JPAS' LA BOHEME Tours New Orleans & the Northshore, Hits The Road 10/23

Jefferson Performing Arts Society (JPAS) is thrilled to present Puccini's most beloved opera LA BOHEME. Starring an international cast of operatic talent including HIROKO MORITA (Milano, Italy) as Mimi, JUAN VALLS (Montevideo, Uruguay) as Rodolfo, NANCY ROSS as Musetta, Victor Garcia SIERRA (Verona, Italy) as Marcello, LEON TURNER as Colline, GREGORY GERBRANDT as Shaunard and Alan Payne as Benoit/Alcindoro. LA BOHEME is directed by SEBASTIANO SALVATO (Rome, Italy) with chorus master DONNA CLAVIJO and the JPAS Symphony Orchestra conducted by Maestro DENNIS G. ASSAF. LA BOHEME will be on stage for ONE NIGHT ONLY at the following venues:

Saturday, October 23 at 7:30PM ~ Northshore Harbor Center, 100 Harbor Blvd in Slidell,
Wednesday, October 27 at 7:30PM ~ Tulane University's Dixon Hall, 6329 Freret St in New Orleans
Saturday, November 6 at 7:30PM Benet Hall at Saint Joseph Abbey, 75376 River Rd in Covington

Tickets are General Admission $15-40 and vary by venue, performance, section and age. To reserve tickets or for more info on this production, visit www.jpas.org or call (local) 504-885-2000 or toll free 1-877-884-JPAS. Maestro Dennis G. Assaf conducts Puccini's most beloved opera. This heartwarming story of starving artists falling in and out of love in 19th-century Paris is a seamless mix of romantic passion, poignant tragedy and high-spirited fun. Maestro Assaf and the JPAS Symphony Orchestra are joined by a cast of international operatic talent for this masterpiece of Grand Opera.

Hiroko Morita of Milano, Italy stars as Mimi. Morita was born in Kyoto, Japan. She graduated cum laude in Voice at the State University of Fine Arts and Music of Tokyo. She received a Master degree from the same University under the guidance of celebrated soprano Yasuko Hayashi. She obtained scholarships from the Nomura Scholarship Foundation, the Japanese Government and the Italian government. She has performed around the world and has been lauded for her poignant portrayal of several of Puccini's heroine's including Mimi and Ciao Ciao San in Puccini's MADAMA BUTTERFLY, a role which she performed for JPAS in 2008.

Nancy Ross, known to many local theatre and opera aficionados, stars as Musetta. She has engaged audiences with a remarkable vocal repertory of diverse styles, all performed with dramatic verve and superlative musicianship. Miss Ross has brought her luminous coloratura to Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor ; Musetta in La Boheme; Micaela in Carmen; Adina in L'Elisir d'Amore; Gilda in Rigoletto and Susannah in The Marriage of Figaro for such companies as the New Orleans Opera Association, Pensacola Opera, Jefferson Performing Arts Society (JPAS), Tampa Bay Opera, Athens Opera and recently Violetta in La Traviata for JPAS and for the first Lecco Opera Festival in Lecco, Italy. In 2008, Nancy was invited to sing two special recitals with Very Venice in Venice and was soloist for Carmina Burana with the Tulsa Ballet. Nancy holds the degrees of B.M.E. from Loyola University and the M.F.A. in Vocal Performance from Tulane University where she was also Visiting Assistant Professor from 1989-1991.

Juan Valls of Montevideo, Uruguay, joins the cast as Rodolfo. He makes his U.S. debut in the JPAS Production of LA BOHEME. Born in Montevideo, Valls has performed around the world from Uruguay to Italy, to London, Bogotá (Colombia), Lima (Peru) and Quito (Ecuador), Switzerland, Poland, Puerto Rico and beyond. His most recent engagements include: the role of Alfredo Germont in "La Traviata" (G. Verdi) at Teatro Nuovo in Salsomaggiore (Firenze), Teatro G. Magnani (Firenze) and Teatro Comunale di Carpi (Modena), all in Italy; participation in the opera "Nabucco" (G. Verdi) in the role of Ishmael at the Teatro Solís de Montevideo (Uruguay), the opera "La Traviata" in the role of Alfredo Germont at the Teatro El Círculo de Rosario (Argentina), the opera "Lucia Di Lammermoor" in the role of Edgardo at the Teatro Argentino de la Plata (Argentina), just to name a few

Victor Garcia Sierra of Verona, Italy stars as Marcello. Garcia Sierra returns to JPAS after having performed in the 2008 production of MADAMA BUTTERFLY in the role of the American Consulate Sharpless. He has performed in many theaters all around the world including: Bellas Artes of Maracaibo, Teresa Carreño of Caracas (Venezuela), Municipal of Sao Paulo (Brazil), Teatro Colon of Bogotá (Colombia) Teatro Segura of Lima (Perú), Opéra d'Avignon, Opéra de Toulon, Opéra de Dijon, Festival Lyrique de Marmande, Festival de Radio France in Montpellier (France), Opéra de Monte-Carlo, Theater Basel (Switzerland). Teatro Campoamor of Oviedo, Ópera de las Palmas, Teatro Real of Madrid (Spain), Teatro of Padova, Sassari, Trapani, Bassano dell Grapa, Teatro Filarmonico of Verona and Arena of Verona. He has worked with directors like Franco Zefirelli, Pier Luigi Pizzi, G. Patroni Griffi, Bebbe de Tomassi, Graham Vick, Emilio Sagi and conductors as Daniel Oren, Zubin Metha, and Dennis Assaf.

The cast also includes Leon Turner as Colline, Alan Payne as Benoit/Alcindoro and Gregory Gerbrandt as Shunard. The LA BOHEME opera chorus, playing students, artists, acrobats and other Parisians includes: Jade Coates, Monique Weaver, Meg McWhorter, Natalie Sutton, Shari Meyer, Colleen Robinson, Jennifer Mitchell,Rebecca Fox, Emily Adler, Tracey Norwood, Janet Shea, Allie Peck, Reid Butler, Wayne Gonsoulin, Tyronne Chambers, Charles Bosworth, Jeff Underwood, Matt Standley, Price Provenzano, Chris Turgeon, Bryton Gunther, Coldin Grundmeyer, Daniel Amoss, Andrew Prator, David Murray, Jorden Majeau, Justin Sandoval, Angelina Jambois, Madison Kerth, Madeline Bourgeois, Madison Tripp, Christian Tarzetti, Brogan Caroline Hausknecht, Gabriella Trentecoste, Sally-Rose Cragin, Emily Bagwill, and Ariel Assaf

More About the Jefferson Performing Arts Society (JPAS)
Founded in 1978 by Dennis G. Assaf and Hannah Cunningham, Jefferson Performing Arts Society is a non-profit professional arts organization whose mission is to promote arts performance, training and outreach by providing a diverse range of quality programs that entertain, educate and enrich the cultural and economic vitality of Jefferson Parish, Greater New Orleans and the Gulf South.
JPAS focuses on three main elements:
PERFORMANCE JPAS annually provides a wide range of theatrical performances that appeal to many interests and age groups. Most seasons include a selection of grand opera, musical theater, dance and music. JPAS strives to network and partner with national and International Artists and companies to bring new and diverse programming to the Southern Region.
TRAINING JPAS provides performance and technical based training in the arts for all ages with a particular focus on young people.
OUTREACH JPAS provides arts education programming in local area schools, as well as access to professional theatrical experiences that align to classroom curricula and Louisiana Content Standards, including Arts Adventure Series, Cultural Crossroads and Stage Without A Theatre. JPAS provides performers, musicians, artistic experiences and expertise to select area events and organizations to enrich the community.