Row 1: Renée Fleming, Stephanie Doche, Nathan Bowles, Stephanie Washington
Row 2: Jason Detwiler, Michael Chioldi, Leah Crocetto, Lisa Marie Rogali
Row 3: Jason Zacher, Paige Dickey, Mary Ann Stewart, Justin Kroll, Mark McCrory
Tulsa Opera’s 2024-25 season promises a constellation of stars to shine on Tulsa audiences. International superstar soprano Renée Fleming, previously announced, is joined on the season roster by rising, established, and local stars, including the children of the Tulsa Youth Opera.
First on the main stage is “Grand Voices: The Tulsa Opera Chorus in Concert,” starring the Tulsa Opera Chorus and the Tulsa Opera Orchestra. Soloists include Filstrup Resident Artists sopranos Paige Dickey, Alexandra Johnson, Karlena Riggs, and Stephanie Washington; mezzo-soprano Maddie Breedlove; and tenors Sam Briggs and Justin Kroll. They are joined by guest artists, sopranos Lindsey Rollins and Mary Ann Stewart, tenors Kyle Bloomer, Matt Corcoran, and Todd Maxwell, and baritones Chris Jenkins and Jeffrey McCollum. Gered High, tenor, will also perform as a soloist on the Grand Voices concert.Tulsa Opera Chorus Director Lyndon Meyer presides on the podium. Lighting design is by Carson Decker. The concert takes place on Saturday, October 19, 2024, 7:30 p.m. at the VanTrease Performing Arts Center for Education at Tulsa Community College. Ticket prices range from $25 – $65.
Metropolitan Opera stars align with refined food and wine at the President’s Council Dinner Concerts, Tulsa Opera’s biggest fundraisers of the 2024-25 season. Featuring world-class artists in an intimate concert, along with a cocktail hour and elegant three-course dinner, the three concerts are spread throughout the season and are open to the general public. In October, international stars baritone Michael Chioldi (Metropolitan Opera, Gran Teatro Liceu, San Francisco Opera) and soprano Leah Crocetto (Metropolitan Opera, Opera Australia, San Diego Symphony) team up to perform signature roles in Act II of Tosca accompanied by Lyndon Meyer on the piano. The concert takes place on Tuesday, October 8, 2024, at 6 p.m. at the Southern Hills Country Club. Annual memberships which include all three President’s Council Dinner Concert are available at several levels, and individual seats are $625. Corporate and organizational sponsorships of full tables are also available.
Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Doche takes on the title role in Peter Brook’s and Georges Bizet’s The Tragedy of Carmen. Doche is a rising star in opera houses across the US and is especially in demand for her interpretations of Handel and Rossini roles. Nathan Bowles plays the disgraced soldier, Don José. The up-and-coming tenor has most recently appeared with Santa Fe Opera and the Dallas Opera. Tulsa Opera Filstrup Resident Artist Stephanie Washington sings the sweet and courageous village girl, Micaëla. A favorite with Tulsa audiences, the award-winning soprano was last seen as Madeline in TO’s The Face on the Barroom Floor. Veteran bass-baritone Jason Detwiler, recently seen on the stages of New York City Opera, Opera Modesto, and Painted Sky Opera, joins the cast as the bullfighter Escamillo. Australian Carolyn Watson, Music Director of Indiana’s La Porte County Symphony Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor of the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra, conducts while the internationally recognized Greek stage director Eugenia Arsenis reprises her work with this unique adaptation. The production comes from Florentine Opera, with props by Lisa Schlenker and hair and makeup by Sable Brown. The Tragedy of Carmen plays at the Williams Theatre at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center on Friday, February 21 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, February 23 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets range from $35 – $85.
The Tragedy of Carmen cast will also star at the February 4, 2025 President’s Council Dinner Concert, at 6 p.m. at the Southern Hills Country Club.
In April, the Tulsa Opera Signature Chorale and the Tulsa Opera Orchestra will perform the Dvořák Stabat Mater under the baton of Tulsa Opera Artistic Director Aaron Beck. The soloists are Filstrup Resident Artists soprano Paige Dickey and tenor Justin Kroll, joined by international soprano Mary Ann Stewart (Washington National Opera, Festival de Opera de Tenerife, Universal Studios Japan) and bass-baritone Mark McCrory (Lyric Opera of Chicago, Dallas Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City). The moving and meditative masterwork takes place at the historic Holy Family Cathedral on Saturday, April 26 at 7:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $25.
International superstar soprano Renée Fleming premieres her concert, “Renée Fleming’s Voice of Nature: The Anthropocene” in Tulsa on Saturday, May 10, 2025, at 7:30 p.m. in Chapman Music Hall at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center. Fleming will collaborate with the Tulsa Opera Orchestra conducted by Robert Moody, the internationally acclaimed Music Director of Arizona MusicFest and the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. Tickets range from $35 – $200.
The final President’s Council Dinner Concert of the season takes place on April 22, 2025, and stars mezzo-soprano Lisa Marie Rogali and bass-baritone Jason Zacher. Opera News praised Rogali as a “live-wire mezzo,” and the Arts-Louisville critic wrote that Zacher “had me so beguiled that I wanted to throw money on the stage …” The concert begins at 6 p.m. at the Southern Hills Country Club.
The Tulsa Youth Opera closes out the season with their presentation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, composed by Dean Burry. The cast will be announced at a later date, but the production will be directed by Tulsa Opera Chief Operating Officer Dani Keil and conducted by Maestro Aaron Beck. The set is by William Boles, hair and makeup by Tara Tumey, and costumes by Randy Blair. There are two performances, Saturday, June 7, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday, June 8, 2025, at 2:30 p.m. at the Lorton Performance Center at the University of Tulsa. Tickets range from $25 – $45 with a special $15 ticket available for students with ID.
“We are excited about our casting this season, not only because of the caliber of talent we’re bringing to Tulsa, but because these choices intentionally reflect our values, mission, and commitment to community,” said Aaron Beck, Artistic Director. “Tulsa audiences want and deserve to experience the live artistry of stars like Renée Fleming, Michael Chioldi, and Leah Crocetto. They also love the thrill of discovering rising stars like Stephanie Doche (The Tragedy of Carmen), and there is an enormous amount of justifiable civic pride surrounding our local talent, such as Filstrup Resident Artists Stephanie Washington (The Tragedy of Carmen), Justin Kroll (the Dvořák Stabat Mater), and the children of Tulsa Youth Opera.”