Access to opera can sometimes feel out of reach, especially for audience members with diverse abilities and accommodation needs. Cincinnati Opera strives to change that with its second annual Access Night at the Opera, on Saturday, June 15, with its season-opening production of Mozart's Don Giovanni.
Amid Cincinnati's diverse cultural landscape, Cincinnati Opera Young Professionals (COYP) is turning heads with its dynamic approach to arts engagement.
Evans sits down with David Charles Abell, his friend for over thirty-five years, to discuss their overlapping careers, shared experiences living in London, and frequent collaborations. They discuss David’s unusual path into the world of conducting, his conducting debut, and how his career has been helped by avoiding some advice he was once given. His best career advice is to “think of all music as storytelling.”
A longtime friend of Evans Mirageas, mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor brings life and energy to this episode of “Inside Opera”. Evans and Kelley discuss her unlikely path to becoming an opera singer beginning at the age of five. Kelley discusses her changing voice and how it has influenced the roles she receives. Learn why and how she challenges herself by “stepping out of the box” and her advice for young singers.
Evans sits down with Director Stephen Lawless - director of Cincinnati Opera’s performance of “The Marriage of Figaro” – to discuss how Stephen got his start, his directing career, the amazing people he has worked with and all the wonderful experiences he has had in the directorial profession. Stephen’s advice to young directors trying to make a name for themselves? Find out what your directorial voice is, what you want to see, and what you like seeing.
Director Matthew Ozawa- director of Cincinnati Opera’s performance of “Romeo and Juliet” - talks with Evans about how he fell in love with opera, how he created his career out of the world of instrumental music and into directing, his interesting heritage, and how he gets people to “play well together”. Learn why “be kind to everybody” is one of Matthew’s directorial mottos and how collaboration is like the art of origami.
Evans Mirageas sits down with soprano Susanna Phillips, who played the Countess Almaviva in Cincinnati Opera’s production of “The Marriage of Figaro”. Evans and Susanna discuss her distinct voice, how one begins a career, the fulfillment of motherhood and balancing life with career, and how to be yourself. Susanna’s piece of advice? “Do you. Don’t try to be anyone else.”
Evans sits down with Janai Brugger to discuss what it’s like to be a working mom, the first time Janai got goosebumps listening to opera- she was six years old- how she recognizes the voices of her fellow opera singers, and how to create “legato”. Plus, learn how Janai deals with stress why her favorite piece of advice is to “hurry slowly”.
