James Lesniak and Mark Trawka (left) with the 2015-16 Resident Artists.
2015-16 Resident Artists
Resident Artists serve as ambassadors for the company, touching the community through participation in programs for public schools, community centers, libraries and corporate events. In addition to performing supporting roles, covering and sometimes performing principal roles in Pittsburgh Opera’s mainstage productions, the Resident Artists gain valuable performance experience through regular Brown Bag concerts and special events, and parties hosted by Pittsburgh Opera.
They also perform all of the principal and supporting roles in a fully-staged Pittsburgh Opera production featuring the Resident Artists at CAPA Theater. The Resident Artist Stage Director (new in 2011-12) was added to give stage directors valuable experience in directing and production development. The Resident Artist program has fostered the careers of singers that now perform on the world stage.
Scroll down to view the biographies of our 2015-16 Resident Artists.
Giant Eagle Foundation is the 2015-16 Season Sponsor of the Resident Artists Program.
Adelaide Boedecker, soprano
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Biography
Adelaide Boedecker is a second-year Pittsburgh Opera Resident Artist who will be seen in 2015-16 as Anna/NABUCCO, Beth/LITTLE WOMEN and Alice B. Toklas/27. She also appeared in the 2014-15 season as Mabrouka/Sumeida's Song, Frasquita/Carmen, and Marie/Daughter of the Regiment Student Matinee.
A native of Sarasota, FL, Ms. Boedecker grew up singing with the Sarasota Youth Opera and the Church of the Redeemer choir. After many youth opera roles, she was asked to sing Barbarina in Sarasota Opera’s Le nozze di Figaro. Dr. Paula Page was her instructor, and both Le nozze di Figaro and Dr. Page inspired her to pursue a music degree at the University of Florida, where she studied with Dr. Anthony Offerle and performed multiple roles. After earning her bachelor’s degree at University of Florida, she graduated with her Master’s degree in Music Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music, studying with Kathryn Cowdrick. At Eastman, Adelaide sang Marenka/The Bartered Bride and Rose/Street Scene; she also represented Eastman at the Kennedy Center in March 2012. In 2013, Ms. Boedecker toured the country as the soloist for the University of Rochester Meliora Capital Campaign, and was a freelance artist in the Rochester and Sarasota areas. She currently studies with Kathryn Cowdrick. She also appeared recently as Stella/A Streetcar Named Desire as a member of the Merola Opera Program.
Hans and Leslie Fleischner generously sponsor Ms. Boedecker's residency.
Adam Bonanni, tenor
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Biography
Adam Bonanni is a second-year Pittsburgh Opera Resident Artist. In 2015-16, he will be seen as Abdallo/NABUCCO, Laurie/LITTLE WOMEN, Pablo Picasso/27, and Count Almaviva/The Barber of Seville Student Matinee. In 2014-15, he appeared as Roderigo/Otello, Grimoaldo/Rodelinda, Sumeida/Sumeida's Song, and Remendado/Carmen. He was also be a guest soloist in Mozart's Requiem at Erie Philharmonic, April 2015.
As a member of Chicago Lyric Opera’s Ryan Opera Center in 2013-14, Mr. Bonanni appeared as Gastone/La traviata and The Fourth Esquire/Parsifal; he was also a featured soloist at the 2013 Ravinia Festival and Grant Park Music Festival. An alumnus of the Marcello Giordani Young Artist Program at Crested Butte Music Festival, he covered The Duke/Rigoletto in 2014. While completing graduate studies at Mannes College, he was seen as Bardolfo/Falstaff, Don Ottavio/Don Giovanni, and Dorvil/La scala di seta. In Summer 2011, he portrayed Arturo/Lucia di Lammermoor with Chautauqua Opera Theater. He has also debuted on the Carnegie Hall main stage as the tenor soloist in Handel's Messiah with the St. Cecilia Chorus. He made his Lincoln Center debut with Maestra Eve Queler and The Opera Orchestra of New York as The Priore/I Lombardi.
Mr. Bonanni has won awards from the Opera Index Vocal Competition (2011 and 2012), Second Prize in the Gerda Lissner Vocal Competition (2013), the Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation Vocal Competition (2012) and Third Prize in The Giulio Gari Foundation Vocal Competition (2012). Other honors include the Michael S. Mannes Opera Award (2011) and The Richard F. Gold Grant. Mr. Bonanni is a native of Nazareth, Pennsylvania.
Clyde B. Jones III, along with Gene Welsh and David McAdams, generously co-sponsors Mr. Bonanni's residency.
Claudia Rosenthal, soprano
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Biography
Claudia Rosenthal is a first-year Resident Artist in 2015-16, and is scheduled to perform as Amy/LITTLE WOMEN and Berta/THE BARBER OF SEVILLE as well as Berta/The Barber of Seville Student Matinee.
In Summer 2015, as a Young Artist with Opera on the Avalon, she appeared as the Governess/The Turn of the Screw. She has been a Vocal Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center, and performed Cobweb/A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Stella/Les contes d’Hoffmann as a Studio Artist with Wolf Trap Opera Company.
At Yale Opera, Ms. Rosenthal’s roles included Giulietta/I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Musetta/La bohème, Clorinda/La cenerentola, and Brigitta/Iolanta. While with Mannes Opera, she appeared as Nannetta/Falstaff and Norina/Don Pasquale. She also made her Carnegie Hall debut performing Hindemith’s cantata Die Serenaden with Yale in New York City, and made her professional debut as soprano soloist in Handel’s Messiah with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra.
An Eastern regional finalist and recipient of the Rohatyn Great Promise Award at the 2015 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, she also recently received First Prize in the Young Patronesses of the Opera Competition. Other honors include the Richard F. Gold Career Grant, the Career Bridges Grant, and the Yale School of Music Alumni Prize.
A native of Scarsdale, NY, Ms. Rosenthal double-majored in Music and Art History at Yale College, and has further degrees from The Hartt School, Mannes College the New School for Music, and The Yale School of Music.
Mrs. Michael Kutsenkow generously sponsors Ms. Rosenthal's residency.
Matthew Scollin, bass-baritone
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Biography
Matthew Scollin is a first-year Resident Artist in 2015-16, scheduled to appear as High Priest of Baal/NABUCCO, Friedrich Bhaer/LITTLE WOMEN, Ernest Hemingway & others/27, Don Basilio/The Barber of Seville Student Matinee, and Keeper of the Madhouse/THE RAKE'S PROGRESS.
Scollin has begun his career with residencies at The Santa Fe Opera, San Francisco Opera, Seattle Opera, Virginia Opera, and Glimmerglass Festival.
During the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons, his experience at Virginia Opera included mainstage roles such as Sprecher/Die Zauberflöte, Truffaldino/Ariadne auf Naxos, Zuniga/Carmen, Dick Deadeye/H.M.S. Pinafore, First Nazarene/Salome, and Marchese d’Obigny/La traviata. He has also been seen as Lackey/Ariadne auf Naxos and Martin/James in Candide with Glimmerglass Festival, as well as Colline/La bohème with DC Public Opera and Sprecher/Die Zauberflöte with Pacific MusicWorks.
As a 2012-13 Seattle Opera young artist, Scollin sang La Rocca in the program’s touring production of Verdi’s Un giorno di regno, and made his Seattle Opera mainstage debut as Second Prisoner in Fidelio. Recent concert engagements have included Verdi’s Requiem with the Portland Symphonic Choir, Bach’s Cantata BWV 56, “Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen” with the Orchestra of the Eastern Shore, and Handel’s Messiah with the Lansing Symphony.
A Michigan native, Scollin holds degrees from Michigan State University, where he studied with Rick Fracker, and the University of Illinois, where he studied with Julie and Nathan Gunn.
Michele and Pat Atkins generously sponsor Mr. Scollin's residency.
Laurel Semerdjian, mezzo-soprano
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Biography
Laurel Semerdjian is a second-year Resident Artist with Pittsburgh Opera, who is seen in 2015-16 as Fenena/NABUCCO, Meg/LITTLE WOMEN, Gertrude Stein/27, and Mother Goose/THE RAKE'S PROGRESS. She appeared in 2014-15 as Emilia/Otello, Eduige/Rodelinda, and Asakir/Sumeida's Song.
In Summer 2015, Ms. Semerdjian made her Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra debut as part of Three Rivers Arts Festival, was featured in Pittsburgh Opera's free concerts at Hartwood Acres and Chatham University's Eden Hall campus, and portrayed Cherubino/Le nozze di Figaro at Bellevue City Opera. She also performed opera favorites at fundraisers for Tacoma Opera and Seattle Opera.
Ms. Semerdjian has performed the roles of Julia Child/Bon Appétit, Veronica/Dr. Miracle, Gertrude/Roméo et Juliette, Ruth/Pirates of Penzance, Ganymede/My Fair Galatea, 3rd Lady/Die Zauberflöte, Mrs. Herring/Albert Herring, and Rosa Gonzalez/Summer and Smoke. She was recently an Apprentice Artist with Sarasota Opera, covering the role of Inez/Il trovatore. In Summer 2014 she performed the role of Mercedes/Carmen as a vocal fellow at Marilyn Horne’s Music Academy of the West. From 2012-2013 Ms. Semerdjian was an Emerging Artist with The Dallas Opera, where she reprised Veronica/Dr. Miracle in outreach at schools as well as at the Winspear Opera House with the Dallas Opera Orchestra. She also covered the role of Sonia in The Dallas Opera’s The Aspern Papers. As a Tacoma Opera Young Artist in 2010, she performed in the Young Artist Showcase and covered the role of Cherubino/Le nozze di Figaro.
Ms. Semerdjian received her Bachelor’s degree in vocal arts with a minor in music industry from the University of Southern California in 2010 and her Master’s degree in the fall of 2013 from the University of North Texas.
Mr. and Mrs. John E. Traina generously sponsor Ms. Semerdjian's residency.
Corrie Stallings
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Biography
Corrie Stallings, mezzo-soprano, is a second-year Resident Artist at Pittsburgh Opera in 2015-16. In 2015-16, she is slated to sing Jo/LITTLE WOMEN and Rosina/The Barber of Seville Student Matinee. In 2014-15, she appeared as Bertarido/Rodelinda and Mercedes/Carmen.
In Summer 2015, Ms. Stallings was a member of the Young American Artists Program at Glimmerglass Festival and appeared as Jazz Trio Girl/Trouble in Tahiti and covered Vanderdunder/Paquette/Candide.
Ms. Stallings was a Festival Artist with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis in 2013 and 2014, where she performed as Third Lady/The Magic Flute under the baton of Jane Glover, and covered Stephanie Blythe in the role of Gertrude Stein in the world premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon’s 27, both in 2014. She also performed the role of Kate/The Pirates of Penzance in 2013. Additionally in 2013, Ms. Stallings was a soloist in Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Christmas production, “Welcome, Yule!” as well as the alto soloist cover in Bach’s Mass in B Minor under the baton of Maestro Muti. In 2012, she was the alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah with Colorado Symphony Orchestra, and was a 2013 third place regional finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council regional auditions. While pursuing her master’s degree at Northwestern University, Ms. Stallings performed the roles of Cherubino/Le Nozze di Figaro, Samira/The Ghosts of Versailles, and Second Lady/Die Zauberflöte.
A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, Ms. Stallings holds a B.A. in Vocal Performance and Art History from Cal Poly State University and a M.M. in Opera Performance from Northwestern University.
Gabriela and David Porges generously sponsor Ms. Stallings's residency.
Brian Vu, baritone
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Biography
Brian Vu is a first-year Resident Artist in 2015-16, and is slated to perform as John Brooke/LITTLE WOMEN, Leo Stein/27, Fiorello/THE BARBER OF SEVILLE and Figaro/The Barber of Seville Student Matinee.
A former Young American Artist with Glimmerglass Festival, he has sung the Jazz Trio Baritone in Trouble in Tahiti. Vu has also performed Moralès/Carmen with Music Academy of the West, and Marquis d’Obigny/La traviata with Wolf Trap Opera Studio.
A graduate of Yale Opera, his roles there included Count Almaviva/Le nozze di Figaro, Dandini/La cenerentola, Marcello/La bohème and Duke Robert/Iolanta. Previously with OperaUCLA, Vu performed Ottone/L’incoronazione di Poppea, Narciso/Agrippina, and Minskman/Flight. Vu made his Carnegie Hall debut singing Mitch Leigh’s “The Impossible Dream” from Man of La Mancha with the composer in attendance, and returned to Carnegie Hall in December 2014, performing songs from the Frederich R. Koch Collection of Yale's Beinecke Library.
A New England regional winner in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, he has also received awards from the George London Foundation, Gerda Lissner Competition, Licia Albanese-Puccini Competition, Kurt Weill Foundation and Opera Buffs of Los Angeles.
A native of Los Angeles, Vu is a graduate of the Yale School of Music and University of California, Los Angeles.
John and Virginia DiPucci and Hale and Judy Oliver generously co-sponsor Mr. Vu's residency.
Jennifer Williams, stage director
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Biography
Jennifer Williams is a second-year Resident Artist at Pittsburgh Opera. She will direct productions of 27 and The Barber of Seville Student Matinee, as well as performances at Diamond Horseshoe Ball, New Year's Eve, and Maecenas XXXII, while serving as Assistant Director on all other productions. In 2014-15, she directed Grand & Glorious, New Year's Eve, Sumeida's Song, and the Daughter of the Regiment Student Matinee, while serving as Assistant Director on all other productions.
Ms. Williams is a Fulbright Artist Grant recipient, and the founding Artistic Director of DC Public Opera, an experimental company that produces found-space operas in Washington, DC. Ms. Williams was previously an Apprentice Stage Director for the San Francisco Opera Merola Opera program, directing the critically-acclaimed 2012 Merola Grand Finale at the War Memorial Opera House. She has worked at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Komische Oper Berlin, Oper Frankfurt, Staatsoper Stuttgart, and Glimmerglass Festival, with David Alden, Francesca Zambello, Barrie Kosky, and Jossi Wieler. Other recent engagements include Don Giovanni, La bohème, La cenerentola, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Schubert’s Goethe-Lieder, L’île de Tulipatan, Rigoletto, Slow Dusk, and Le nozze di Figaro. She has served on the faculty of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music’s Spoleto in Italy, and has directed scenes for The Glimmerglass Festival, Cincinnati Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, and Chicago Opera Theater.
Ms. Williams holds an Artist Diploma in Opera Stage Directing from Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, M.A. in Theatre Arts from Cornell University, and an A.B. with honors in Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities from the University of Chicago.