Anthony Barton, Figaro

Anthony Barton returns for his second season with Opera for the Young after playing the Father in Hansel and Gretel. In 2003-4, Anthony was seen in regional productions as Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Figaro in Il Barbiere di Seviglia, Belcore in L’Elisir D’ Amore, and Father in a Chicago area premier of Ragtime, which was nominated in the top twelve 2003 Chicago productions for that year. Anthony has appeared as the swashbuckling Pirate King in the Pirates of Penzance, as well as Donate Bramante in a world premier of a new musical, The Ceiling. Other recent performances include Shaunard in La Boheme and a concert version of Shining Brow with the Buffalo Philharmonic.

Mara Beckman, Pianist

This is Mara’s first tour with Opera for the Young. In 2003, she received her M.M. in Vocal Accompanying and Coaching from UW-Milwaukee, studying with Judit Jaimes, Jeffry Peterson, and Katja Phillabaum. Mara has freelanced in the Milwaukee area, playing for venues such as Skylight Opera ACE Program, Milwaukee Ballet Company and School, UW-Milwaukee Opera Theatre, UW-Milwaukee Symphony Band and Wind Ensemble. She has served on the faculty of Stevens Point Conservatory of Music, Aurora University’s Music by the Lake, and is currently adjunct instructor of piano at the Wausau Conservatory of Music. She has attended many art song festivals, most recently Songfest 2004 in which she was coached by Graham Johnson. Mara will be auditioning for doctoral programs in Spring of 2006.

William Bennett, Figaro

This is William’s debut season with Opera for the Young. He sang the roles of Benoit and Alcindoro in La Boheme in his second summer with the Chautauqua Institution. In fall 2005, he sang the role of “John Brooke” in Little Women by Mark Adamo with Opera Moda in Chicago. Other roles include “Damis” in Opera Moda’s production of Tartuffe and “The Toymaker” in Seymore Barab’s The Toy Shop with Muddy River Opera Company in Quincy, IL. While earning his M.M. at DePaul University, he performed leading roles in the North American premiere of Philip Glass’s The Marriage Between Zones Three, Four, And Five and Smetana’s The Bartered Bride, and the role of “Maximilian” in Bernstein’s Candide. He has studied with Spiro Malas at The Chautauqua Institute, Norman Gulbrandsen at DePaul, and currently with Bruce Tammen, conductor of The Chicago Chorale. Orchestral performances have included Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, the Duruflé Requiem, and the Fauré Requiem. William was featured in a forty-voice ensemble for several movements of Handel’s Four Coronation Anthems in the Chicago Symphony Chorus’ 2004 season.

Cari Dinglasan, Rosina

Chicago soprano Cari Dinglasan is pleased to return for her third season at OFY, having previously sung Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance and Gretel in Hansel and Gretel. She previously sang the role of Mabel at DePaul University where she received her Bachelor's degree in Music Education. While at DePaul, Ms. Dinglasan was also seen in Don Giovanni, The Return of Ulysses, The Threepenny Opera, Die Fledermaus, and The Magic Flute. She recently played Mercedes in Bowen Park Opera's production of Carmen. Ms. Dinglasan has also appeared in several N.O.V.A. productions. Those roles include Barbarina in the Marriage of Figaro, Musetta in La Boheme and Zerlina in Don Giovanni. In addition to opera, Ms. Dinglasan sings with a professional Polish ensemble called the Lira Singers. When not on the road with Opera for the Young, she spends her days teaching elementary music.

Rachel Edie Warrick , Rosina

This is Rachel Edie Warrick's debut season with Opera for the Young. Rachel, a Madison native, is a graduate of the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music and the University of Michigan. Some of her opera credits include Adele in Die Fledermaus with the Comic Opera Guild in Ann Arbor Michigan, Princess in Pasatieri's The Goose Girl with the Motor City Lyric opera, Ciesca in Gianni Schicchi at the University of Michigan, and Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro at Lawrence University. In addition to opera, Rachel has an avid interst in early music, and is a member of the Vox Early Music Ensemble in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She was chosen to sing in a masterclass for early music legend Emma Kirbky, and was a scholarship recipient at the Vancouver Baroque Vocal Programme. Rachel's concert credits include Bach's B Minor Mass, Magnificat, and Cantata 214, Handel's Messiah and Alexander's Feast, Mozart's Vespers, Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass, Respighi's Laud to the Nativity, and Saint-Saen's Christmas Oratorio. She has performed with Conspirare in Austin, Texas, The St. Louis Bach Society and Bel Canto Chorus in Milwaukee.

Vincent Fuh, Piano

One of OFY’s most veteran performers, Vincent was born in Taipei, Taiwan, but has lived in Madison, Wisconsin since 1983, where he got his start playing with society bands. An MTNA competition winner in the collegiate piano division, Vincent graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a BA in piano performance and quickly rose in prominence as a leading jazz pianist in the area, performing and recording with Madison's finest jazz musicians. In 1992 he co-founded MadiSalsa, a Latin jazz/salsa group for which he writes and arranges. 2002 marked the third year in a row MadiSalsa had been voted Madison's favorite dance band by the readers of the Isthmus Newspaper. As a classical pianist, Vincent runs a private teaching studio, accompanies faculty and students of universities and conservatories throughout the midwest, and serves as clinician for seasonal music programs. His playing---classical, jazz, and original compositions---has been featured on Wisconsin Public Radio and a television series for PBS. Vincent returns to Opera for the Young for his ninth season, after prior productions of Hanseland Gretel, Barber of Seville, Orpheus Returns, Magic Flute, Elixir of Love, Rusalka, and The Pirates of Penzance.

Nina Heebink, Rosina

This is Nina’s debut season with Opera for the Young. Currently pursuing a master’s in vocal performance at DePaul University in Chicago, she won the top prize at the American Opera Society of Chicago competition in 2005. A graduate of St. Olaf College and former member of the St. Olaf Choir, she created the role of Charity Taylor in Libby Larsen’s cabaret opera Barnum’s Bird, which premiered at the Library of Congress in Washington, D. C. in February 2002. Heebink sang extensively in the Twin Cities area for six years, performing with the Minnesota Orchestra, VocalEssence Ensemble Singers, North Star Opera, Twin Cities Opera, and the Rose Ensemble. In Chicago, she has appeared in DePaul Opera Theater and programs at the Chicago Cultural Center. Heebink recently produced and performed several roles in a production of Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges at DePaul University.

Emily Joy Lee, Rosina

This is Emily Joy Lee’s debut season with OFY. She recently made her European debut as the Countess in the Salzburg Amadeus Ensemble’s production of Le Nozze di Figaro. As a member of the Fort Worth Opera touring ensemble, she performed as the Mother, Sandman and Hansel in Hansel and Gretel, More recently Emily has been seen as Adele in Die Fledermaus, with the Elgin Opera, and as Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof in New York. Among other stage credits are Suor Angelica (Zelatrice), Into the Woods (Rapunzel), The Secret Garden (Mary Lennox), Carmen, and Sweeney Todd. Concert appearances include performances of Barber’s Andromache’s Farewell, as the soprano soloist in Mozart’s Requiem, and as Konstanze in Die Entführung aus dem Serail. Chicago audiences will see her as Violetta (Elgin Opera) in the spring of 2006. As a member of World Vision International’s Youth Ambassadors, Emily performed for audiences across the country, as well as in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Emily has her master’s degree in voice pedagogy from Texas Christian University, and currently studies with Sunny Joy Langton and Richard Boldrey in Chicago.

Matt Lorz, Count Almaviva

Matthew Michael Lorz hails from Bartlett, IL. This is his debut season with Opera for the Young. Matt received his BM from Illinois Wesleyan University and his MM in vocal performance from Illinois State University. He hasbeen a featured chorus member at Opera Illinois for several years and most recently appeared as Nemorino in CandleOpera's production of The Elixir of Love.

Peder Reiff, Count Almaviva

Peder Reiff returns to OFY after touring as Frederic in 2004’s The Pirates of Penzance. Originally from Superior, WI, Peder now resides in Chicago. He has appeared in numerous productions over the last several years. As a Master's degree student in voice at Indiana University, Peder studied with former Metropolitan Opera great, Giorgio Tozzi. While there, Peder performed in the I.U. School of Music productions of La Bohème and The Boor as well as Theatre Department productions of Into the Woods and Man of La Mancha. Since moving to Chicago two years ago, Peder has appeared as Freddy in My Fair Lady with the Pheasant Run dinner theater and in productions of the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Chicago Symphony Chorus, Grant Park Chorus, Light Opera Works, NOVA, L'Opera Piccola, and Highland Park Chorus.

Nicholas Dean Towns, Piano

Nick is a native of Princeton, Illinois. He has most recently performed under Simon Carrington with the WCDA Next Direction National Conference. As a soloist, Nick won first prize in the Wisconsin state lever of the Music Teachers National Association Collegiate Artists Competition and at the Bay View Music Festival Concerto Competition, where he performed the Beethoven Fourth Concerto and the Shostakovich First Concerto. Currently, he is working with multiple composers towards using mathematics in music as well as the possibilities of using computers as compositional devices. He has participated in the International School for the Musical Arts, where he studied with Ka Kit Tam, Kwang-Wu Kim, Marilyn Engle, and Robert McDonald and the Bay View Music Festival. He received his M.M. in piano performance at the New England Conservatory in Boston, where he studied with Victor Rosenbaum and a B.M. from Lawrence Conservatory of Music. Nick is currently a freelance pianist, accompanist, and teacher in the Wisconsin area

Donna Thorson, Set/Costume/Prop Designer, Artist-in-Residence)

This is Ms. Thorson's ninth season with OFY, having previously worked on Hansel and Gretel, Orpheus Returns, The Barber of Seville, The Magic Flute, The Elixir of Love, Rusalka and Pirates of Penzance.. One of her greatest challenges and rewards is to incorporate design ideas gleaned from OFY's "Be a Desinger" contest (one thousand annual entries from elementary students!) into productions. In addition to designing and building the visual framework for OFY shows, Ms. Thorson has frequent opportunities to delight children with her "Opera by Design" in-school residency. Some claims to Ms. Thorson's OFY fame: creating the mermaid's sea horse scooter for last season's Rusalka and inventing Figaro's ingenious motorcycle for The Barber of Seville. When she's not busy with her myriad OFY responsibilities, Ms. Thorson is the head of the Costume Design Program a Beloit College and a free-lance designer who specializes in puppets, masks, and painted fabrics.

Dan Weinstein, Dr. Bartolo

This is Dan’s debut season with Opera for the Young. He is from Peoria, Illinois, graduated from the University of Iowa, and recently completed his M.M. degree in Opera Performance from UW-Madison. As a student, Dan had leading roles in productions of The Marriage of Figaro (Antonio), The Gondoliers (Guiseppe), Cosi fan Tutte (Guglilelmo), Iphigenia at Aulis (Agamemmnon), Vanessa (Doctor), Die Fledermaus (Dr. Falke). He sang Robin Oakapple in Madison Savoyard’s Ruddigore, and Koko in Cedar Rapids’ Opera Theatre’s The Mikado.

Chuck Wolter, Count Almaviva

Mr. Wolter is proud to be in his fourth production with OFY. Previous roles include Fredreic in The Pirates of Penzance, Tamino in The Magic Flute, and Jimmy Reno in The Elixir of Love. Chuck is a busy Chicago-area performer, appearing with Chicago Symphony Chorus, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Chicago Opera Theater, Grant Park Music Festival & Ravinia. He recently sang the tenor solos in Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass and Ralph Vaughan Williams' Mass in G in England & Paris. Chuck also enjoys singing with his octet, Voices to Go.