Artists

Evelyn Herlitzius, Brünnhilde

Acclaimed for her portrayals of some of the most demanding roles in the dramatic soprano repertory, Evelyn Herlitzius makes her highly-anticipated Company debut as Brünnhilde. Herlitzius has performed with the leading opera houses of Europe, including Vienna State Opera, Munich’s Bavarian State Opera, Deutscher Oper Berlin and Teatro alla Scala in Milan. Read more.

Greer Grimsley, Wotan

Greer Grimsley made his San Francisco Opera debut as Scarpia in the 2001 production of Tosca and returned as Count Monterone (Rigoletto), Jokanaan (Salome) and in the title role of Der Fliegende Holländer. He garnered critical acclaim in 2005, 2009 and 2013 as Wotan/the Wanderer in Seattle Opera’s Ring cycle, which he also performed in Cologne (2010) and at the Metropolitan Opera (2013). Read more.

Daniel Brenna, Siegfried

American tenor Daniel Brenna makes his Company debut as Siegfried in Siegfried and Götterdämmerung. He appeared as Siegfried in Francesca Zambello’s production of the Ring at Washington National Opera in May 2016. The Washington Post applauded Brenna’s “robust sound,” declaring, “this singer is definitely someone to watch.” Internationally known for his portrayal of Siegfried, Brenna has performed the role in Budapest, Stuttgart, the Longborough Festival and at Opéra de Dijon (in Dijon’s 2013 Ring cycle, he also performed Siegmund in Die Walküre). Read more.

Karita Mattila, Sieglinde

Finnish soprano Karita Mattila is recognized internationally for the beauty and versatility of her lyric voice and the dramatic intensity of her performances. She made her San Francisco Opera debut as Ilia in the 1989 production of Idomeneo and subsequently has appeared with the Company as Eva (Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg), in her role debut as Elsa (Lohengrin), in the title roles of Kát’a Kabanová and Manon Lescaut and as Emilia Marty in The Makropulos Case. Read more.

Brandon Jovanovich, Siegmund / Froh

Tenor Brandon Jovanovich has been a frequent performer at San Francisco Opera, including as Walther von Stolzing in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg in 2015 and in the Company’s Susannah in 2014, Lohengrin in 2012, and Ring cycle in 2011. Recent career highlights include Sergei in Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and Don José in Carmen at the Metropolitan Opera; Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and San Francisco Symphony. Read more.

Stefan Margita, Loge

Tenor Štefan Margita made his San Francisco Opera debut as Walther von der Vogelweide in the Fall 2007 production of Tannhäuser, and he made his critically acclaimed role debut as Loge in the Company’s 2008 production of Das Rheingold. Margita has performed Laca Klemen (Jenůfa) to great acclaim at opera houses and festivals around the world, including the Glyndebourne Festival, Munich’s Bavarian State Opera, the Saito Kinen Festival, Berlin’s Linden Opera, Prague National Theatre, the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, Oviedo Opera, Houston Grand Opera and in Antwerp, Tel Aviv and Lyon. Read more.

Falk Struckmann, Alberich

One of opera’s foremost Wagnerians, German bass-baritone Falk Struckmann made his debut at the Bayreuth Festival in 1993 as Kurwenal in Tristan und Isolde under Daniel Barenboim and later appeared there in the Ring under James Levine and Christian Thielemann. In the Ring, he has performed Wotan, Fafner, Hunding, and Hagen and, for his San Francisco Opera debut, will take on the role of Alberich in Das Rheingold, Siegfried and Götterdämmerung for the first time. Read more.

Andrea Silvestrelli, Hagen / Fasolt

Bass Andrea Silvestrelli made his San Francisco Opera debut in 1998 as Oroveso in Norma and returned as Fasolt (Das Rheingold), Il Talpa (Il Tabarro) and Simone (Gianni Schicchi) in the Company’s production of Il Trittico and as Osmin (Die Entführung aus dem Serail), Fasolt and Hagen in the 2011 Ring cycle, Sparafucile (Rigoletto) and Basilio (Il Barbiere di Siviglia). His most recent Company appearances included Wurm in Luisa Miller, Night Watchman in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and The Grand Inquisitor in Don Carlo. Read more.

Jamie Barton, Fricka / Waltraute

A winner of the 2007 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, the 2013 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition, and a Grammy nominee, mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton made her San Francisco Opera debut in 2014 with Adalgisa in Norma. Her recent engagements include Giovanna Seymour (Anna Bolena) with Lyric Opera of Chicago, Fricka (Die Walküre) with Houston Grand Opera, and performances with the orchestras of Atlanta, Baltimore, Pittsburgh and Toronto. Read more.

David Cangelosi, Mime

Tenor David Cangelosi made his Company debut in 1999 as Sellem in The Rake’s Progress and has since appeared as Valzacchi (Der Rosenkavalier) and Mime (Das Rheingold). He made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Mime and also sang the role throughout the entire Ring cycle at Lyric Opera of Chicago and on the recording Domingo: Scenes from the Ring (EMI Records). Read more.

Raymond Aceto, Hunding / Fafner

Bass Raymond Aceto made his debut with San Francisco Opera in 1997 as Monterone in Rigoletto and has returned as Banquo in Macbeth, the King of Egypt in Aida, Hunding in Die Walküre, Timur in Turandot and Reverend Olin Blitch in Susannah, among other roles. He has also appeared frequently with the Metropolitan Opera, most recently as Zaccaria in Nabucco, the King of Egypt, Il Commendatore in Don Giovanni and Sparafucile in Rigoletto. Read more.

Brian Mulligan, Gunther / Donner

American baritone Brian Mulligan made his San Francisco Opera debut as Marcello (La Bohème) with Maestro Nicola Luisotti in 2008 and has since returned as Valentin (Faust), Albert (Werther), Sharpless (Madama Butterfly), the King’s Herald (Lohengrin) and as the title role in Nixon in China. He returned in 2014 as Count Anckarström (Un Ballo in Maschera), as well as Marcello, and appeared as Chorèbe (Les Troyens) with Maestro Donald Runnicles during the summer of 2015. Read more.

Ronnita Miller, Erda / 1st Norn

American mezzo-soprano Ronnita Miller made her San Francisco Opera debut in 2011 as Erda in the Ring. She continues her upward career trajectory as a member of the permanent ensemble at Deutsche Oper Berlin; new roles this season include Ulrika in Un Ballo in Maschera and Madelon in Andrea Chénier as well as revival appearances in some of the roles that have brought her the admiration of Berlin audiences such as Marthe Schwertlein in Faust and her signature roles in the Ring, Erda and First Norn. Read more.

Melissa Citro, Gutrune

American soprano Melissa Citro made her San Francisco Opera debut in the Company’s 2011 Ring in which she sang the roles of Freia in Das Rheingold, Ortlinde in Die Walküre and Gutrune in Götterdämmerung. In the 2015–16 Season, she made her Washington National Opera debut as Gutrune, returned to New Orleans Opera as Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus, and made her debut with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in Mahler’s Second Symphony. Read more.

Stacey Tappan, Woglinde / Forest Bird

Stacey Tappan made her San Francisco Opera debut as Woglinde and the Forest Bird in the 2011 Ring cycle, two roles that she has previously performed with Los Angeles Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago. The soprano’s career highlights include Adele (Die Fledermaus) with the Glyndebourne Festival; Gilda (Rigoletto) in Lille and Dijon; Despina (Così fan tutte) with the Jacksonville Symphony; the Wren (The Birds), Virtú and Pallade (L'Incoronazione di Poppea), the Dew Fairy (Hänsel und Gretel), Miss Wordsworth (Albert Herring), and Clorinda (La Cenerentola) with Los Angeles Opera; and Beth (Little Women) with Houston Grand Opera. Read more.

Lauren McNeese, Wellgunde

Mezzo-soprano Lauren McNeese made her San Francisco Opera debut as Wellgunde in 2008’s Das Rheingold, a role she has performed at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Los Angeles Opera. McNeese returned to the role for the 2011 Ring cycle and performed Rossweisse (Die Walküre). She made her Los Angeles Opera debut as Thibault (Don Carlo) and has since returned there as Javotte (Manon), Karolka (Jenůfa), Zerlina (Don Giovanni), La Ciesca (Gianni Schicchi), and the Second Lady, among other roles. Read more.

Renée Tatum, Flosshilde

Mezzo-soprano Renée Tatum, a former Adler Fellow, made her Company debut in 2009 as Annina (La Traviata) and has returned as Inez (Il Trovatore), a Novice (Suor Angelica), a Slave (Salome), Emilia (Otello), and Flosshilde and Grimgerde in the 2011 Ring cycle. Currently in her final year of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, she made her Met debut in 2009 as Inez, performed Fenena (Nabucco) and Háta (The Bartered Bride), andcovered Pauline (The Queen of Spades) with that company. Read more.