Artist Biographies

Levi Hernandez

Levi Hernandez, baritone and El Paso native, has joined the rosters of leading opera companies including the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, and Houston Grand Opera, where he debuted as Sharpless in Madama Butterfly next to Ana Maria Martinez and Joseph Calleja. Recent highlights include Rambaldo in La rondine with Minnesota Opera, Rabbi Lampert in Enemies, A Love Story with Kentucky Opera, Sharpless with Virginia Opera, Pa Joad in The Grapes of Wrath with Michigan Opera Theatre, and Dvorak’s Te Deum with the Shippensburg Music Festival, a cover of Don Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Lyric Opera of Chicago, Aba in El Milagro del Recuerdo with Houston Grand Opera, and Tonio in Pagliacci with El Paso Opera and Opera Colorado. During the challenging 2020/2021 season, Levi appeared as Rappaccini in the digital broadcast of Chicago Opera Theater’s La hija de Rappaccini, and, in a return to live theater with St. Louis Opera Theater, starred as the title role in their Gianni Schicchi during the summer of 2021. Upcoming engagements for the 2021/2022 season include a return to the Lyric Opera of Chicago reprising the role of Alvaro in Florencia en el Amazonas, “Opera in the Outfield” with Minnesota Opera, Boston Lyric Opera’s Madama Butterfly project, which includes an audio recording and digitally broadcast examination of the work, Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer with Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra, and the Count in Le nozze di Figaro with Intermountain Opera. Visit Website

Benjamin Sieverding

Benjamin Sieverding, a bass hailing from Minneapolis, MN, has gained notice for his “resonant, expressive bass” (Star Tribune) and for a range of characterizations spanning from “wickedly charming” (l’étoile magazine) to “genuinely threatening” (Phindie). In 2020, he was slated to return to Minnesota Opera to sing the roles of Bull and Neal in the world premiere of Edward Tulane, to make his Austin Opera debut as the Mandarin in Turandot, reprise the Dough’s Mate in Companionship with Virginia Arts Festival, reprise Doctor Grenvil in La traviata with Out of the Box Opera, and return to Mill City Summer Opera as Sparafucile and Ceprano in Rigoletto. Mr. Sieverding has performed several roles with Minnesota Opera including Alfred Austrian in The Fix, prison warden George Benton in Dead Man Walking, Colline in La bohème, Frère Laurent in Roméo et Juliette, Sacristan in Tosca, and Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte. Other recent performances include appearances with South Dakota State Symphony, Madison Opera, Glacier Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Fort Worth Opera, Opera in the Heights, Opera South Dakota, Lakes Area Music Festival, and Madison Symphony Orchestra. This is Mr. Sieverding’s Tulsa Opera debut portraying Betto and covering the role of Simone in Gianni Schicchi. Visit Website

Danielle Pastin

Danielle Pastin, quoted as having “a lovely demeanor and irresistible creamy timbre” by Opera News, is quickly gaining accolades from opera houses around the country. The American soprano appeared as Donna Elvira in Palm Beach Opera’s Don Giovanni, reprised the role of Masha in Enemies, A Love Story with Kentucky Opera, and performed the role of Cio-Cio San in Virginia Opera’s Madama Butterfly. Ms. Pastin also performed in concert with the Metropolitan Opera National Council and the Society for the Four Arts. Other engagements include a return to the Metropolitan Opera stage as Nedda in Pagliacci and the World Premiere of Robert Paterson’s Three Way (as Connie in “Masquerade” and Maya in “The Companion”) with Nashville Opera and the Brooklyn Academy of Music, which was recorded for release. She has performed Leïla in Les pêcheurs de perles with Toledo Opera, The Countess in Le nozze di Figaro with Pittsburgh Opera and Opera Maine, sang Verdi’s Requiem with DCINY in Barcelona and the Dayton Philharmonic, sang Bruckner’s Te Deum for the Reno Chamber Orchestra, and performed gala concerts for The Society of The Four Arts and Macau-Beijing Festival in China. Ms. Pastin made her main-stage Metropolitan Opera debut singing Masha and covering Chloë in The Queen of Spades and was invited back to cover the roles of Javotte in a new production of Massenet’s Manon, Samaritana in Francesca da Rimini, and perform Frasquita, a role she performed in her debut with the Dallas Opera. Visit Website

Emily Pulley

Emily Pulley has spent over a quarter of a century appearing with opera companies and orchestras across the country and around the world, including nearly 200 performances with the Metropolitan Opera, with roles ranging from Marguerite in Faust to Gerhilde in Die Walküre to Valencienne in The Merry Widow. Long established in the classical soprano repertoire and having collaborated innumerous world premieres of contemporary works, Emily is currently enjoying a successful exploration of mezzo soprano and musical theatre roles, recently taking on the title role in Carmen, Mrs. de Rocher in Dead Man Walking, and Desirée in A Little Night Music. She spent much of the 2019 season as the standby for Renée Fleming in the US tour of The Light in the Piazza, in association with Los Angeles Opera and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. During the 2020 shutdown, Emily participated in several virtual projects: Julia Child in Bon Appétit! for UrbanArias, her debut as Zita in Gianni Schicchi for Opera Ithaca, and Jaclyn in the premiere of The Roost, part of the award-winning Decameron Opera Coalition. Emily made her professional directorial debut with La bohème at Opera Ithaca and directed The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Il barbiere di Siviglia for Opera Steamboat this past summer. Upcoming engagements include creating the role of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings in Opera Orlando’s world premiere of The Secret River in December and her debut as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd with Opera Omaha this February. Visit Website

Julius Ahn

Julius Ahn is an award-winning, internationally acclaimed tenor returning to the opera stage in 2021 via a trilogy of Puccini role debuts to add to his wide-ranging repertoire: Nick in La fancuilla del west with Korea National Opera, which also marks his debut in his hometown of Seoul, South Korea; Spoletta in Tosca with Cincinnati Opera; and Gherardo in Gianni Schicchi with Tulsa Opera. Ahn also returns to Canadian Opera Company and Opera Philadelphia, all a part of the 21-22 season. Especially renowned for his portrayals of comprimario roles, Ahn has performed with leading companies throughout the U.S., including: The Metropolitan Opera; San Francisco Opera; Michigan Opera Theatre; Opera Philadelphia; The Atlanta Opera; Boston Lyric Opera; Boston Modern Orchestra Project; Cincinnati Opera; Hawaii Opera Theatre; Lyric Opera of Kansas City; Nashville Opera; Opera Carolina; Opera Omaha; Pacific Symphony; Palm Beach Opera; Pittsburgh Opera; Seattle Opera; Tulsa Opera; Virginia Opera; and Washington Concert Opera. International engagements include performances with Canadian Opera Company; Vancouver Concert Opera; Raymond Gubbay at Royal Albert Hall; and Korea National Opera. Ahn’s portrayals and performances have been widely praised in such publications as Broadway World, Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, Opera News, and San Francisco Chronicle, among many others. Visit Website

Andrew Potter

Andrew Potter, bass, has garnered increasing demand across the country for his larger-than-life stage presence and voice to match. Of his recent performance in L’elisir d’amore, Opera Today hailed, “With his huge, all‐encompassing bass voice and precise comic timing he nearly stole the show.” This past season, Andrew has been one of the lucky ones continuing to perform. In addition to a series of virtual concerts, he joined Opera Santa Barbara in the title role of Don Pasquale, the Pacific Opera Project as Sam in Trouble in Tahiti, Southern Illinois Festival for Covid fan Tutte, and the Lakes Area Music Festival as Father Trulove in The Rake’s Progress. Other 20-21 engagements were to include Il Commendatore in Don Giovanni with Indianapolis Opera, 2nd Soldier in Salome with the Bard Conservatory Orchestra, Pastor Avery in Tobias Picker’s Emmeline with Tulsa Opera, Ramfis in Aïda with Raylynmor Opera, Fafner and Hagen in a Siegfried Act I and Gotterdammerung Act II with Pittsburgh Festival Orchestra, Daland in The Flying Dutchman with the Lakes Area Music Festival, and Tobias Picker’s Awakenings with Tulsa Opera. Visit Website

Pascale Spinney

Pascale Spinney, praised by the Calgary Herald for her “commanding stage presence and richly lyric mezzo voice,” has been hailed for her abilities as a charismatic singing actress. Spinney is a recent graduate from the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia and, immediately following her studies, appeared as Dido in Dido and Aeneas at Central City Opera’s 2021 Summer Festival. In the 2019–20 season, cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, Spinney appeared as Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro and as Léonor in La favorite. Her 2018–19 season included Mercédès in Carmen at Opéra de Montréal as well as First Lay Sister and Infirmary Sister in Suor Angelica, Turnspit in Rusalka, and Dorabella in Così fan tutte at the AVA. Concert work that season included the alto soloist in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Kennett Symphony and Beethoven’s Mass in C major with the Guelph Symphony Orchestra. Other notable engagements include Ines in Il trovatore, Flosshilde in Das Rheingold and covering Der Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos at the Academy of Vocal Arts; Hansel in Hansel and Gretel with the Guelph Symphony Orchestra and the alto soloist in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Thunder Bay and Edmonton Symphony Orchestras. She also sang Hansel in Hansel and Gretel and Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro at the Vancouver Opera. In 2022, she returns to Opéra de Montréal as Flora in La traviata. Visit Website

Rachel Blaustein

Rachel Blaustein, praised for her “brilliant lyric soprano, apparent ease, and voluptuous phrasing” (San Diego Story), is poised as a bright, up-and-coming artist with a moving sensibility to drama and text. Most recently, Rachel workshopped Ricky Ian Gordon’s upcoming world premiere The Garden of the Finzi-Continis in the role of Micòl Finzi-Contini with New York City Opera. This summer, she will make her Santa Fe Opera debut singing Autonoe in John Corigliano’s world premiere The Lord of Cries and Peaseblossom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Previously this season, she won the Farwell Trust Award from the Musicians Club of Women, 2nd place in the Partners for the Arts, Inc. Vocal Competition, and 3rd place in the Tri-Cities Opera Competition. She made her mainstage debut with Chicago Opera Theater as Queer Kid in Taking Up Serpents and then returned to sing First Flower in La Hija de Rappaccini. Recent engagements of note include performances as the soprano soloist in Bach’s Mass in B Minor with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and Bel Canto Chorus, covers of Eurydice in Orphée et Eurydice and Maria Celeste in Galileio Galilei with Des Moines Metro Opera, Nannetta in Flastaff with Chautauqua Opera, Adina in L’elisir d’amore with Opera Santa Barbara, and Kenzie in the Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric Unlimited’s touring production of Earth to Kenzie. She holds degrees from the Peabody Conservatory and Hofstra University. Visit Website

Jonathan Johnson

Jonathan Johnson’s many recent engagements have included Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd at Opera Omaha, The Prince in The Love of Three Oranges with Opera Philadelphia, where he was named as one of their Emerging Artists, Jonathan Dale in Silent Night with Utah Opera, Beppe in I Pagliacci with Opera Colorado, the title role in Candide with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, Utah Symphony Orchestra, and Des Moines Metro Opera; Hervey in Anna Bolena at Canadian Opera Company, Arturo in Lucia di Lammermoor at Lyric Opera of Chicago, Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance and Lensky in Eugene Onegin at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and Fenton in Falstaff at San Diego Opera. He has appeared with the Detroit Symphony in Messiah and with Cincinnati Symphony for Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri. Hailing from Macon, GA, Mr. Johnson is a graduate of the Patrick G. & Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. He holds a master’s degree and Professional Artist Certificate from the A.J. Fletcher Institute of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and earned a Bachelor of Music from Townsend School of Music at Mercer University. Visit Website

Johnathan McCullough

Johnathan McCullough begins the 21/22 season with a string of debuts: Intermountain Opera Bozeman for Il barbiere di Siviglia (Figaro), Tulsa Opera for Gianni Schicchi (Marco), and Portland Opera for The Central Park Five (The Masque). Additional engagements include a return to Opera Theatre of Saint Louis for The Magic Flute (Papageno) and The Funny Bone with Lyric Fest. Last season he returned to Wolf Trap Opera for Bologne’s L’amant anonyme (Ophémon) and made his directorial debut in a cinematic adaptation of David T. Little’s Soldier Songs which aired on the Opera Philadelphia Channel. Johnathan made his UK debut at English National Opera in a new production of The Marriage of Figaro (Count) directed by Joe Hill-Gibbons. He won First Prize in the Gerda Lissner Foundation Song competition singing Mahler’s Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen and was selected by Renée Fleming to take part in the Weill Institute Song Studio at Carnegie Hall where he performed in concert. He will present a solo concert under the Carnegie Hall organization in a future season. Johnathan made a role/house debut at Opéra de Lausanne in Ariadne auf Naxos (Harlequin), returned to Wolf Trap Opera for Il barbiere di Siviglia (Figaro) and Opera Philadelphia for A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Demetrius) and debuted at Opera San Luis Obispo in Die Zauberflöte (Papageno). As an Emerging Artist at Opera Philadelphia, he sang in the world premiere of Elizabeth Cree (Mr. Greatorex) by Kevin Puts and Mark Campbell, as well as in a new production of Carmen (Moralès). Visit Website

Elliott Wulff

Elliott Wulff, a native of San Diego, CA, moved to Tulsa in June of 2018. He teaches voice lessons at Tulsa Community College, where he holds an adjunct faculty position. His operatic roles have included Speaker in Die Zauberflöte, Polyphemus in Acis and Galatea, Kecal in The Bartered Bride, Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore, Captain Corcoran in H.M.S. Pinafore, Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro, and Gianni Schicchi in the opera of the same name. Elliott has also appeared with Heartland Opera Theater in Puccini’s La bohème in the roles of Benoît and Alcindoro, and was seen recently as Count Ceprano in Tulsa Opera’s production of Rigoletto.

Chris Jenkins

Christopher Jenkins is a native of Tulsa, OK. He has performed with the Tulsa Opera Chorus since 2017, appearing in Faust, Turandot, The Barber of Seville, Don Giovanni, Carmen, and Madama Butterfly. Christopher earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from Oklahoma Christian University, where he performed as Sarmiento in Les bavards and Doctor Grenvil in La traviata. Christopher earned his master’s degree in accounting from Oklahoma City University where he performed as Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte. Other roles include Sacristan and Jailer in Tosca, Bedron in Comedy on the Bridge, Speaker and First Priest in Die Zauberflöte, and Melisso in Alcina.

Gigi Jenkins

Gigi Jenkins is a 7th grader at Metro Christian Academy. She has performed with Tulsa Opera in productions of The Little Prince, Tosca, and Pinocchio. Her favorite roles have been Matilda in Theatre Tulsa’s Matilda the Musical, Kassim in Theatre Tulsa’s Aladdin, Winthrop in Metro Christian’s The Music Man, Tiny Tim in American Theatre Company’s A Christmas Carol, and the bad guy Mangiafuoco in Tulsa Opera’s Pinocchio. Gigi is trained by Catherine Conger (Conger Vocal Studio) and Kara Staiger (Overture Dance and Theatre).

Jani

Brinneisha Thompson (aka Jani) is a Pakistani-American actor, dancer, singer, and instrumentalist. Being gender fluid and mixed race, Brinneisha is able to take on many roles. She is best known for acting, performing, and special effects makeup in the indie films directed by Nathaniel Davis. Brinneisha has also played a principal role in a Dinesh D’Souza film and worked on the set of the television series Salem. Brinneisha regularly participates in burlesque, ballet, jazz, music video and tap dance classes at Temple of Dance in Tulsa, OK. Dancing, singing, and playing the violin and viola have always been a huge part of her life. Her most notable appearances are as a student model for OSU-Tulsa and as a featured twirler in the MLK and Pride parades. No matter how big or small her part is, Brinneisha always puts her heart into her work! Visit Website

Lyndon Meyer

Lyndon Meyer has served as chorusmaster, assistant conductor, principal pianist, and vocal coach for the Tulsa Opera since 2014. As a vocal coach, he has held positions at the University of Oklahoma, Michigan State University, and the Eastern School of Music, as well as at the Florida Grand Opera. In February 2019, he made his professional conducting debut for Heartland Opera’s production of La bohème. In the world of music theatre, he has directed numerous productions around the country, and serves as staff accompanist for the annual Lotte Lenya competition. Mr. Meyer also appears as a recitalist and chamber musician throughout the region. In Tulsa, Mr. Meyer holds the post of Director of Music at the Church of Saint Mary (Tulsa) and appears as a guest choral conductor and clinician, in addition to maintaining an active coaching studio. He is a graduate of the University of Arkansas (BM) and the Eastman School (MM).

Oriol Sans

Oriol Sans, Conductor, hailed as “refreshing and expressive in his handling of the orchestra” (El Informador, Jalisco), has inspired musicians and audiences across North America and Europe. A native of Catalonia, Spain, Mr. Sans has conducted concerts with outstanding orchestras and ensembles including the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Santa Fe Symphony, the Michigan Chamber Winds and Strings, the New Mexico Philharmonic, the San Juan Symphony (Colorado), the Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco in Guadalajara (Mexico), the Flint Symphony Orchestra, the International Contemporary Ensemble, and the Four Corners Ensemble. He has lead performances with a longlist of renowned soloists that includes Yoonshin Song, Wey Yu, Tony Arnold, Amy Porter, Aaron Berofsky, Jourdan Urbach, Álvaro Bitrán, Íride González, Alan Pingarrón, Jason Vieaux, Alexander Gavrylyuk Anderson & Roe Piano Duo, Alon Goldstein and Wu Han. Mr. Sans is Assistant Professor and Director of Orchestral Activities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Under his musical direction, the University production of Così fan tutte received 2nd prize from the National Opera Association. Before joining the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he was Associate Director of Orchestras at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. His eclectic opera repertoire includes performances of Verdi’s Falstaff, Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro and Così fan tutte, Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, and Britten’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. In recent years he conducted a production of Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors at the Michigan Opera Theatre and collaborated with the Opera Theatre Saint Louis in a production of Awakenings, a new opera by composer Tobias Picker. Visit Website

James Blaszko

James Blaszko, Stage Director, (he/him) has been called “a major young, new directing talent” (The Sunday Mail) that shows “the potential our increasingly multidisciplinary future holds for both theatrical innovation and inclusion” (Howlround.com). A first-generation American raised in a Polish-Pakistani household, Blaszko’s varied education in arts and culture began at an early age and has translated into diverse collaborations across the globe. In the 2017/18 season, Blaszko staged Puccini’s Il Trittico in South Korea, the opening ceremony of the Harare International Festival of the Arts in Zimbabwe, and Britten’s Les Illuminations with selections of Debussy and Patti Smith in Maine. His collaborations with Cuban filmmaker Adolfo Mena Cejas include Tell the Story, a documentary for John Doyle’s Classic Stage Company about the seminal New York productions of Sondheim’s Assassins over the past 30 years, and Zenon, which was selected by the New Haven Documentary Film Festival in 2020. He is currently the tour producer of The Peculiar Patriot by Liza Jessie Peterson, last performed and recorded live at Angola State Prison in January 2020. James is a proud graduate of the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts, Emerson College, and the Beth Morrison Projects Producer’s Academy. Visit Website