagner's Der fliegende Holländer and Messaggera in Monteverdi's L'Orfeo. In the 2023-2024 season, Kelley joined Opera Idaho as an Emerging Artist, making her mainstage debut as Marcellina in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro. Kelley is thrilled to perform as a Studio Artist during FLO’s 2025 season, where she makes her debut as Giovanna in their production of Rigoletto while also covering the role of Maddalena. To learn more, visit https://www.karenkelleymezzo.com.

Kasi L. Krenzer Marshall has a degree in Stage Direction and works in all areas of opera, theater, and film. She first worked with FLO in 2019 as the YAP Costume Designer and joined FLO’s full-year staff in 2024 as the Community Engagement & Operations Director, where she is the Summer's Assistant Director of Production/Props Master, and the Fall Stage Director. Krenzer Marshall is the Artistic Director of Opera at Nazareth University, where she recently directed Ravel's L'enfant et les sortilèges. Additional Rochester credits include Pegasus Early Music (L'Orfeo), CenterStage (Austen's Pride), Blackfriars Theatre (Jerry's Girls), and Out of Pocket Inc. (Palace of the Moorish Kings). 

Janalyce Lane is a Rochesterian who graduated from Binghamton University with a BA in psychology. She has been an active member of the local arts community and has served as a senior company member of Borinquen Dance Theater and taught Modern as well as Latin Social Dance at Hochstein. She joined GFD in 2024; The Anonymous Lover marks her first appearance with FLO.

 Korean-American baritone Eunsung Lee has performed leading operatic roles, including Il Conte in Le nozze di Figaro and Escamillo in La Tragédie de Carmen with Stony Brook Opera Theater. Lee sang Guglielmo in Così fan tutte with The Opera Next Door and was a Lehrer Vocal Institute fellow at the Music Academy’s 75th Anniversary. Other roles include Giorgio Germont (La Traviata), Zurga (Les Pêcheurs de Perles), and Colline (La bohème). Lee was a finalist in the Ades Vocal Competition and Pasadena Vocal Competition and has received awards from the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition and Gerda Lissner Foundation. He also has been invited to and performed in the New York New Art Song Concert, premiering works by contemporary Korean composers, and Manhattan School of Music’s A Midsummer’s Dream of Song. He is currently a doctoral candidate at Stony Brook University. To learn more, visit https://eunsungleebaritone.com.

Adriana Lipomi has worked in theater since 2018 and is thrilled to be returning to FLO’s creative team for Rigoletto. Previous FLO projects include Aida, Two Corners, and Gianni Schicchi. Lipomi has worked on many shows at Geva Theatre Center, Blackfriars Theatre, the Eastman School of Music, the University of Rochester, and Syracuse Stage. Her passion for wigs was found entirely by accident while looking for ways to work as a makeup artist. Outside of theater, Lipomi works as an esthetician and makeup artist at Rock Paper Scissors, a locally-owned med-spa.

 Originally from Mechanicsburg (PA), soprano Sofia Mains studies at the Eastman School of Music with Katherine Ciesinski. This summer, Mains will make role debuts as Barbarina (Le nozze di Figaro) with Vienna Opera Academy and Papagena (The Magic Flute) with Arizona Lyric Theatre. She has previously sung Ostiaria (Le Reniement de St. Pierre) with Eastman Repertory Singers and with Opera Viva! and International Vocal Artists Academy of Payerbach. Mains sings with Collegium Musicum, Eastman’s Baroque vocal ensemble. She is passionate about citizen artistry and has worked with Washington National Opera to introduce preschool students to opera. When Mains isn’t singing, she enjoys learning languages, reading, and cooking. To learn more, visit https://www.sofiamains.com. 

Caleb Meyerhoff, a tenor and composer from Denver (CO), just finished his third year at the Eastman School of Music, where he is pursuing a degree in Music Education with a vocal primary focus. As a performer, he has appeared in the Eastman productions Dido and Aeneas as the Sorcerer and Dialogues of the Carmelites as Commissioner 1. In addition to his vocal work, Meyerhoff is an emerging composer; his most recent composition, Love Will Always Be Blind, premiered at Eastman as part of Sparky Wiry and Cries’ SongSLAM competition. 

BIO TO COME

 Raea Moorehead, a Charlotte (NC) native, began dancing at Charlotte Ballet Academy at age five. After  attending GFD’s Student Movement Institute in 2018, they branched out into other styles of dance. They attended the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and have trained in Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Cunningham, and West African dance and worked under many distinguished instructors, including Brenda Daniels, Kira Blazek-Ziali, Juel D. Lane, and more. Moorehead joined GFD in 2024. This is their first time performing with FLO.

Brent Neeley is thrilled to be in another FLO production, having previously performed in Die Fledermaus, The Barber of Seville, and Aida. Neeley has also performed with JCC Centerstage in School of Rock, as Don Kirsher in Beautiful, The Carole King Musical, Grandfather in Ragtime, and Edgar Beane in Titanic. Neeley also sings with First Inversion and the Eastman Rochester Chorus. When not performing, Neeley teaches mathematics at Allendale Columbia School. 

Amanda Nirenberg is pleased to be joining Finger Lakes Opera this summer!  She has training in both performance and technical theater, receiving a BFA in Music Theatre from University at Buffalo. Nirenberg has since had the opportunity to work in a variety of roles including Stage Manager, Assistant Stage Manager, and Props Designer.  Recent credits include The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Next To Normal (Revival Theatre Company), Three Decembers (Buffalo Opera Unlimited), The 39 Steps (University at Buffalo). 

Jose Olivares served as the 2024 bass-baritone Young Artist with FLO last summer, where he sang the role of Simone in the company’s July productions of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi. At the end of 2024, he covered the role of Fiorello in Sarasota Opera’s The Barber of Seville. In addition to his mainstage role with FLO as Count Ceprano in Rigoletto, Olivares is scheduled to sing the role of Theseus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and cover the lead role in Don Pasquale, both with the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.

In 2023, Olivares sang the roles of Farfarello and covered the roles of Herald and King of Clubs in a Des Moines Metro Opera performance of The Love for Three Oranges and sang the role of the Duke of Verona in Romeo and Juliet with Lyric Opera of Kansas City. Other recent roles have included Horace in Hello, Dolly!, Pandolfe in Cinderella, Holborn in The Manchurian Candidate, Dulcamara in Elixir of Love, Colline in La
bohème. Olivares, who was a finalist in the Dallas Opera Biennial Competition, holds a Master’s from the University of Oklahoma, and Bachelor’s from Texas A&M University.

Artistic Director and Rehearsal Director, Norwood “PJ” Pennewell joined Garth Fagan Dance (GFD) in 1978. He is a recipient of the 1988 New York Performance Award “Bessie” and has had several major works created for him, including Passioned Distanced, Time After Before Place, and Moth Dreams, among others. Pennewell's dancing has been showcased all over the world and on Great Performances, The Tonight Show, and in Duke Ellington’s Queenie Pie.  In 1994 he was invited to perform in the 66th Annual Academy Awards broadcast. He assisted Garth Fagan during his work on Broadway’s The Lion King and the NYC Ballet 50th-anniversary Ellington Project. 

Pennewell has a 47-year performance history as a world-class dancer and a decades-long understanding of the Fagan Technique. He has choreographed 13 works for GFD and in addition to his original work with FLO, has been commissioned to create material for Geva Theatre and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. Of his work, the The New York Times said, “Pennewell knows how to organize bodies…he knows their strengths, their weaknesses, their inclinations, in relation to a very particular way of moving.” Pennewell has choreographed 13 works at GFD and has been commissioned to create works with Geva Theater and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. This collaboration represents Norwood’s third, consecutive year working with FLO.

Daniel Perez, from Miami (FL), just completed his sophomore year at the Eastman School of Music, pursuing a double major in Voice Performance and Music Education. He has performed in multiple productions with Eastman Opera Theatre and studies under baritone Joshua Conyers. Committed to artistic growth and inspiring others through music, Perez approaches his craft with dedication and a philosophy of perseverance, guided by the mantra “Do or do not, there is no try.”

Ashton Rapp is a baritone from Lawrence (KS) who recently graduated with a Bachelors of Music in Vocal Performance from the Eastman School of Music. Some of his biggest accomplishments include singing in the world premiere of Kevin Walzyck’s Symphony No. 5, Freedom From Fear as a boy soprano (2018) at The Kennedy Center and singing at both Carnegie Hall in New York City and the Musikverein in Vienna with the Honors Performance Series choirs. Rapp made his FLO debut in 2024 as Marco in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi and is excited to work with FLO again.

With his mellifluous "honey-voice," tenor Jonathan Pierce Rhodes has emerged as an exciting young presence in the world of opera. This season, he joins the Oratorio Society of New York as soloist in the world premiere of Moravec’s All Shall Rise and in Mendelssohn’s Lobgesang, and makes an exciting debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago reprising his role of Police Buddy 2 and covering The Son in Tesori’s Blue. He also makes a return to Washington National Opera as Mingo in Porgy & Bess, makes his Baltimore Symphony debut as the Messenger in Aida, joins InSeries for a workshop of Damien Geter and Jarrod Lee’s Delta King Blues, and sings a concert with Apollo’s Fire Baroque Orchestra.

Rhodes recently sang Timothy Laughlin in the West Coast premiere of Gregory Spears and Greg Pierce’s Fellow Travelers with Opera Parallèle. Other roles include Pong in Puccini’s Turandot (Washington National Opera and Houston Grand Opera), role debuts as The Hippo in The Lion, the Unicorn and Me, A Priest in Songbird (Washington National Opera), Police Buddy 2 (Washington National Opera), The Son in Blue (New Orleans Opera), and Frank in The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson (Washington National Opera and Glimmerglass Festival.) With Glimmerglass, he sang Cacambo, covered the title role in Candide, sang Man in Armor and Priest #1 in The Magic Flute and Cherubiel in the world premiere of Holy Ground. To learn more, visit https://jonathanpiercerhodes.com.

Stephanie Roberts, a Rochester native, is the new Costumer Designer at School of the Arts. She received her BFA in Theatrical Design and Production with a double concentration in Costume Design and Stage Management from Niagara University. Roberts has costumed over 200 theater productions. A few notable credits include Kinky Boots, The Producers, Mamma Mia!, and White Christmas.

Garth Fagan Dance Executive Director Natalie Rogers-Cropper joined GFD in 1989. She received the prestigious Bessie Award in 1992, is a 1993 President’s Award recipient from her country of birth, Trinidad and Tobago, and was voted one of the top three female modern dancers in the world through Dance magazine’s 2004 Reader’s Choice awards. She served as one of Garth Fagan’s assistants for the Tony Award-winning The Lion King, Ellington Elation with the New York City Ballet, and Jukebox for Alvin and From Before with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Rogers-Cropper’s first choreographed work for GFD was Life Receding, which premiered in 2023. She was a recipient of the Women of Excellence Award from the Rochester Business Journal in 2021 and was appointed GFD Executive Director in late 2023. Rogers-Cropper taught movement classes for FLO’s 2023 Young Artists and this summer, worked with the 2025 Studio and Apprentice Artists in preparation for the dance scenes at the end of The Anonymous Lover.

Conductor Michael Sakir has been praised for his "artistic authority," "fluidity of expression," and "great delicacy of feeling." He serves as Artistic Director of Opera Montana, where the innovative programming, community partnerships, and robust education programs under his leadership have led to record-breaking ticket sales and company growth. Sakir previously served as Music Director of Opera Memphis, with which, in addition to conducting nearly two dozen productions, he was deeply involved in the company's groundbreaking civic practice programs and commissioning projects. Recent conducting engagements include Seattle Opera, Arizona Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, Opera Baltimore, Opera Idaho, Opera Orlando, Shreveport Opera, Eugene Opera, and more. Sakir has held music staff positions with Santa Fe Opera, Washington National Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Sarasota Opera, among others. He holds degrees from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and The Boston Conservatory. To learn more,  http://www.michaelsakir.com/biography.html.

Jazmine Saunders is a soprano from Rochester (NY), currently in her first year in the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at The Metropolitan Opera. She made her company debut as Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro this past May, covered Pip in Jake Heggie’s Moby-Dick, and covered two of the voices of the Unborn Children in Die Frau ohne Schatten. She already has been booked to make her role debut as Clara in Porgy and Bess, and cover Lisa in La sonnambula during the Met’s 2025-26 season. Other operatic engagements include covering the role of Claire Devon in the US premiere of Missy Mazzoli’s The Listeners at Opera Philadelphia, originating the role of Shannon in the world premiere of Gregory Spears’s The Righteous at Santa Fe Opera, and covering Donna Anna in Don Giovanni at Wolf Trap Opera.

On the concert stage, Saunders has appeared as soprano soloist in Mozart’s Vesperae solennes de confessore and Bach’s Magnificat with The New Choral Society, Mozart’s Requiem with Glens Falls Symphony, and was a participant in both Renée Fleming’s SongStudio and Joyce DiDonato’s Master Class series at Carnegie Hall. Saunders holds degrees in voice from the Eastman School of Music, where she received the William Warfield Scholarship and graduated with Highest Distinction, and the Juilliard School, where she was a proud recipient of the Kovner Fellowship. To learn more, visit https://www.jazminesaunders.com.

Dr. Crystal Sellers Battle joined the Eastman School of Music in June 2022 after serving as Dean of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at Juniata College. In her current role, she advances programs and policies that foster equity, diversity, and inclusion. Battle has presented nationally, including at the College Music Society. She holds a DMA in voice performance with a specialization in Singing Health from The Ohio State University, a BM from Bowling Green State University, an MM from the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, and a Postgraduate Diploma from the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, UK. To learn more, visit https://www.esm.rochester.edu/directory/sellers-battle-crystal. 

Tenor Jonathon Rahul Sengupta was born and raised in Rochester (NY). A recent graduate of Nazareth University, he received his Bachelors in Music in Music Performance along with a piano minor and has studied closely with Franco-American tenor Joshua Bouillon. Recent roles and staged performances include L'Aumônier/Chevalier de la Force in Nazareth Opera’s Dialogues of the Carmelites, an ensemble role in Blackfriars Theatre's Sweeney Todd and Fabrizio in their production of Light in the Piazza, ensemble in Buffalo Opera Unlimited’s Joshua’s Boots, and as a Guard in FLO’s 2023 performances of Verdi’s Aida. Sengupta is overjoyed to be working with FLO again. He would like to thank his family and friends for their continued support.

J. Simmons has worked in television, film, and stage, as an actor, fight choreographer, and stage director. He currently teaches stage combat for the University of Rochester International Theatre Program. Last June, he served as master clinician for FLO’s Young Artist Program and fight choreographer for the company’s world premiere performances of B. E. Boykin and Jarrod Lee’s Two Corners. Simmons has taught nearly 200 masterclasses at high schools, colleges, theaters and with theatrical programs all over the country. He has been teaching stage combat for over seventeen years and received an Award of Excellence from the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.

Kevin Sullivan is delighted to return to Rochester for his third FLO production, having previously appeared in Aida and The Barber of Seville. Sullivan is based in New York City, where he has performed in a variety of plays, musicals, and operas. A graduate of SUNY Geneseo, he has sung with the Geneseo Chamber Singers, the Stony Brook Camarata, and The New School Chorus. In addition to his musical career, Sullivan is a sommelier and mixologist who enjoys bar trivia. 

 Lutin Tanner, from Mankato, MN, received a BA in Dance and Theatre from Western Michigan University. He danced with Garth Fagan Dance and then transitioned to resident Lighting Designer & PM for Dance New Amsterdam in NYC. Using his unique dance lighting perspective, Tanner has worked with Rasta Thomas, Ronald K. Brown/Evidence, and Eglevsky Ballet to name a few. He is Garth Fagan Dance’s Resident Lighting Designer, TD & PSM. Recently he has been working with American Heart Association’s Impact with Heart through his production company It’s All In The Mix Productions. Tanner is happy to return as FLO’s Director of Production for the third season.

In demand as both an instrumental and vocal collaborator, pianist Brock Tjosvold has performed throughout the United States with many up-and-coming musicians as well as established ensembles. In addition to his new position as Head of Music at FLO, he is an Assistant Professor of Vocal Coaching at the Eastman School of Music and Minister of Music at First Universalist Church in downtown Rochester.  Prior to his position at Eastman, Tjosvold was Music Director and Vocal Coach of the Crane Opera Ensemble at SUNY Potsdam’s Crane School of Music.

During his time as a DMA student at Eastman, Tjosvold won the Ann C. Fehn Memorial Award (1st Prize Pianist) at the 2021 Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition. He was also awarded the 2020 Excellence in Accompanying Award. Tjosvold enjoys playing organ and directing the choir in addition to his work as a pianist. He has formerly been the organist at Liberty Christian Church (Martinsville, IN) and St. Matthew’s Episcopal Cathedral (Laramie, WY).

Tjosvold earned a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the University of Wyoming, magna cum laude, under the tutelage of Dr. Theresa Bogard. He completed his master’s degree at the University of Michigan with Martin Katz and a Performer’s Certificate at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, studying with Anne Epperson and Kevin Murphy. He received his DMA in Piano Accompanying and Chamber Music from the Eastman School of Music, studying with Dr. Jean Barr and Dr. Andrew Harley. In addition to his primary studies, he received a minor in sacred music and a minor in solo piano, studying with Dr. Douglas Humpherys. To learn more, visit www.esm.rochester.edu/directory/tjosvold-brock.

 A native of Rochester (NY) and a graduate of Penfield High School, soprano Julia Tooker just finished her third year as Vocal Performance major at the Eastman School of Music. She began her classical voice training at age thirteen at the Eastman Community Music School, fueling her passion for musical theater and opera. Tooker has won numerous awards, including the National Classical Singers Competition in both musical theater and classical categories. Her performance versatility is evident in her lead roles in community theater, from Christine in The Phantom of the Opera and Cosette in Les Misérables to Vanessa in In the Heights and Lucy in Jekyll & Hyde. Tooker made her opera debut at The New Voice Festival in Boise, Idaho, last summer and recently performed in Eastman Opera's Silent Light. 

Holden James Turner, a baritone from Rochester (NY), was a 2024 Vocal Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Festival and has performed in numerous productions with Eastman Opera Theatre. In addition to his work with FLO over the past three seasons, he has been a frequent soloist with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Rochester Oratorio Society, Eastman Philharmonia, Eastman-Rochester Chorus, and Ithaca College Symphony. Turner has worked with renowned artists such as Jon Batiste, Dawn Upshaw, and Andris Nelsons and is a recipient of the William Warfield and “Young Black & Gifted” Scholarships. 

Dr. Chelsea Whitaker is a vocal coach at the Eastman School of Music. She has performed in venues such as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, Merkin Hall in New York City, and Jordan Hall in Boston. Prior to her appointment at Eastman, Whitaker served on faculty at New England Conservatory. She graduated with a B.M. from the University of Missouri—Kansas City, an M.M. from the University of Southern California, and a D.M.A. from New England Conservatory. To learn more, visit https://www.esm.rochester.edu/directory/whitaker-chelsea.

 Nicholas Williams is a genderfluid performer and educator from Remsen (NY). After studying theater arts and music education at SUNY Fredonia, they now provide music lessons for transgender singers. They also direct a queer community choir known as Transposing Voices in downtown Rochester. Williams has also performed with the RPO and Madrigalia choir and is looking forward to returning to FLO to tell the story of Rigoletto.

Born and raised in Los Angeles (CA), Amir Yorke’s artistic journey began at age 12 when he explored dance through musical theater. He trained at CHAMPS Charter High School of the Arts and honed his ballet skills through scholarships to Ballet West and The HARID Conservatory. His passion for dance brought him to Debbie Allen’s Dance Academy, where he trained for several years. Yorke joined GFD in 2024 and is performing with FLO for the first time.