Welcome to our production of Susannah. This opera has great meaning to me, because it is the first opera that I produced as the director of the University of Kentucky Opera Theatre in 1997. Here we are 26 years later, and the opera program is now quite different than it was when it first started out. That growth within our program is something that I am immensely proud of. A lot of the credit for these changes goes to the talented faculty and staff here at UK, an incredibly supportive administration, our amazing students, and YOU, our beloved community who has supported the dreams of our talented students and our dreams for the students for over 25 years. While we have made such great progress over the years, we still have big dreams to fulfill, and mountains to climb. We are fortunate to have the right faculty, we are constantly working very hard to recruit the best students, and we have been buoyed by the support from our community. We hope that you will continue to support our efforts through your purchase of tickets, philanthropic gifts, and through your desire to create a better community in Lexington.
We welcome to this production stage director, Dennis Whitehead Darling, making his debut at UK Opera Theatre. Dennis is a stage director in demand across the country, and we are so fortunate that he was able to carve out this time in his busy schedule to work with our students. We had a tremendous experience with Dennis and hope that you will see his work again soon on the stage of the Lexington Opera House!
Susannah is a powerful story, and, in many ways, it is unfortunate that this story still resonates in our community and in our lives today, but it does. Thanks to the power of the arts, the pen of Carlisle Floyd, and the talent of our students, we are able to tell this story. Together we can experience its redemptive values as we continue to work towards making our communities better places to live. The arts have the power to do that! We hope you enjoy the opera.
Everett McCorvey
University of Kentucky Opera Theatre Producer
FRIDAY NIGHT / SATURDAY MATINEE
SUSANNAH
Jessica Bayne
SAM
Pharel Silaban
LITTLE BAT
Cameron Howard
REVEREND OLIN BLITCH
Clay Thompson
ELDER MCLEAN
Harrison Hancock
ELDER GLEATON
Elijah Garrett
ELDER HAYES
Andrew Tran
ELDER OTT
Clinton Garrison
MRS. MCLEAN
Kaylee Piatt
MRS. GLEATON
Alexandra Thibault
MRS. HAYES
Fairynne Rogers
MRS. OTT
Emily Wrede
SATURDAY NIGHT / SUNDAY MATINEE
SUSANNAH
Grace Ashley
SAM
Robert Samuel Powless
LITTLE BAT
Dylon Crain
REVEREND OLIN BLITCH
Christopher Burchett
ELDER MCLEAN
Brandon Whitish
ELDER GLEATON
Thomas Swerczek
ELDER HAYES
Andrew Tran
ELDER OTT
Sergio Enciso Suarez
MRS. MCLEAN
Dejah Watts
MRS. GLEATON
Grace Platt
MRS. HAYES
Sierra Kidd
MRS. OTT
Audrianna Hughes
CHORUS
Maria Esch, Briana Johnson, Natalie Monell*, Brianna Santiago-Kane, Svitlana Merlichenko, Hailey Wells, Kayla Wilson, Katie Buchanan, Calia Burdette, Rumi Chang, Jaime Chaudoin, Riley Droppleman, Lydia Rufin, Tess Sergent, Grace Wong, Michael White, Will Cordier, William Middleton, Max Taylor
DANCERS
Lily Sgroi, Jasmine Estep
FIDDLE PLAYER
Benjamin Lin
*dance captain
Violin I
Reisa Fukuda
Stanley Kuo
Benjamin Lin
Katherine Goble
Alex Gililland
Violin II
Saelim Henderson
Justyn Douthit
Katie Christensen
Ezra Anderson
Izabella Martinez
Viola
Guanliang Zong
YuQing Shi
Nicoletta Moss
Maia Smith
Cello
Kaimipono Santos
Ian Wasserman
Jackson Arnold
Nathan Johnson
Bass
Eva Reyes-Smith
Tala Glass
Flute
Alex Nguyen
Mark Gaddie
Oboe
Taylor McLellan
Dominic Luthje
Clarinet
Alexander Malone
Matthew Goodrich
Bassoon
Ben Wesley
Horn
Ben Humphries
Ariel Arney
Caleb Zimmer
Nicholas O’Banion
Trumpet
Victor Yuen
Aiden Shinkle-Kramer
Trombone
Graham West
John Koenig
Sam Gritton
Tuba
Harrison Brown
Timpani
Emi Jones
Percussion
Adria Shields
Aaron Creech
PRODUCING DIRECTOR
Everett McCorvey
STAGE DIRECTOR
Dennis Whitehead Darling
CONDUCTOR
John Nardolillo
TECHNICAL PRODUCTION MANAGER
Aaron Bowling
PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER
Megh Jennings-Posner
SCENIC DESIGNER
Keith Brumley
HEAD SCENIC
Aaron Bowling
LIGHTING DESIGNER
Tanya Harper
COSTUME DESIGNER
Sarah Oliver
CHOREOGRAPHER
Anna Wilson
FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHER
Meredith Crutcher
CHORUS MASTER
Catherine Clarke Nardolillo
VOCAL COACHES
Tedrin Blair Lindsay, Nan McSwain, Robert Bosworth
Scenery originally designed for Des Moines Metro Opera
UKOT PROGRAM COORDINATOR
Megh Jennings-Posner
PROPSMASTER
Aaron Bowling
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
Esther Neel
ASSISTANT CONDUCTORS
Nicoletta Moss, Merih Ozden, Ringel Sat
ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGERS
Maddie Butler, Anazha Monique Santiago
PROPS ASSISTANT
Max Maxwell
DMMO SET REPRESENTATIVE
Rachel Van Namen
INTIMACY COACH
Meredith Crutcher
VIP CENTER CONSULTANT
Lenzi Dodgen
SUPERTITLES CREATOR & OPERATOR
Jeffrey Todd
UK COSTUME DIRECTOR
Tracy Barber
UK COSTUME STOCK SPECIALIST
Andrea Richardson
UK COSTUME CUTTER/DRAPER
Natalie Maynard
OPERA HOUSE TECHNICAL COORDINATOR
James Worth
OPERA HOUSE HEAD CARPENTER
Joe Harris
OPERA HOUSE MASTER ELECTRICIAN
Chris Ruby
OPERA HOUSE HEAD FLYMAN
Adam Cook
OPERA HOUSE WARDROBE CREW CHIEF
Sandra Tyrie
OPERA HOUSE RUN CREW
IATSE Local 346
