The Marriage of Figaro at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion

From: Odessa, Texas. LA Opera: Jesus in St. Matthew Passion (2022, debut); Sharpless in Madama Butterfly (2024); Figaro in The Marriage of Figaro (2027). In the 2025/26 season, American bass-baritone Michael Sumuel, lauded as having “vocals that are smooth and ingratiating” (Daily Camera) will return to the Metropolitan Opera as Papageno in Julie Taymor’s The Magic Flute, sing Porgy in Porgy and Bess at Houston Grand Opera, Leporello in Don Giovanni at the Bayerische Staatsoper, Achilla in Giulio Cesare at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, as well as his role deubt as Alberich in Wagner’s complete Ring cycle, also at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Concert highlights include Brahms’ Requiem with the San Diego Symphony, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at St. John the Divine in New York City for New Year’s Eve.

From: Redding, California. LA Opera: Mélisande in Pelléas et Mélisande (2023, debut); Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro (2027). Sydney Mancasola began her musical training as a classical violinist in her home state of California. She went on to study voice at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio, where she completed her Bachelor of Music degree in 2011 and was the recipient of the Margot Bos Standler Scholarship. Mancasola was previously a member of the ensemble at Oper Frankfurt, where her roles included Gilda in Rigoletto, Musetta in La Bohème, Pamina in The Magic Flute, Onoria in Handel’s Ezio, the Italian Singer in Capriccio, Roxana in Szymanowski’s Król Roger, Frasquita in Carmen, Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro and the soprano soloist in a new production of Mozart’s Betulia liberata. Elsewhere in Europe, she has appeared at the Opéra National de Paris, Opéra Comique, the Opera Nice Côte d’Azur, Dutch National Opera, Oper Köln, Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa, Luzerner Theater and London’s English National Opera. In North America, she has appeared at the Metropolitan Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, LA Opera, Washington National Opera, Des Moines Metropolitan Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Florida Grand Opera and the Opera Theatre of St Louis.

From: East Greenwich, Rhode Island. LA Opera: her appearances include Mrs. Naidoo in Satyagraha (2018, debut); Annina in La Traviata (2019); Musetta in La Bohème (2019 and 2026); title role in Eurydice (2020); Shepherd in Tannhäuser (2021); Clorinda in Cinderella (2021); Donna Clara in The Dwarf (2024); Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte (2025); Countess in The Marriage of Figaro (2027). She is an alumna of the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program (2018-20). American soprano Erica Petrocelli, whom the New York Times exclaimed, “[is] the vocal standout…with a mellow, sweetly fetching timbre, flashes of brightness and elegant expressivity” returns to LA Opera in the 2025/26 season as Musetta in La Bohème. Other appearances include Marguerite in Faust, a role debut, at Opera Western Reserve in Ohio, and the cover of Micaëla in Carmen at the Metropolitan Opera.

From: Raleigh, North Carolina. LA Opera: Figaro in The Barber of Seville (2009, debut); Figaro in The Ghosts of Versailles (2015); Wolfram in Tannhäuser (2021); Count in The Marriage of Figaro (2023 and 2027); title role in Don Giovanni (2024). Grammy Award-winning baritone Lucas Meachem, dubbed a “rock star of opera” by Opera Pulse, is renowned for his mastery of a wide variety of leading operatic roles, as well as the creation of new ones. An artist whose genuine warmth and enthusiasm resonate deeply with both audiences and colleagues, Meachem is lauded for his “exceptionally compelling” (Seen and Heard International) performances as he continues to captivate audiences worldwide with his “earnest, appealing baritone” (New York Times).

From: Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania. LA Opera: Count in The Marriage of Figaro (2027, debut). Baritone Jarrett Ott, one of Opera News’ "25 Rising Stars,” and called “a man who is seemingly incapable of an unmusical phrase,” is enjoying an international career. In the 2025/26 season, Mr. Ott will return to the Santa Fe Opera and Lyric Opera Kansas City as Sharpless in Madama Butterfly, Seattle Opera as Hawkins Fuller in Fellow Travelers, and Papageno in The Magic Flute with Opéra de Lille. In concert, he will make his Carnegie Hall recital debut with pianist Kunal Lahiry, a program they will also perform at the Théâtre de l’Athénée in Paris, Pascal Dusapin’s Antigone at the Philharmonie de Paris, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Eun Sun Kim and the Minnesota Orchestra, and Ralph Vaughan Williams’ A Sea Symphony with the Seattle Symphony.

From: Laguna Beach, California. LA Opera: Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro (2027, debut). Praised for her "shimmering mezzo-soprano" and a voice of "pure vocal gold," mezzo-soprano Kayleigh Decker is quickly garnering an international reputation for her artistry and versatility in opera and on the concert platform. Highlights of the 2025/26 season include house and role debuts as Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni with Florentine Opera, Belle in Philip Glass's La Belle et la Bete at Atlanta Opera, and Zephyrus in Die Grosse Stille at Hamburg State Opera, as well as a return to Cincinnati Opera as Mercedes in Carmen. On the concert platform, Decker will perform in a gala concert with Opera Edwardsville, a recital of Scandinavian song with Cincinnati Song Initiative, and will return to Copenhagen as the alto soloist in Messiah with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Mogens Dahl.

From: Como, Italy. LA Opera: Dr. Bartolo in The Marriage of Figaro (2027, debut). In 1990, bass-baritone Maurizio Muraro won the first prize in the Katia Ricciarelli International Singing Competition. This was followed in 1994 by the first prize in the Concorso Europeo di Spoleto and the Eberhard Waechter Prize as the best singer of the Vienna State Opera from 1999-2000. Maurizio Muraro’s career began in Spoleto with L’elisir d’amore, where he won over critics and audiences alike as Dulcamara. Since then his career has taken him to all the major opera houses, where he has worked with conductors such as Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, Ivor Bolton, Sir Colin Davis, Mark Elder, Philippe Jordan, James Levine, Alessandro de Marchi, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Daniel Oren, Seiji Ozawa, Antonio Pappano, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Christian Thielemann and Marcello Viotti.

From: Seoul, South Korea. LA Opera: Suzuki in Madama Butterfly (2024, debut); Mistress Quickly in Falstaff (2026); Marcellina in The Marriage of Figaro (2027). Praised by the New York Times as a “vibrant mezzo-soprano” and a “dark-toned, agile mezzo-soprano,” Hyona Kim continues to captivate audiences worldwide with her vocal depth, dramatic range, and commanding stage presence. In the 2025/26 season, she will make highly anticipated debuts at the Metropolitan Opera and Irish National Opera as Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, and at the Korea National Opera as Brangäne in Tristan und Isolde. She also returns to LA Opera as Mistress Quickly in Falstaff, following her acclaimed company debut as Suzuki last season. From 2018 to 2023, Kim was a principal artist with Dortmund Opera, where her repertoire included Suzuki (Madama Butterfly), Tzippie (Where the Wild Things Are by Oliver Knussen), Nancy Tang (Nixon in China), Ortrud (Lohengrin), Amneris (Aïda), and the title role in the German premiere of Frédégonde by Guiraud, Dukas, and Saint-Saëns.

From: Manila, Philippines. LA Opera: Goro in Madama Butterfly (2012, debut; 2024); Spoletta in Tosca (2013); Bardolph in Falstaff (2013); Monostatos in The Magic Flute (2013); First Jew in Salome (2017); Spalanzani in The Tales of Hoffmann (2017); Don Basilio in The Marriage of Figaro (2022 and 2027); Goro in Madama Butterfly (2024). Grammy-nominated tenor Rodell Aure Rosel appears regularly in major opera houses, including the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, LA Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and London's Royal Opera House. He is primarily known for his superb portrayals of character roles: Monostatos, Goro, Mime and Loge, Basilio, Tanzmeister, Spoletta, and the Four Servants in The Tales of Hoffmann.

From: Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario. LA Opera: Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly (2024, debut); Voice of the Fountain in Ainadamar (2025); Countess Ceprano / Page in Rigoletto (2025); Frasquita in Carmen (2026); Barbarina in The Marriage of Figaro (2027). She joined the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program in 2024. American/Canadian soprano Gabrielle Turgeon is garnering acclaim across North America for a voice critics describe as possessing “the sheen of a seasoned professional,” with a timbre that is “generous, round and luminous”. Critics have also highlighted her compelling stage presence—“visceral… physically and emotionally committed, while the vocal line always remains controlled.” Turgeon’s blend of vocal polish and expressive depth continues to mark her as a rising artist to watch.

From: Serra, Espírito Santo, Brazil. LA Opera: Le Remendado in Carmen (2026, debut); Cacambo in Candide (2026); Abdallo in Nabucco (2027); Don Curzio in The Marriage of Figaro (2027). He joins the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program in the 2026/27 season. Brazilian tenor Samuel Wallace, a member of the Internationales Opernstudio at Opernhaus Zürich. He receives the vital support of the Ibáñez Atkinson Foundation, an institution dedicated to fostering his professional trajectory and development. Recently, in 2024 Samuel Wallace won second place in both the Joaquina Lapinha Vocal Competition and the Natércia Lopes Vocal Competition, in addition to reaching the semifinals of the Paris Opera Competition (2025) in France and being a finalist in the Maria Callas Vocal Competition in Brazil (2024).

From: São Paulo, Brazil. LA Opera: Imperial Commissioner in Madama Butterfly (2024, debut); Duke of Verona in Roméo et Juliette (2024); Jose Tripaldi in Ainadamar (2025); Count Ceprano in Rigoletto (2025); Aye in Akhnaten (2025); Pistol in Falstaff (2026); Zuniga in Carmen (2026); James/Martin in Candide (2026); Mandarin in Turandot (2027); Antonio in The Marriage of Figaro (2027). He joined the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program in 2024. Bass Vinícius Costa has been a Renée Fleming Artist at the Aspen Music Festival, singing the title role in The Marriage of Figaro and the role of Victor Fyodorov in Jimmy Lopez's Bel Canto. In the summer of 2026, he will be a Gaddes Festival Artist with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, where he will appear as Count Capulet in Roméo et Juliette. He sang the roles of Amaral and the Father in a recently released recording of Brazilian composer André Mehmari's 2023 opera O Machete.

Internationally recognized as one of today’s most versatile and respected conductors, James Conlon has cultivated a vast symphonic, operatic and choral repertoire. Since his 1974 debut with the New York Philharmonic, he has conducted virtually every major American and European symphony orchestra, and at many of the world’s leading opera houses including the Metropolitan Opera. Through worldwide touring, an extensive discography and filmography, numerous writings, television appearances, and guest speaking engagements, Conlon is one of classical music’s most recognized and prolific figures. He was previously Principal Conductor of the RAI National Symphony Orchestra in Torino, Italy (2016–20); Principal Conductor of the Paris Opera (1995–2004); General Music Director of the City of Cologne, Germany (1989–2003), simultaneously leading the Gürzenich Orchestra and the Cologne Opera; and Music Director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra (1983–91). He was Music Director of the Ravinia Festival (2005–15), summer home of the Chicago Symphony, and is now Music Director Laureate of the Cincinnati May Festival―the oldest Choral Festival in the United States―where he was Music Director for 37 years (1979–2016), marking one of the longest tenures of any director of an American classical music institution. He also served as Artistic Advisor of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (2021–2023).

James Gray studied film at the University of Southern California. In 1994, his debut film, Little Odessa, starring Tim Roth, won the Silver Lion at the Venice International Film Festival. He followed this with The Yards (2000) and We Own the Night (2007), both starring Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg, and Two Lovers (2008) starring Joaquin Phoenix and Gwyneth Paltrow. In 2013, he had a great success with The Immigrant, a historical human drama starring Marion Cotillard. Three years later, The Lost City of Z, starring Charlie Hunnam, explored a quest for identity in the heart of the Amazon. His sci-fi space epic Ad Astra, starring Brad Pitt, was released in 2019, followed by Armageddon Time, with Anne Hathaway, Anthony Hopkins and Jeremy Strong, in 2022. His work is regularly seen at the Cannes Film Festival and Venice Film Festival, and the Cinémathèque Française presented a retrospective of his work in 2019.

Santo Loquasto is widely known as a designer for theater, film, opera and dance. He has won both Tony and Drama Desk Awards for his set design of Cafe Crown in 1989 and for his costume designs for The Cherry Orchard in 1977 and Grand Hotel in 1990, as well as a Tony Award for costume designs for Hello, Dolly! in 2017. He received a Drama Desk Award for his set design for Glengarry Glen Ross in 2005. He has earned 22 Tony nominations to date. He has worked with Woody Allen on over 30 films and his costume designs for Allen’s Zelig and production designs for Radio Days and Bullets Over Broadway received Academy Award nominations. He has worked with most major international dance companies. His designs for the Metropolitan Opera include Luisa Miller, A View from the Bridge, Salome and Faust. In 2004, he was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.

From: Arles, France. LA Opera: The Marriage of Figaro (2023, debut). Christian Lacroix studied classics and art history, then turned to fashion. He began at Hermès and then at Guy Paulin before taking over the artistic direction of the Jean Patou fashion house from 1982 to 1987, when he created his own fashion house. Since the 1980s, he has designed costumes for theater, opera and ballet. More recently, he has become an industrial designer (TGV, hotels, Cinémas Pathé Gaumont) and a scenographer for his own work.

Lighting designer York Kennedy's work has been seen in theaters across America and in Europe, including Arena Stage, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Seattle Repertory, American Conservatory Theatre, Alley Theatre, Dallas Theatre Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music and the Denver Center. Awards for theatrical lighting include the Dramalogue, San Diego Drama Critics Circle, Back Stage West Garland, and the Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Award. As an architectural lighting designer, he has designed numerous themed environments, theme park, residential, retail, restaurant and museum projects including the Sony Metreon Sendak Playspace in San Francisco, Warner Bros. Movie World in Madrid, Le Centre de Loisirs in Morocco and the LEGO Racers 4D attractions in Germany, Denmark, England and the USA.

Since joining LA Opera in 2007, he has served as associate chorus director (since 2011) and assistant conductor, and he has worked closely with the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program. Before becoming Chorus Director, he previously directed the LA Opera Chorus for the Plácido Domingo 50th Anniversary Concert (2017) and for The Clemency of Titus (2019). One of his generation’s most respected pianists and vocal coaches, he has collaborated with major opera houses throughout the United States. He has assisted in the preparation of operas and vocal chamber music at the LA Philharmonic. As a pianist, he has partnered with Sondra Radvanovsky, J'Nai Bridges, Eric Owens, Brandon Jovanovich, Rodell Rosel, Dolora Zajick, Kate Lindsey and Susan Graham. He accompanied Joyce DiDonato at the 54th Grammy Awards, the first time the ceremony featured a performance by a classical singer.

Kitty McNamee is an artist, a creator and, most importantly, a collaborator. Her unique approach to direction and choreography was declared by Dance Magazine to possess “an outsize talent for that most elusive gift, originality.” Kitty’s dance films have screened at over 50 festivals worldwide. Kitty has a long and fruitful relationship with the LA Philharmonic, where she has choreographed, directed, and developed new productions including Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Wing on Wing, Rite of Spring, The Firebird, Ellington/Nutcracker with Gustavo Dudamel and many more. Opera work includes Turandot, The Marriage of Figaro, Romeo et Juliette, La Traviata, Don Carlo, La Rondine, Lucia di Lammermoor and The Tales of Hoffmann for LA Opera, San Francisco Opera , San Diego Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago. Theater credits include Colony Collapse (Boston Court), Sense and Sensibility (South Coast Rep), The Fantasticks (Pasadena Playhouse), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (LA Phil/Disney Hall), Man of LaMancha (Reprise!) and Sondheim’s 75th (Hollywood Bowl). She moves effortlessly between her work for the stage and campaigns for Target, Adobe MAX, Zimmerman, Mercedes Benz, Grey Ant and Uniglo.