The Cast of
Il Trittico
(Triptych)
Please see a listing of the Artistic and Technical Staff under About.
Il Tabarro:
Michele | Corey Crider |
Giorgetta | Eleni Calenos |
Luigi | Matthew Vickers |
Tinca | Joshua Collier |
Talpa | Jeffrey Beruan |
La Frugola | Margaret Gawrysiak |
Young Lover | Suzanne Kantorski |
Young Lover | Matt Morgan |
Song Seller | David Tetreault |
Midinettes | Sarah Cullins |
Victoria Drew | |
Stephanie Scarcella | |
Erin Grainger |
Gianni Schicchi:
Gianni Schicchi | Joshua Jeremiah |
Lauretta | Jenna Siladie |
Zita | Margaret Gawrysiak |
Rinuccio | Matt Morgan |
Gherardo | Joshua Collier |
Nella | Bevin Hill |
Betto di Signa | Kian Freitas |
Simone | Jeffrey Beruan |
Marco | Corey Crider |
La Ciesca | Alissa Anderson |
Physician & Notary | Christopher Holmes |
Witness | Stephanie Scarcella |
Witness | Erin Grainger |
Gherardino | Nathaniel McVeigh |
Buoso Donati | David Clark |
Suor Angelica:
Sister Angelica | Suzanne Kantorski |
The Princess | Alissa Anderson |
The Monitress | Margaret Gawrysiak |
Sister Genovieffa | Jenna Siladie |
Sister Osmina | Bevin Hill |
Sister Dolcina | Eleni Calenos |
Mistress of the Novices | Cathy Walsh |
First Lay Sister/First Tourière | Sarah Cullins |
Second Lay Sister/Nursing Sister | Stephanie Scarcella |
Second Tourière | Victoria Drew |
Other Sisters | Clara Cavitt |
Erin Grainger | |
Novices | Mahalya Gogerly-Moragoda |
Jessica Allen | |
Victoria Drew |
Hailed by Opera News for her “deliciously over the top” and “powerful mezzo” Alissa Anderson wields her comic prowess, striking features, and powerful vocalism to great acclaim. Alissa recently sang Maddalena in Rigoletto with Opera in the Heights, Mother Goose in The Rake’s Progress with Utah Opera, John Adams’ Grand Pianola Music with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with Concordia University Symphony Orchestra, and La Zia Principessa/Zita in Suor Angelica/Gianni Schicchi with Opera Santa Barbara. Additional operatic highlights include Cleo in The Most Happy Fella, Mistress Quickly in Falstaff, Emilia in Otello and Lampito in Lysistrata. In the 2016-2017 season Alissa makes debuts with San Diego Opera as Tisbe in La Cenerentola and North Carolina Opera as Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro, and joins Opera Southwest for their New Year’s Eve concert. Upcoming: Alissa sings the title role of La tragédie de Carmen with Opera Birmingham.
Website: alissaandersoncontralto.com
A rising young artist, bass Jeffrey Beruan possesses a sonorous voice and dramatic intensity. His 2016-17 schedule includes two roles debuts: Tutor in Le Comte Ory with LoftOpera and Frère Laurent in Roméo et Juliette with GLOW, as well as reprises of the Prison Warden in Dead Man Walking with Lyric Opera of Kansas City and the Bonze with Austin Opera. Recent operatic highlights include Sarastro in The Magic Flute and Zuniga in Carmen with Lyric Opera of Kansas City; King in Aïda, Don Fernando in Fidelio,and Ferrando in Il trovatore for Sarasota Opera; Reverend Baines in Elmer Gantry and Bonze in Madama Butterfly with Florentine Opera; and the Prison Warden in Dead Man Walking and Polyphemus in Acis and Galatea for Madison Opera. The 2017-18 brings his role debut as Gesler in Guillaume Tell and a return to Florentine Opera for The Magic Flute.
Website: ada-artists.com/bass-jeffrey-beruan
Greek soprano Eleni Calenos is capturing critics’ and audiences’ admiration for the clarity, warmth and beauty of her lyric voice and her dignified characterizations. Most recently Ms. Calenos returned to Odyssey Opera as L’Infante in Massenet’s Le Cid and to Palm Beach Opera as Micäela in Carmen, made her Madison Opera debut as Mimi in La bohème, and role debuts of Desdemona in Otello with the Phoenicia Music Festival and the title role in Tosca with Loft Opera. In concert she sang Verdi’s Requiem with the Grand Junction Symphony Orchestra and Queens College, and joined the Sheboygan Symphony Orchestra for Respighi’s Lauda per la Nativita del Signore. The 2016-17 season also includes her return to Shreveport Opera as Mimi in La bohème, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Queens College Choral Society, Tosca with Opera Idaho, and a return to Opera Company of Middlebury for her role debut of Giorgetta in Il tabarro.
Website: elenicalenos.com
Tenor Joshua Collier was hailed as “a great Italian tenor on the make” by Classical Scene in his June 2016 role debut as Roméo in Roméo et Juliette, and lauded by the classical Voice of North Carolina for his “exceptionally pleasing tone, and excellent command of [his] high range.” He is equally comfortable with new music, opera, operetta, musical theater, and oratorio. This winter, Mr. Collier was an advanced studio artist with Sarasota Opera (FL) where he performed in Madama Butterfly and The Dialogues of the Carmelites. He will appear as the role of Ibarra in Opera Brittenica’s (Boston) production of the Filipino opera, Noli Me Tangere in June, and in August will perform his role debut of Rodolfo in Puccini’s La Bohème with Vermont Lyric Theatre. Mr. Collier is proud to be represented by Berger Artist Management. Full details of his performance schedule, as well as links to past performances may be found at bergerartists.com/joshuacollier.
Website: JRCTenor.com
An alumnus of Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Ryan Opera Center, baritone Corey Crider recently returned to the company as Malatesta in Don Pasquale, having previously appeared with the company as Belcore in L’elisir d’amore, Yamadori in Madama Butterfly, and Larkens in La fanciulla del West. Additional recent highlights include Sweeney Todd with Madison Opera and Opera Roanoke, Marcello in La bohème with the Munich Philharmonic and Arizona Opera, Sharpless in Madame Butterfly with Dayton Opera, and Escamillo in Carmen with Lyric Opera of Kansas City. In the 2016-17 season Corey adds two important roles to his repertoire: Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff and the title role in Rigoletto. Additionally, he sings Scarpia in Tosca for both Intermountain Opera and Finger Lakes Opera, and returns to Opera Roanoke to perform his acclaimed Emile DeBeque in South Pacific. Upcoming Corey reprises his Escamillo with Madison Opera and returns to Roanoke for La bohème.
Website: coreycriderbaritone.com
Soprano Sarah Cullins divides her time between performing opera, oratorio and symphonic works and singing Latin American and Spanish repertoire as a member of the 8 Cuerdas duo and The Piazzolla Project quartet. While living in Bogota, Colombia for 10 years, she was a frequent soloist with the country’s major orchestras and opera companies, performing the roles of Gilda in Rigoletto, Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Adèle in Die Fledermaus and Musetta in La bohème. She also founded and led the voice and opera program at the nationally renowned Universidad Central. Since returning to her native Vermont in 2013, Sarah sang the role of Edith in the Vermont tour of Eric Nielson’s opera, A Fleeting Animal, and is thrilled to now be involved in her sixth production with OCM. She is on the voice faculty of the University of Vermont and maintains a private studio in Burlington.
Websites: sarahcullins.com or 8cuerdas.com
Bass-baritone Kian Freitas is gaining acclaim for his voice that “soars easily over the orchestra,” commanding stage presence, and insightful interpretations in both opera and concert. His repertoire embraces the romantic Italian repertoire (Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Monterone and Sparafucile in Rigoletto, Ferrando in Il trovatore, Schaunard in La bohème, Angelotti in Tosca, Lo zio Bonzo in Madama Butterfly); French opera (Escamillo in Carmen, Le Bailli in Werther); Mozart (the title role of Le nozze di Figaro, Masetto, Leporello, and Il Commendatore in Don Giovanni, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte); and 20th-century American works (Olin Blitch in Susannah, Grandpa Moss in The Tender Land). During the 2016–17 season, Mr. Freitas joined Opera San José to both cover and perform Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor, and made his debut with the South Dakota Symphony as Leporello in Don Giovanni. He makes his debut with Opera Company of Middlebury in Il trittico.
Website: kianfreitasbassbaritone.com
Margaret Gawrysiak, mezzo-soprano, has recently performed Mistress Hibbons in the world premiere of The Scarlet Letter with Opera Colorado; Public Opinion in Orpheus in the Underworld, Little Buttercup in H.M.S. Pinafore, Gertrude/Witch in Hansel and Gretel with Virginia Opera; Marquise in La fille du Régiment with Arizona Opera; Mrs. De Rocher in Dead Man Walking with Dayton Opera; Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro with Seattle Opera; Ježibaba in Rusalka with North Carolina Opera; Frugola in Il tabarro with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis; Dame Quickly in Falstaff, Baba the Turk/Mother Goose in The Rake’s Progress, Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd with Wolf Trap Opera. She was a member of Seattle Opera’s Young Artist Program, and San Francisco Opera’s Merola Program. Margaret has won awards from the Sullivan Foundation, the Jensen Foundation, and the Gerda Lissner Foundation. Geneseo, IL is her hometown.
Website: scottlevinemanagement.com/mezzo-soprano/margaret-gawrysiak
Soprano Bevin Hill is gaining attention as a performer of great charm and charisma in a variety of leading roles. Particularly cherished for her comedic gifts, Ms. Hill has memorably been lauded as a “rubber-kneed goddess of slapstick.” A beloved guest artist of Opera Company of Middlebury, Ms. Hill has appeared with the company as Papagena in The Magic Flute, Belinda in Dido and Aeneas, Léïla (cover) in Les pêcheurs de perles, Lisette in La rondine, and in the company’s 10th Anniversary Concert. During the 2016–17 season, Ms. Hill made her debuts with Missouri’s Heartland Opera Theatre as Adina in L’elisir d’amore and Florida’s First Coast Opera in a double bill of Gilbert & Sullivan’s Trial by Jury and Tucker & Sheeley’s The Trial of B. B. Wolf. Ms. Hill has fulfilled young artist residencies with Opera Iowa, Des Moines Metro Opera, Arizona Opera, Opera Saratoga, and Opera Company of Middlebury.
Website: bevinhill.com
A “powerful, melodious baritone” with “soul and passion” are the enthusiastic reviews being received by baritone Christopher Holmes. Outstanding musicianship and a rapidly expanding repertoire are establishing this baritone as an artist in demand. With over 35 operatic roles to his credit, Christopher has been featured with Austin Lyric Opera, Central City Opera, Eugene Opera, Opera Idaho, Phoenix Opera, San Antonio Opera, Utah Symphony and Opera, and Utah Festival Opera. As a full-lyric baritone, Holmes encompasses a large range of roles from Mozart’s Figaro, Guglielmo and Papageno and also beginning to make his mark in the Verdi repertoire with such roles as Di Luna, Renato, and Rigoletto. His Germont was praised as “with crystal clear enunciation, truly polished, controlled, professional and superb.” Having made his international debut in Italy as a guest of Opera Orvieto in the role of Don Giovanni, Holmes received music degrees from the conservatory at Oberlin College and Temple University.
Website: musicagrandeartists.com/christopher-holmes—baritone.html
Joshua Jeremiah returns to OCM for his third season with the company where he was heard last summer in the title role of Macbeth. This season includes: a concert version Pacific Rim tour with NYCO (Carmen); debut role of Col Von Kalle (Mata Hari) with PROTOTYPE Festival and a debut with LA Opera; Riders of the Purple Sage, Arizona Opera; Iago (Otello); and Ford (Falstaff) with Resonance Opera. Other activities have included: Demetrius (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Hawai’i Opera Theater; title role of Rigoletto, Arizona Opera; Alfio (Cavalleria Rusticana); Escamillo (Carmen); Sharpless (Madama Butterfly); John Sorel (The Consul), Opera Santa Barbara; Aeneas (Dido and Aeneas), Mostly Mozart Festival; Don Pedro (La Périchole), and Deputy Mayor (Anna Nicole), New York City Opera; and Athanaël (Thaïs), Opera Co. of Middlebury. He debuted the title role in John Musto’s Volpone at Wolf Trap Opera receiving a Grammy Nomination for Best Opera in 2010.
Website: alpha-artists.com/joshua-jeremiah
Suzanne Kantorski is an award-winning performer who has appeared in leading operatic roles, as a concert soloist, interpreter of new music compositions, as well as on television programs, and in feature films worldwide. She is also a member of an innovative performance ensemble, Quintus 4, which is slated to launch in late 2017. Ms. Kantorski is a collegiate educator, music researcher, lecturer, and writer and holds degrees from the Manhattan School of Music, and the Schulich School of McGill University. She has been a featured guest in discussions and performances about opera, and new music, and film on nationally syndicated radio programs such as NPR’s “Sound Check” with John Schaefer, WQXR with Brian Wise, and VPR’s “Saturday Afternoon at the Opera.” This is Suzanne’s fifth operatic appearance with OCM.
Website: suzannekantorski.com
Tenor Matt Morgan returns to Opera Company of Middlebury having previously appeared in La rondine and The Pearl Fishers. With New York City Opera he has performed Rameau’s Platee, Charles Wuorinen’s Haroun and the Sea of Stories, The Mines of Sulphur, The Little Prince, L’etoile, and The Pirates of Penzance. Following his debut with Florentine Opera as Eddie Fislinger in Elmer Gantry he returned to the company for Goro in Madama Butterfly and Drouet in the World Premiere of Sister Carrie. Additional operatic highlights include the title role in Candide, Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Ferrando in Così fan tutte, Laurie in Little Women, Camille in The Merry Widow, Curly in Of Mice and Men and Tony in West Side Story. With American Opera Projects he created the role of Pan in the world premiere of The Judgment of Mind and performed Hamlet in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.
Website: mattmorgantenor.com
Mezzo Soprano Stephanie Scarcella was last seen at Opera Company of Middlebury as Zulma in L’Italiana in Algeri. Other operatic roles in her repertoire include Sister Helen Prejean (Dead Man Walking), title role in Rossini’s La Cenerentola, Dorthee (Cendrillon), Arsamene (Serse), Hansel (Hansel and Gretel) and Piti Sing (The Mikado). Equally at home in concert repertoire, she has performed mezzo solos in Bach’s Weihnachts-Oratorium, Carissimi’s Jepthe, Durufle’s Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, Michael Haydn’s Requiem, Mozart’s Requiem, Saint-Saens’ Christmas Oratorio, Vivaldi’s Gloria, and Zelenka’s Magnificat. Stephanie has performed with Boston Lyric Opera, Odyssey Opera, Boston Opera Collaborative, Opera on Tap and St. Petersburg Opera. Stephanie received her BM in Vocal Performance, and MM in Opera from The Boston Conservatory. She was a New Orleans District Winner for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 2011, and a Semi-Finalist (Young Artist in 2013 and Graduate in 2011) for The Classical Singer Magazine Competition in 2010.
Website: stephaniescarcella.com
Soprano Jenna Siladie has been succinctly acclaimed by The Wall Street Journal as “an ebullient soprano with great stage presence” who “sparkled.” The 2016–17 season witnessed Ms. Siladie making a series of role and company debuts. In December 2016, she performed the role of Margery Campbell in the New York workshop of The Nefarious, Immoral but Highly Profitable Enterprise of Mr. Burke & Mr. Hare, under the joint auspices of Boston Lyric Opera and Music Theatre Group. She began 2017 with her first foray into the belcanto repertoire, joining St. Petersburg Opera to cover Adina in their production of L’elisir d’amore. She makes her Opera Company of Middlebury debut in the current production of Il trittico, enhancing her Puccinian credentials in the roles of a midinette in Il tabarro, Suor Genovieffa in Suor Angelica, and Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi. Ms. Siladie has fulfilled two seasons of young artist residency with Santa Fe Opera and has been honored by the company’s Campbell Wachter Memorial Award.
Website: jennasiladie.com
This season, American tenor Matthew Vickers performs the role of Avito in Montemezzi’s L’amore dei tre re with Sarasota Opera, Sam in Carlisle Floyd’s Susannah with Opera Roanoke, and the Duke in Verdi’s Rigoletto with Ashlawn Opera. Earlier this season, he performed the role of Don José in Carmen with Opera Western Reserve and covered the role of Canio in Pagliacci with Virginia Opera. Future roles include his debut as Arnold in Guillaume Tell with Opera Southwest as well as return engagements with Opera Western Reserve as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Sarasota Opera as Des Grieux in Manon Lescaut, and Opera Roanoke. In the 2015-2016 season, Mr. Vickers made his Sarasota Opera debut as Arrigo in Verdi’s La battaglia di Legnano, stepping in for an ailing colleague; took part in the east coast premiere of Faccio’s Amleto with Opera Delaware as Laertes, and performed the title role in Mascagni’s L’amico Fritz with Boston Midsummer Opera.
Ensemble
Jessica Allen performed as part of a twelve-person cast in the Vermont opera A Fleeting Animal by Erik Nielsen in September 2015. Performances with the Opera Company of Middlebury include three Puccini operas: La Bohème (2008), La Rondine (2011), and now Il Trittico.
Clara Cavitt moved to Vermont in 1979. She sings with Maple Jam (a cappella jazz) and The Vermont Choral Union. Clara sang in the chorus of the Green Mountain Opera Festival productions of Carmen (2011) and La Bohème (2012). She has also sung with the VSO Chorus, Burlington Choral Society, and Oriana Singers.
Based in Vermont, Victoria Drew is a lyric soprano with a Bachelor’s in Vocal Performance from UVM and a Master’s in Opera Performance from the Longy School of Music. She teaches singing privately and for St. Michael’s College, and plays the accordion, piano, and trumpet professionally. When not performing with companies throughout Vermont, you can find Victoria running BNI Vermont as its Executive Director.
Mezzo-Soprano Mahalya Gogerly-Moragoda returns to OCM after playing the third spirit in The Magic Flute last October. Mahalya is a rising senior at the University of Vermont studying Microbiology and Molecular Genetics with hopes of attending medical school. She studies under Sarah Cullins and has been involved with the Vermont Youth Orchestra Chorus and the UVM Jazz Vocal Ensemble.
Canadian mezzo Erin Grainger has appeared as soloist with the Burlington Chamber Orchestra, Middlebury Bach Festival, and Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra. Roles include Ruth (Pirates of Penzance), Zita (Gianni Schicchi), and Marcellina (Figaro), among others. She holds a Master’s degree from McGill University and has performed as a chorister with Opéra de Montréal.
David (DJ) Tetreault is celebrating his sophomore season with OCM after making his debut in the chorus of last season’s Macbeth. He studied voice at Saint Michael’s College and is currently working on his MFA in Composition at Vermont College of Fine Arts.
Cathy Walsh has appeared with OCM and other Vermont companies in roles including Charlotte (A Little Night Music), Velma (Chicago), and many others. She is delighted by the chance to join this sisterhood of artists in Suor Angelica. Cathy is on the OCM Board of Directors, a hospice volunteer, and a newly minted Grammie, her favorite role yet.