List of Singers and Production Team

CAST & CREW BIOS
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SHARPLESS
Baritone, RALPH CATO has travelled the world extensively, telling stories in song. His
operatic roles include Scarpia in Tosca, Tonio (I Pagliacci), Sonora (Fanciulla del West),
Germont (LaTraviata), Sharpless (Madama Butterfly), Escamillo (Carmen), and
Marcello & Alcindoro (La Boheme). Cato has performed with the Los Angeles Opera,
Bangor Symphony, Opera Pacific, Long Beach Symphony, Long Beach Opera, Pacific
Symphony, and The Southeast Symphony of Los Angeles.
KATE PINKERTON
Originally from New York, BROOKE deROSA has performed opera and musical
theater nationally and internationally. She currently resides in Los Angeles, and has
performed locally with LA Opera, Long Beach Opera, Center Stage Opera, Pacific Opera
Project, The Pacific Symphony and the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra. Brooke
has been a featured operatic soloist on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel's
San Gennaro festival, albums with Ghostface Killah and Snoop Dogg, and the upcoming
Marvel series Luke Cage on Netflix. In addition to performing she is also a composer.
Learn more at: brookederosa.com
PINKERTON
A native Los Angeleno, CHRISTIAN QUILICI holds degrees from Harvard College
and Oxford University. A young tenor, lauded by the New York Times for his
“admirable clarity” after his 2013 NY debut as Števa in Janáček’s Jenůfa, he has sung
throughout Europe and North America. Recent engagements include featured soloist
performances with the Verdi Opera Chorus and Opera San Luis Obispo and his debut of
Lykov in Independent Opera Company’s The Tsar’s Bride. He currently studies with
Joann Zajac and has been grateful to also have studied with William Stone at AVA,
Montserrat Caballé, Joel Ewing and Audrey Stottler.
YAMADORI
ADRIAN ROSALES is a lyric baritone from Portland, Oregon. He received his
Master’s Degree in Voice from the University of Southern California, where he studied
with renown baritone, Rod Gilfry. Rosales has performed and covered leading roles with
St. Petersburg Opera, Tacoma Opera, Long Beach Opera, Opera San Jose, the Aspen
Music Festival, Shreveport Opera, Pasadena Opera, and more. He is thrilled to be
performing the role of Prince Yamadori. Adrian's hobbies and skills include stand-up
comedy, cooking, video-gaming, and professional tax-preparation. Learn more at:
adrian-rosales.com
CAST & CREW BIOS
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GORO
H. WARING SHARPE, a Chicago native, has performed with Opera Noir, Opera
League of Los Angeles, African-Americans for Los Angeles Opera, William Grant Still
Music Festival, National Association of Negro Musicians, Bakersfield Symphony
Orchestra, Opera Pacific, Utah Opera Festival, and San Diego State University where he
is currently in preparation for the title role in a new opera about poet Paul Laurence
Dunbar. Mr. Sharpe was a Western Regional Finalist in the Met National Council
Auditions, a finalist in the Opera Guild of Palm Springs Competition, and a finalist in the
Loren L. Zachary National Voice Competition.
SUZUKI
American singer NANDANI MARIA SINHA is a lyric coloratura mezzo-soprano. She
performs locally with the Los Angeles Opera, Long Beach Opera, Opera Santa Barbara,
among many others. A recipient of many prestigious vocal awards, Ms. Sinha was the
first-prize winner in the 2012 Franz Liszt International Competition; and in 2014 earned
two additional International Prizes from the same organization. She has performed
throughout Europe and South Africa and was a 2013 & 2014 Marc and Eva Stern Fellow
at Songfest where she worked closely with John Musto, Jake Heggie, Margo Garrett and
Martin Katz. Learn more at: mezzonani.com
BUTTERFLY
Soprano DARIA SOMMERS, a Los Angeles native, was most recently featured as
Violetta in La traviata in Geneva, Switzerland with New York City Opera and Micaëla
in Carmen on their North American tour. She has performed the roles of Tosca, Donna
Elvira, Mimì, Fiordiligi, the Countess, and Suor Angelica, among others, with companies
such as Pacific Opera Project, Heartland Opera Theatre, High Desert Opera, Southern
Illinois Music Festival, Nevada Opera Theatre, and Montana Lyric Opera, as well as
many outreach engagements with LA Opera. Learn more at: dariasomers.com
STAGE DIRECTOR
In the throes of a preeminent performing career, ZEFFIN QUINN HOLLIS is
appearing as a principal artist at many of the world’s significant opera houses. Along
with performing, Zeffin is also an accomplished stage director and acting coach. His
productions have been on the stages of Opera Las Vegas; Los Angeles’ Dell Chamber
Opera; Heartland Opera Theatre; Wichita State University; California State Universities
Northridge & Long Beach; and at the Off Broadway Theater, the Lambs. Mr. Hollis is
the founder of Singing Actors' Lab in Los Angeles, and is also the resident stage director
and acting teacher for OperaWorks. Learn more at: zeffin.com
CAST & CREW BIOS
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COSTUME DESIGNER
ALYXX IANNETTA is a costumer & performer living in Los Angeles, and the
daughter of a professional craft seamstress and doll-maker who taught her to sew as a
child. She was bitten by the historical costume bug at age eleven when she started doing
Renaissance Faires and has never recovered. Over the years, she has costumed
everything from fully staged operas, music videos, and commercials to individual clients.
She is a contributing writer for Your Wardrobe Unlock'd and an active member of the
Costumer’s Guild West.
ASSOCIATE CONDUCTOR & CHORUS MASTER
TIMOTHY LEÓN is a uniquely diverse artist equally adept as an operatic tenor,
conductor, and a pianist specializing in the Italian repertoire. León has been featured with
such companies as Los Angeles Philharmonic, LA Opera, Los Angeles Master Chorale,
Pacific Chorale, Pacific Repertory Opera; and in Europe with Opera Toscana, Tuscia
Operafestival and Narnia Festival. Mr León has served as Artistic Advisor and
Conductor for Tuscia Opera Festival, and as Assistant Conductor for Pacific Opera
Project, Redlands Bowl Summer Music Festival, and the Narnia Festival in Italy. He is
Music Director for Celestial Opera Company.