OPERA AT USC 2012 Bios - USC School of Music - University of ...

MARTHA Cast bios
Diana Amos (Martha) has performed leading roles in more than thirty-five European companies.
Career highlights include the role of Queen of the Night in Mozart's The Magic Flute at the Berlin
State Opera, Olympia in The Tales of Hoffman at the Semper Oper in Dresden and at the Cologne
Opera, and Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos at the Staatsoper in Hannover, Germany. After joining
the Bielefeld Theater in Germany as a soloist, Amos was presented with the North Rhine Westphalia
Young Artist Award in Duesseldorf. She sang the role of Zemire in Gretry's Zemire and Azor with
the Houston Grand Opera, and she was the soprano soloist in Brahms' “German Requiem” with the
South Carolina Philharmonic. She recently performed the roles of Miss Havisham in Miss
Havisham's Wedding Night and the Fairy Godmother in Massenet’s Cendrillon at Opera at the
University of South Carolina. Amos received a B.M. degree in voice from the Oberlin Conservatory
of Music in Ohio, a vocal performance diploma from the Hochschule fuer Musik in Cologne,
Germany, and a M.M. degree from the University of South Carolina. Amos is pursuing a D.M.A.
degree in vocal performance at USC.
Patricio "Pato" Aravena (ensemble) is making his debut opera performance. Originally from
Curacautín, Chile, Aravena is pursuing a bachelor of music education degree with the intention of
teaching elementary school in the future.
Angela Bedell (ensemble) is originally from Charleston, South Carolina. Angela Bedell is a senior
undergraduate student at the University of South Carolina. Angela is a member of the concert choir
and has performed the role of Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni with Palm Beach Atlantic University
Opera. In November 2011 she served as assistant stage manager for Opera at USC’s production of
Menotti's The Old Maid and the Thief and The Medium.
Robert Brown (assistant conductor) hails from Easton, Pennsylvania and is currently a first year
Master’s Degree student in Orchestral Conducting, under the tutelage of Dr. Donald Portnoy. Robert
received a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education in May of 2011 from Moravian College
(Bethlehem, Pennsylvania). While there, he performed in various ensembles sitting principal chair,
including playing saxophone in Ravel’s Bolero and Ravel’s arrangement of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at
an Exhibition. He was also the student director for the Moravian College BIG Band for one full year.
During his senior year at Moravian College Robert organized and conducted a full performance of
Igor Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du Soldat, complete with narrator and three ballet dancers.
Alexander Cammarota (Assistant Director) earned his Bachelors of Music in Vocal Music
Education from The Chapman Conservatory of Music at Chapman University in Orange, CA. He is
finishing up graduate his Masters in Music in Opera Theatre Directing. Alexander’s production
credits include assistant director for the 2009 Idyllwild Summer Music Festival Opera Scenes
Program, assistant director and stage manager for Opera at USC’s productions of Cendrillon,
Goyescas, Martha, The Old Maid and the Thief, and The Medium, and assistant stage manager and
properties manager for Opera Chapman’s productions of The Impresario, La Divina, Gianni Schicchi,
Suor Angelica, and Signor Deluso. This April, Alexander will be directing Opera at USC’s Evening
of One Acts, which includes Rita (Donizetti) and Pepito (Offenbach)

Le'keatra Daniels (ensemble) is a native of Charleston SC. Her performances include chorus in Suor
Angelica and Pagliacci and several solo recital performances. Le'keatra Daniels received her
Bachelors degree from South Carolina State University in Music Business. She is currently pursuing
a Masters in Opera Theater at University of South Carolina and studies with Janet Hopkins.
Anna Dragoni-Logan (Movement coach), born in Italy, brings 20 years of professional experience
in dance and theatre on stage, screen and television. An active member of Corps de Ballet
International, certified as a Ballet Teacher at the Royal Academy of Dance of London (Elementary to
professional levels), Ms. Dragoni has studied, also, with master teachers such as, Ivêtte Chauviré
(Paris, France – Classical Repertoire), Ricardo Nuñez (Argentina – Classical Repertoire), Gianine
Loringett (France – Jazz), Celia Southern (Great Britain – Jazz), Chuck Wilder (USA – Tap), Connie
Spadanuta (USA – Tap), Irina Ghrighebina (Russia – Character dance), Marise Flasche (Teatro
Piccolo di Milano – Mime), Clyde Barrett (USA – Afro, Jazz), Arthur Turnball (Australia – Merce
Cunningham & Limon Method), Dan Wagoner (USA-Contemporary). She also has received her BFA
in performance and choreography from Columbia College, Columbia, SC. As a professional
performer on the European stage she has participated in the musicals Barnum and A Chorus Line
(Sheila) and in the plays: Miles Gloriosus, The Birds, The Player, The Straw Hat, Deus Ex Machina,
Some Like it Hot, to name a few. She participated in various tour productions in Europe and
Australia. Her first visit to the United States was as the Assistant Director and choreographer of the
American Tour Company production of A Chorus Line. She has worked in film and television
alongside of Oscar winner Murray Abrams, Vittorio Gassman, Alberto Sordi, and Gigi Proietti. Ms
Dragoni is also a member of the South Carolina Shakespeare Company; she has appeared in the
productions: Julius Caesar (Soothsayer), Macbeth (Witch), and The Man of La Mancha (The
Housekeeper). She is the Italian instructor and official translator at Language Espresso.
Johnnie Felder (ensemble) is a native of South Carolina. Felder earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in
Music from Benedict College, and is currently pursuing a Master of Music in Vocal performance at
the University of South Carolina. Felder is a tenor studying with Walter Cuttino. Felder has taken
Master classes with Karen Slack-Blackwell and Robert Mack of Opera Noire (NYC) and Phillip
Boykin, bass-baritone. He makes his debut with Opera at USC in Flotow’s Martha (February 2012)
and will sing the role of Beppe in Donizetti’s Rita (March 2012).
Ann Louise Glasser (Nancy) is a Columbia native and recent graduate of the University of South
Carolina. While at USC, she studied with Janet Hopkins. She was a spirit in Cendrillon, Belle in Mr.
Scrooge, and in the ensembles Goyescas and Le Nozze di Figaro. Ann Louise participated in the
Opera Festival di Roma. She spent the last two summers at Manhattan School of Music studying with
Ashley Putnam and Mignon Dunn.
Michael Gray (Lionel) is a native of Richmond, Virginia. Michael has been studying the art of
vocal performance since 14 years old and had several years of success as the leader singer of
two rock bands. After high school, Michael went on to earn a Bachelors of Music in Vocal
Performance from Longwood University in Virginia. There he performed with the Longwood
University Opera Workshop and was frequently hired for performances of Handel's Messiah
and other sacred classical works. Michael is in his final year of his Master of Music in Vocal
Performance degree and aspires to become a professional performer of opera. As a student of
Mr. Walter Cuttino, this will be Michael's third role performed with Opera at USC. His previous
roles include ensemble of Cendrillon, Peter of Mr. Scrooge and Rafael of La Dolorosa.

Kelsey Harrison (First Maidservant Molly Pitt / Ensemble) is a fourth year student pursuing a
Bachelors of Music degree in Vocal Performance and studying under Dr. Tina Milhorn-
Stallard. Kelsey is a Mezzo-Soprano originally from Charlotte, North Carolina. Previously with
Opera at USC, Kelsey has performed the roles of Mrs. Nolan in The Medium, Dorothée in Cendrillon,
Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro, and was in the ensembles of Les Contes d'Hoffmann, Our
Town, The Light in the Piazza, and Goyescas. She is also a member and frequent soloist of USC's
Concert Choir and a Choral Scholar at both The Church of the Good Shepherd and St. Theodore's
Anglican Chapel in Columbia.
Nicholas Hawkins (Sheriff) is a freshman Vocal Performance major at the University of South
Carolina, where he studies with Mr. Jacob Will. A native of Greenville, SC, Nicholas has been
featured in musical productions and recitals as voice student at The Fine Arts Center, where he was
under the tutelage of Ms. Karen Parks. Nicholas has performed with the Wade Hampton High School
Fine Arts Department in Amahl and the Night Visitors (ensemble) and Once Upon a Mattress (Sir
Harry), as well as steadily performing within his community. Most recently, Nicholas participated in
the Greenville Opera’s 2011 production of La Traviata, as a member of the opera ensemble. This is
Nicholas’s first production with Opera at USC.
Jared Ice (stage manager) is a Seattle native whose performances have won positive reviews from
Northwest Public Radio. Jared has performed with Tacoma Opera, Puget Sound Opera, LMC Opera
of Seattle, Washington-Idaho Symphony, Bellevue Opera,
Puget Sound Concert Opera and the Vespertine Opera Theater. Ice’s repertory exists of over 20
performed roles including Alfio from Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana,
Michonnet from Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur, Schaunard from Puccini’s La Bohème, Bob from
Menotti’s The Old Maid and The Thief, The Father in Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, The Mayor
from Bizet’s Le Docteur Miracle and Death in Holst’s Savitri. Mr. Ice received his Master’s Degree
from the University of Washington and is a current Artist Diploma Student at the University of South
Carolina studying with Jacob Will. He made is Opera at USC debut as Bob in The Old Maid and the
Thief and will be seen in March as Gasparo in Rita.
Sara Jackson (ensemble) is a native of Columbia, SC majoring in music and minoring in theatre at
the university. Sara has performed with various musical theatre and acting groups including
Columbia Children's Theatre, Chapin Onstage Performers, Off Off-Broadway, and The USC Musical
Theatre Workshop. She has sung in several choral works including the university's summer
performance of the Mozart Requiem and the New Voices Student Composer Concert. This is her first
time appearing in a full-length opera.
Eric Kesler (Plunkett) holds a Master in Music Performance and Bachelor in Music Education
degrees from Appalachian State University. He is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts
degree from the University of South Carolina and is an adjunct professor of voice at Coker College,
Hartsville, SC. Mr. Kesler has performed in several venues throughout the Eastern US and Rome,
Italy. He is a previous NATS 1st place winner in Advanced Men and Musical Theater categories and
guest soloist for Handel's Messiah, Mozart Requiem, Faure Requiem, Brahms Requiem, Dubois Seven
Last Words, and Bach St. Matthew Passion. Opera roles include Masetto and Leporello in Don
Giovanni, Falke in Die Fledermaus, Husband in Amelia Goes to The Ball, and Papageno in Die
Zauberflöte. Kesler is the voice instructor for the annual Windswept Music Conference and holds
advanced level teaching certificates from the Creative Motion Alliance® as well as serving on the
executive board. This is Eric's Opera at USC debut.

Kate McKinney (Ensemble/ Opera at USC PR Posse) grew up in Denver, Colorado, but has found
herself at home in Columbia. As a freshman, Kate played Estelle in Miss Havisham's Wedding Night
and was a member of the chorus in Mr. Scrooge. She is excited to be a part of her first full-length
opera, Martha. Kate also spends her time in USC's Concert Choir and doing PR work for Opera at
USC.
Karyn Elizabeth Minor (Martha) moved from Portland, Oregon to join the USC Opera Theater
masters program. She was a guest performer with the Marylhurst Orchestra and the Wilsonville High
School orchestra. She has performed many recitals throughout the Portland area, and
was participated in summer programs with Bel Canto NW and Astoria Music festival. This
is Karyn's debut with Opera at USC and she is excited to be a part of this production. Karyn
Elizabeth Minor is a student of Dr. Tina Stallard.
Teddy Moore (Scenic Designer) is a freelance Scenic Designer and Props Artisan who graduated
form the North Carolina School of the Arts in 2004. Since then Teddy has designed and crafted
almost exclusively for the opera stage including work with companies such as Connecticut Opera,
Berkshire Opera, Tanglewood Music Festival, The Mostly Baroque Players, Asheville Lyric Opera,
Shakespeare and Company, and FBN Productions. For Opera at USC he has designed sets and props
for Our Town, The Light in the Piazza, Mr. Scrooge, Miss Havisham's Wedding Night, Cendrillon,
The Old Maid and the Thief, The Medium and both the 2010 and 2011 Evening of One Acts. Teddy
now resides in Salisbury, NC.
Samantha Nahra (assistant Stage Manager) made her debut with Opera at USC as Laetitia in The
Old Maid and the Thief. She earned her Bachelor’s of Music at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music
where she study with Daune Mahy. Miss Nahra has performed the roles of Bianca in La Rondine and
Cinea L’Egist as part of Oberlin in Italy. She has been in the chorus of Cleveland Orchestra’s
production of Peer Gynt at Severance Hall conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy. She was a recipient of
Oberlin’s Conservatory Dean’s Scholarship and was a Semi-Finalist at the Orpheus National Music
Competition in 2011. Miss Nahra is currently earning her masters at the University of South Carolina
where she is a graduate assistant studying with Jacob Will.
John Edward Niles (Guest Conductor) most recently was the Music Director/Conductor of Aurora
Opera. He held the same position with Opera Theatre of Northern Virginia from 1981 to 2010. He
has been at the forefront of producing operas not previously heard in the Greater Washington, DC
area — over 75 percent of OTNV’s productions have been area premieres. He has been the musical
director for the Lazy Susan Dinner Theatre of Woodbridge, Virginia since 1978.
Mr. Niles is the son of the American composer John Jacob Niles and freelance journalist Rena L.
Niles. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Carnegie Mellon University in 1967 and a Master of
Music from the University of Cincinnati in 1969. Mr. Niles has been awarded grants from the
American Symphony Orchestra League and the Martha Baird Rockefeller Foundation. He also
received an NDEA Fellowship and a Fulbright Scholarship to study advanced conducting in
Hamburg, Germany. He has studied with such notable conductors as Richard Lert, Haigh Yaghijian,
Hans Swarvosky, Erich Kunzel, Julius Rudel, and John Nelson.
After receiving his degree from the University of Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Mr. Niles
went on to conduct at the Ithaca (N.Y.) Opera Association, Salt City Playhouse (Syracuse, N.Y.), Bel
Canto Opera (New York City), Virginia Opera (Norfolk), Cavalier Productions and COLVA
Productions (Arlington, VA), JMJ Productions (Washington, D.C.), and European-American

Productions (Hanover, Germany). He was invited to conduct at the Auschwitz 50th Anniversary
Memorial in Kracow, Poland and was the Musical Director of Euro-Fest in Prague in July 2002. He
is the Program Director for the Evelyn Lear & Thomas Stewart Emerging Singers Program of the
Wagner Society of Washington, DC.
Aaron Pelzek (lighting designer) is excited to once again be a part of Opera at USC where he has
designed Le Nozze di Figaro, Cendrillon, Miss Havisham’s Wedding Night, Mr. Scrooge, Our Town,
The Tales of Hoffmann, The Light in the Piazza, Riders to the Sea, Acis and Galatea has been busy,
as always, working in Columbia as a freelance lighting designer for shows such as Trustus’ Rent,
Hair, and Reasons to be Pretty, The Columbia Classical Ballet’s Wizard of Oz, The Nutcracker, and
Lifechance. He also continues to work closely with the company he co-founded Pocket Productions
on their Playing After Dark series and Artrageous. Upcoming engagements include Trustus Theatre’s
In the Next Room (Or The Vibrator Play).
Ian Prichard (ensemble) is a sophomore from Augusta, GA. He is a member of the USC Concert
Choir and has appeared with Opera at USC in The Medium as Mr. Gobineau and in the ensembles of
Cendrillon and Goyescas.
John Siarris (Ensemble) is a freshman from Spartanburg, SC. This is his Opera at USC debut. He
studies with
Rosemarie Suniga (Rehearsal Pianist), a native of Canada, is a graduate of the University of South
Carolina where she earned a DMA in Piano Pedagogy, and holds BM and MM degrees in Piano
Performance from the University of Manitoba and Carnegie Mellon University, respectively. This is
Ms. Suniga’s second season as the rehearsal and performance pianist for Opera at USC; past credits
include Miss Havisham's Wedding Night, Scrooge, Cendrillon, La Dolorosa and Goyescas. Ms.
Suniga is active as an accompanist, performer, and teacher and has served as
accompanist/collaborative pianist for the USC Concert Choir, University Chorus and the USC Dance
program. In addition to her collaborative work, Ms. Suniga has performed as an orchestral pianist in
association with the South Carolina Philharmonic, and has been presented in concert in Canada and
the U.S. as a soloist and chamber musician.
Keith Walker (Chorus master) holds a B. M. in Vocal Performance from Augusta State University
and a M. M. in Vocal Performance from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He has served as
music director for churches in Georgia and Missouri. Keith’s stage credits include Carmen and
Friends, The Lovely Sounds of Christmas, A Hand of Bridge, The Old Maid and the Thief, The
Medium, OKLAHOMA!, The Boy Friend, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Die
Fledermaus, Jonah, and Side by Side by Sondheim. He has performed with Peach State Opera,
Albany Symphony, Theatre Albany, Albany State University Opera Theater, Capitol City Opera,
Muddy River Opera Co., Atlanta Lyric Theatre, and Galaxy Productions. In 2003, Keith went behind
the scene to make his debut as music director for Habima Theatre’s production of HONK! He
returned to Habima in 2004 to music direct their production of The Music Man. He has served as
music director and conductor for the Darton Players' productions of Babes in Arms, Godspell, The
Gifts of the Magi, and Two Gentlemen of Verona. Keith served on the faculty at Darton College
where he taught applied voice and directed the college choir and vocal ensemble. For four seasons,

he served as the artistic director for the Albany Chorale. He is currently a candidate for doctor of
musical arts degree at the University of South Carolina. Keith is excited to be making his debut as
chorus master for Opera at USC.
Erin Williams (Ensemble) is a second year graduate student at the University of South Carolina
where she is pursuing her Masters of Music in Vocal Performance. In the fall she sang the role of Ms.
Todd in Opera at USC’s production of The Old Maid and the Thief and last season, she sang the role
of Martha in Opera at USC’s production of Mr. Scrooge. Prior to coming to South Carolina, Ms.
Williams studied in New York with Ms. Ruth Golden, and graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor of
Music in Vocal Performance from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts where she
studied with Dr. Marilyn Taylor. While at UNCSA she appeared in such roles as Eurydice in Orfeo
ed Euridice (third act), Gianetta in The Gondoliers (third act), as well as a chorus member in
productions such as Idomeneo, Un ballo in maschera, Belisario, Die Zauberflöte, and Aida. Ms.
Williams currently studies with Ms. Janet Hopkins.
Rebecca Wood (ensemble) is a native of Troy, North Carolina. During her time in North Carolina
she attended the School of Music at Trinity Methodist Church, where she was given a full
scholarship. She is a senior at the University of South Carolina, on a partial choral scholarship and
the Hugh and Evelyn P. Williams scholarship working towards her B.M. in Vocal performance.
Rebecca is a member of Concert Choir. She has also been involved in a charity event for Haiti,
presenting the musical Jacques Brel is alive and well and living in Paris. For Opera at USC she has
appeared as a spirit in Cendrillon in the ensembles of Our Town and Le Nozze di Figaro.