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SOPRANO
- Saundra DeAthos
- MEZZO-SOPRANO
- Stephanie Rodousakis
- TENOR
- Michael Boley
- Harold Meers
- BARITONE
- Greg Frens
- Ryan Kinsella
- David Templeton
- BASS
- Bradley Smoak
- CONDUCTOR
- Louis Salemno
- Allan R. Scott
- STAGE DIRECTOR
- Alexander Gelman
Born in Lenigrad, USSR and educated in the United States, director Alexander Gelman was literally raised in the theater as both his maternal grandparents worked at the historic Mikhaylovsky Theater in Leningrad. His family immigrated to Israel and ultimately, to the USA. Mr. Gelman went on to earn his MFA in Directing from the prestigious theater program at Boston University.
Mr. Gelman’s entry into opera began with his introduction to Russian Director Yuri Lyubimov. He assisted Mr. Lyubimov with Crime and Punishment at Arena stage and Master and Margarita at American Repertory Theater before joining him for the acclaimed production of Berg’s Lulu at Lyric Opera of Chicago. A lengthy association followed with Anne Ewers and Utah Opera, where he directed several productions. Among the operatic works Mr. Gelman has staged are Carmen, The Turn of the Screw, L’Incoronazione di Poppea, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, L’Italiana in Algeri, Die Fledermaus, Madama Butterfly, Eugene Onegin, Rigoletto and La Traviata. He has staged productions for Canteburg Opera (New Zealand), Utah Opera, Idaho Opera, Chattanooga Opera, Granite State Opera, Ashland Music Festival and Helena Symphony Orchestra among others.
On the dramatic stage, Alexander Gelman has worked at many of North America’s most renowned theater companies including American Repertory Theater, Arena Stage, New York Shakespeare Festival, Hartford Stage Company, The Acting Company and the Julliard School of Drama.
Currently, Mr. Gelman serves as Chair of the Theater and Dance Departments at Northern Illinois University. Prior to assuming his current post, he helmed MFA directing programs at University of Nebraska and University of Utah. Mr. Gelman also serves as Producing Artistic Director of the acclaimed Organic Theater Company of Chicago. At the Organic Theater Company, he has directed his own adaptations of Twain’s The $30,000 Bequest, Melville’s Bartleby the Scrivener and Conrad’s The Secret Agent. Mr. Gelman has also directed Ionescu’s Man with Bags, Dürrenmatt’s Play Strindberg, and Kunio’s The Dressing Room. Additionally, Mr. Gelman has directed notable productions of Twelfth Night, As You Like It, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Taming of the Shrew, Romeo and Juliet, Tartuffe, School for Wives, The Lion in Winter, Waiting for Godot, Journey of the Fifth Horse, Tango, and The Burning Fiery Furnace. Mr. Gelman co-founded Salt Lake Shakespeare where he served as Artistic Director for five years.
