MEET THE CAST OF THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO: SOPRANOS & MEZZO-SOPRANOS
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Get to know the fabulous sopranos & mezzo-sopranos of The Marriage of Figaro, including a Metropolitan Opera star and two singers making their company debuts.
THE SOPRANOS
ROBIN STEITZ as Susanna
HOMETOWN: Washington, DC
ROLE CALL: A 2020 OD Young Artist and winner of the Buffalo/Toronto District 2019 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Robin is quickly establishing herself as one of opera’s most exciting stars. After her OD debut was postponed in 2020 (she was slated to appear in the canceled Festival productions of The Coronation of Poppea and The Tales of Hoffmann), she returned in 2021 to wow audiences as a soloist in Shakespeare in Song and in 2022 as a featured artist in our Sunday Spotlight recital series. Her other recent engagements include Giulia in La scala di seta with Opera Southwest, Berta in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Finger Lakes Opera, and Cricket in The Cricket Recovers with Tanglewood Music Center.
FUN FACT: “Before pursuing a professional career in voice, I had a couple different careers including high school calculus teacher and professional jumper/horse rider and trainer!”
TONI MARIE PALMERTREE as Countess Almaviva
HOMETOWN: Fleetwood, PA
ROLE CALL: OD audiences will remember Toni Marie from her stunning performances in last spring’s Al Fresco Arias. A former Adler Fellow, she’s currently covering the role of Cio-Cio San in Madama Butterfly with The Metropolitan Opera, and next season she’ll cover the title role of the company’s much-anticipated production of Medea. Toni Marie’s other recent engagements include Liu in Turandot with San Francisco Opera and the title role in Luisa Miller with Lyric Opera of Chicago. Of her Luisa, the Chicago Daily Herald raved: “Palmertree sang with stunning clarity, her voice practically shimmering in its upper range, yet with formidable power even below middle C. Her range of emotional delivery was equally broad, capable of playing both the lion and the lamb.”
OFFSTAGE: “I love to roller skate and decorate cakes, although I've never tried to do both at the same time.”
HANNAH VON RIESEN as Barbarina (OD debut)
HOMETOWN: Storm Lake, IA
ROLE CALL: Praised for her “bright, clear sound and alluring stage presence” (Opera News), Hannah’s recent engagements include Clorinde in Cendrillon with Manhattan School of Music Opera Theater, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos with International School of the Voice, and Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro with Des Moines Metro Opera (Apprentice Scenes Program).
FUN FACT: Hannah has been featured on PBS for her creative music lessons for children about world music and opera. She also has an impressive collection of world instruments and teaches ukulele classes.
THE MEZZO-SOPRANOS
CLAUDIA CHAPA as Marcellina
HOMETOWN: Laredo, TX
ROLE CALL: Celebrated for her “earthy, distinctive mezzo” (Opera News) and “arresting stage presence” (The Austin Chronicle), Claudia is an in-demand performer and concert curator specializing in Hispanic/Latinx programming. OD audiences will remember Claudia from her mesmerizing performances as a soloist in Opera Uncorked: Verdi, Verismo & Vino (2019) and Zita in Gianni Schicchi and Buoso's Ghost (2018). Other recent engagements include performer/co-curator of Entre Amigos with Fort Worth Opera, Josefina in El Milagro del Recuerdo with Arizona Opera, and Filipyevna in Eugene Onegin with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Earlier this season, she was named the inaugural curator of Hispanic and Latinx programming for Austin Opera.
OFFSTAGE: Claudia is proud to collaborate with Austin Classical Guitar on the Lullaby Project, which pairs artists with pregnant women and new parents to create and perform personal lullabies to help strengthen the bond between parent and child, support maternal health, and aid childhood development.
LAUREN COOK as Cherubino (OD debut)
HOMETOWN: Philadelphia, PA
ROLE CALL: Hailed for her commanding stage presence and “full bodied" and "nuanced" voice (Indie Opera and Boston Musical Intelligencer), Lauren recently earned raves as Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro with Virginia Opera. Her other recent appearances include Antonia in Man of La Mancha and Camacho in Don Quichotte at Camacho’s Wedding with Opera Saratoga, and Hannah After in As One with Painted Sky Opera. Next season, she’ll take on the role of the Composer in Ariadne auf Naxos with Arizona Opera.
OFFSTAGE: “I have been on several solo cross-country road trips, I'm a big fan of hiking, and I love to read.”