Opera San José Unveils 2026-27 Artists-in-Residence Roster

Opera San José General Director & CEO Shawna Lucey has revealed the 2026–27 Artists-in-Residence, a group of distinguished opera professionals who will perform in the company’s four mainstage productions at the California Theatre throughout the upcoming season, launching September 13 with Mozart’s Don Giovanni. 

This season’s selected artists are María Brea (soprano), Shanley Horvitz (soprano), Rodrigo Gonzalez Jacob (conductor), Nicole Koh (soprano), Michael Jesse Kuo (baritone), Phillip Lopez (bass-baritone), Courtney Miller(mezzo-soprano), David Morgans (tenor), Micah Perry (tenor), Melissa Sondhi (soprano), Wm. Clay Thompson(bass), and Mark Anthony Vallejo (director). More information about each of the artists is below.

Recognized as a leading force in cultivating and nurturing emerging opera talent, Opera San José’s Artist-in-Residence Program serves as a thriving incubator, providing a fertile environment where promising artists can flourish and develop their skills to their fullest potential. Focused on giving the opera stars of tomorrow their “firsts,” OSJ puts rising artists center stage, on the podium, and in the director’s chair. Each Artist-in-Resident receives a personalized mentorship, allowing them to refine their technique while experimenting and exploring their artistic range. Additionally, OSJ’s Artist-in-Residence program provides free housing to its artists during their residency, an uncommon and significant commitment in a city with the highest price-to-rent ratio in the country. This benefit allows artists from around the country and the world to live and work in the heart of Silicon Valley. From mainstage productions to community engagements, Artists-in-Residence showcase their talents to diverse audiences in the theatre, the digital sphere, and in the community, gaining invaluable stage experience while building their professional portfolios.

All the Artists-in-Residence will be featured throughout Opera San José’s 43rd season, an exciting lineup that includes beloved operatic classics, a groundbreaking American musical, and the company’s first-ever opera by John Adams. The 2026–27 season opens with Mozart’s vivid retelling of the Don Juan legend, Don Giovanni (September 13–27, 2026). This masterful dramma giocosa, a blend of comedy and drama, follows the downfall of an arrogant and reckless serial philanderer. Later in the fall, OSJ will present the musical that revolutionized American theater, Fiddler on the Roof (November 15–29, 2026). Winner of nine Tony Awards, the beloved musical became the longest-running production in Broadway history at the time of its premiere, holding that distinction for a decade. The new year begins with the company’s first-ever John Adams opera, Doctor Atomic (February 14–28, 2027), presented in a new production honoring the renowned Berkeley-based composer’s 80th birthday. Featuring a libretto by Peter Sellars, the opera explores the intense psychological, moral, and technical pressures surrounding the creation of the first atomic bomb. The season concludes with Bizet’s passionate and dramatic masterpiece, Carmen (April 18–May 2, 2027). This tragic opera follows a soldier whose obsession with the fiery and free-spirited title character leads to devastating consequences. Featuring a roster of celebrated artists alongside exciting company debuts, Opera San José’s 43rd season showcases an extraordinary range of works spanning operatic masterpieces, groundbreaking contemporary repertoire, and iconic musical theater.

María Brea (soprano)

Venezuelan soprano María Brea returned to Arizona Opera in the 2025–26 season to reprise the role of Ana María Soza in Zorro. In the same season, she joined Opera in Williamsburg as the title role in Orfeo ed Euridice and made her Austin Opera debut as Mimì in La Bohème. Her additional highlights include her American Ballet Theatre debut in the U.S. premiere of Like Water for Chocolate at The Metropolitan Opera, as well as her Carnegie Hall debut as the soprano soloist in Carmina Burana with the Cecilia Chorus of New York. She has also appeared with Opera San José as Ana María in Zorro and as First Lady in The Magic Flute. Brea was a finalist in the 2022 Paris Competition and competed in the 2021 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition. She is a recipient of awards from the Opera Cultura, Gerda Lissner, Giulio Gari, Mary Truman Art Song, and New York Lyric Opera competitions, and received an encouragement award from the Metropolitan Opera National Council Connecticut District Auditions.

Shanley Horvitz (soprano)

After appearances throughout Europe, soprano Shanley Horvitz made her American debut as Meg Page in Falstaff with Opera San José, where she also earned second place in the company’s Irene Dalis Competition. She was additionally featured portraying Irene Dalis in OSJ’s digital fundraiser celebrating the company’s artistic legacy. Her other performance credits include the title role in La Vestale with Teatro Grattacielo, as well as appearances in Vienna at Palais Ehrbar with the PolyMuse Orchestra. She is a featured performer in the Candlelight Concerts series throughout the Philadelphia and New Jersey region.

Rodrigo Gonzalez Jacob (conductor)

Argentine conductor Rodrigo Gonzalez Jacob specializes in orchestral, ballet, and operatic repertoire. He previously served as chief conductor of the Academic Orchestra of the National University of the Arts (UNA), where he led more than one hundred symphonic and operatic productions. He also held the position of associate conductor of the National Symphonic Band for the Blind and has appeared as a guest conductor at major international festivals, including the Youth Orchestra of the Americas (YOA), the Isla Verde Bronces International Festival, and the Juvenile Philharmonic Festival. Jacob has collaborated with ensembles including the Oregon Symphony, Eugene Opera, Eugene Symphony, Eugene Ballet, Anchorage Symphony, Opera San José, Orchestra Next, Opera in Williamsburg, the Alabama Symphony, and the Oregon Mozart Players. He currently serves as assistant conductor of Eugene Ballet and music director of the Promusica Foundation. His artistic training includes advanced study and mentorship with the National Symphony Orchestra of Argentina, the Teatro Colón, and the Federal Conducting Fellowship program.

Nicole Koh (soprano)

Daly City, California native soprano Nicole Koh has appeared with Opera San José in the roles of Annina (La Traviata), Despina (Così Fan Tutte), and both the Queen of the Night and Papagena (The Magic Flute). She has also performed Gretel (Hansel and Gretel) with Chautauqua Opera, as well as the title role in Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen with the Chautauqua Opera Conservatory. Additional credits include covering the role of Winnie in Sky on Swings, singing the title role in L’incoronazione di Poppea, and performing Nella in Gianni Schicchi.

Michael Jesse Kuo (baritone)

Praised by Opera Tattler for his “bright and robust lyrical voice and spirited Stage Presence,” Taiwanese baritone Michael Jesse Kuo has performed throughout the United States and Europe. In the 2025–26 season at Opera San José, he covered Sharpless in Madama Butterfly, Alfio and Silvio in Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci, and performed the role of the Marchese while also covering Germont in La Traviata. Kuo has appeared with companies including San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera Studio Weimar, Pocket Opera, San Francisco Opera Guild, and West Edge Opera. His repertoire includes Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore, Schaunard and Marullo in La Bohème, Papageno and Second Priest in The Magic Flute, Officer in The Barber of Seville, and Marullo in Rigoletto.

Phillip Lopez (bass-baritone)

Baritone Phillip Lopez is earning growing acclaim in both new and established repertoire across the United States. In the 2026–27 season, he will appear as Le Temps/Adonis in Rameau’s Les surprises de L’amour with Opera Lafayette. His past credits include Curio in Giulio Cesare and Schaunard in La Bohème with St. Petersburg Opera Company, Abdul in The Last Savage with Odyssey Opera, and Sid and José Castro in La fanciulla del West with Wichita Grand Opera. He made his Carnegie Hall debut as the bass soloist in Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music. Signature roles in his repertoire include Angelotti in Tosca and Zuniga in Carmen. Lopez can also be heard on several studio recordings, including The Last Savage with Odyssey Opera and the Boston Modern Opera Project. He is a two-time district winner of The Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition.

Courtney Miller (mezzo-soprano)

Mezzo-soprano Courtney Miller will appear in June as Ruggiero in Alcina with Festival Opera and the San Francisco Early Music Society. Her additional credits include Despina in Così Fan Tutte with Livermore Valley Opera, Elmire in Tartuffe with Pocket Opera, Warren’s Wife in The Handmaid’s Tale with San Francisco Opera, Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro with Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera, and Berta in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Opera San José. She has also performed with Florida Grand Opera, Detroit Opera, Madison Opera, and aboard Azamara Club Cruises. An award-winning recitalist, Miller is recognized for curating narrative-driven programs that often highlight works by female composers. She is also a dedicated arts educator, working with the San Francisco Opera Guild and touring her children’s recital, How’s it bee?

David Morgans (tenor)

Three-time Grammy Award–winning tenor David Morgans will also serve as a Generational Voices Fellow with the Denyce Graves Foundation in the 2026–27 season. His credits include Narraboth in Salome with Heartbeat Opera; covering Kevin Richardson in The Central Park Five at Detroit Opera; Third Jew in Salome with Union Avenue Opera; and a featured appearance in a semi-staged concert with Metro Opera Tech at the Kaufmann Center in New York City. Additional highlights include Ally in X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X at the Metropolitan Opera, Lensky in Eugene Onegin with Opera Baltimore, and Nate in Highway 1 USA at St Stephens Festival Opera.

At the Metropolitan Opera, Morgans has appeared as Pledge in Fire Shut Up in My Bones, Prayer in Porgy and Bess, and in Terrence Blanchard’s Champion. All three productions received Grammy Awards for Best Opera Recording. He can be seen as Julio (tenor) in the feature film “She Came to Me,” directed by Rebecca Miller, alongside Anne Hathaway, Peter Dinklage, and Marisa Tomei.

Micah Perry (tenor)

In the 2025–26 season, tenor Micah Perry covered the role of Ferrando in Così Fan Tutte and performed Beppe in Pagliacci with Opera San José. That same season, he also appeared as Will Parker in Oklahoma! with Pensacola Opera, following his 2024–25 engagement as a Jan Miller Studio Artist with the company, where he sang Don Basilio, Curzio, and Beppe in mainstage productions. In the summer of 2025, Perry was a Gerdine Young Artist with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and returned this summer as a Gerdine Young Artist, currently performing with the company as Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet. He has also appeared with Wolf Trap Opera, Austin Opera, American Baroque Opera, Landlocked Opera, Quisisana Resort, and Festival Napa Valley. Perry is a recipient of Second Place in the 2025 Gulf Coast Region Laffont Competition.

Melissa Sondhi (soprano)

Indian American soprano Melissa Sondhi is an emerging artist on the rise. In the 2025–26 season, she made her European debut with Parma OperArt, performing in concerts in both Tallinn, Estonia, and Busseto, Italy. That same season, she also made her Ars Minerva debut, performing the roles of Venere and Pasithea in the West Coast premiere of Antonia Bembo’s Ercole Amante. Sondhi has appeared with Opera San José as the inaugural recipient of the Wadhwani Chair for South Asian Artists in roles including Juliette (Roméo et Juliette), Gilda (Rigoletto), Musetta (La Bohème), and Pamina (The Magic Flute). She has also been seen with Pocket Opera as Adele (Die Fledermaus) and Mariane (Tartuffe). In 2025, she was a semifinalist in the prestigious Loren L. Zachary Competition, and in 2023 she won first place in the Adult Classical Voice category at the Los Angeles Semifinals of the Music International Grand Prix Competition.

Wm. Clay Thompson (bass)

Bass Wm. Clay Thompson is emerging as one of the most promising artists of his generation. In the 2026–27 season, he will perform Oroveso in Norma with Madison Opera. His 2025–26 season engagements included Colline in La Bohème with Madison Opera; Mark Torrance/Forest Ranger in The Shining with Nashville Opera; Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Charleston Opera Theater; Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro with Finger Lakes Opera; and bass soloist in Defiant Requiem with the Syracuse Orchestra. An alumnus of the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Ryan Opera Center, his mainstage credits there included the King in Aida, Zuniga in Carmen, and Chevalier Deux in Le Comte Ory, as well as cover roles such as Alidoro in La Cenerentola, Rychtar in Jenůfa, and Arnie Duncan in the world premiere of Proximity. His performance history spans major companies including The Metropolitan Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Minnesota Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, and Château de Versailles Spectacles.

Mark Anthony Vallejo (director)

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