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Soprano
Bethany
Brautigam
(Laurette) is delighted to be making
her EChO debut in Doctor Miracle! Previous roles
include Mimi/La Boheme, Donna Anna/Don Giovanni,
Pamina/The Magic Flute, Donna Elvira/
Don
Giovanni
, Suor Angelica/Suor Angelica, First
Lady/The Magic Flute, Lauretta/Gianni Schicchi,
and Cinderella/Into the Woods. Ms. Brautigam is a
winner of the Casa Italia Cultural Center competition and a
recipient of the Illinois Arts Council Professional
Development Award. She obtained her master’s degree from
North Park University, and her undergraduate degree from
Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, CA.
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Baritone
Matthew
Brennan
(Mayor) recently completed the Master of
Music program at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying
with Dr. Dean Southern. Favorite roles include Count
Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro, Curly in Oklahoma!,
and the Vater in Hänsel und Gretel. He has worked
professionally with the Ohio Light Opera, and is a member of
both the Chicago Symphony Chorus and Evanston’s Lakeside
Singers. In 2018 he was baritone soloist for the world
premiere of Keith Fitch’s The Range of Light, and
previously premiered the role of The Innocent in the art
song theater piece Once, Babylon at the Vancouver
International Song Institute. He completed his Bachelor of
Music degree at Vanderbilt University.
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Actor Lane
Halverson (Sante) is very excited to be joining
EChO’s production of Susanna’s Secret. His
appearance as the valet Old Adam in last year’s Ruddigore
with the Savoyaires marked his 15th season with the company
and though noteless in the role of Sante, he continues on
a note of servitude in this show. Most recently, Lane
appeared as Mortimer in Ogorod Productions’ The
Fantasticks, and as Sheriff Will Masters in Bus
Stop and Doc Gibbs in Our Town with the Des
Plaines Theatre Guild. Lane invites you to enjoy the show in
good health.
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Baritone Nathan
J. Kistler (Count Gil) is a recent transfer to
Chicago and is excited to include the Evanston Chamber Opera
company among his first performances in the city. Before
Chicago, Nathan earned a Masters degree in Sacred Music from
the University of Notre Dame, and a Bachelor of Arts in
Vocal Performance from Central Michigan University. Previous
credits include the role of Muse in the Chicago Premiere of
When Adonis Calls by Clint Borzoni, Matt Shepard in
Considering Matthew Shepard, Aeneas in Dido
and Aeneas, Sam in Trouble in Tahiti, Jeff
in [Title of Show], Papageno in Die
Zauberflöte, Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di
Figaro, and Leaf Coneybear in The 25th Annual
Putnam County Spelling Bee.
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Soprano Rachael
Long (Susanna) is excited to be returning to EChO
for her third season. Long has most recently performed with
the Salt Creek Chamber Orchestra as the soprano soloist for
Handel’s Messiah. This season, she covered the
roles of Lucia/Lucia II/Leonora in Chicago Fringe Opera’s The
Long Christmas Dinner, and performed/premiered new
works by local Chicago composer Elizabeth Rudolph in her
concert Finding Home, Finding Self. Long has
performed the role of Narrator in the world premiere of
Francis Lynch’s opera For Those in Peril. In her
first world premiere with Lynch, she portrayed the role of
First Acolyte in Joseph’s Gift. Other roles
include Nedda (Pagliacci), Countess Almaviva (Le
nozze di Figaro), Corinna and Delia (Il Viaggio a
Reims) and La dame in Poulenc’s La dame de Monte
Carlo. Future engagements include Lauretta (Gianni
Schicchi) and Serafina (Cover-Il campanello)
with New Moon Opera, Susanna (Le nozze di Figaro)
and La Comtesse Adèle (Cover-Le comte Ory) with
Transgressive Theatre Opera. Long received her MM from the
Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University
(CCPA) and her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University. She was
a founding member of Forte, Chicago’s premier opera improv
troupe. More...
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Puerto Rican
tenor Karlos Piñero-Mercado
(Pasquin/Silvio/Dcotor Miracle) is a Chicago-based perfomer
and a new music enthusiast who is excited to be back on the
stage with Evanston Chamber Opera. He was recently seen
premiering the roles of Howell and Whiteside in Francis
Lynch’s For those in Peril. Recent performances
include: La théière in Ravel’s L’Enfant et les
sortilèges, Cornelius in Lynch’s Joseph’s Gift,
The Lover in Menotti’s Amelia Goes to the Ball,
Eisenstein in Strauss’s Die Fledermaus, Dr. Cajus
in Otto Nicolai’s The Merry Wives of Windsor,
Brother in Weill’s The 7 Deadly Sins, and the
tenor soloist in Händel’s Messiah (Orlando Philharmonic
Orchestra). In 2015, he was a finalist for the Central
Region NATS qualifying him as a semi-finalist at the NATS
National Convention. He received his Master of Music degree
at Roosevelt University, studying under countertenor Mark
Crayton.
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Mezzo-soprano
Ashley Puenner (Veronique) hails from
Crystal Lake, Illinois, holds a Master of Music in Voice
from the University of Kansas, and earned her Bachelor of
Music in Voice at Illinois Wesleyan University. Most
recently, she was seen as Nicklausse in Les contes
d?Hoffmann as a Resident Artist with Opera North.
Ashley was a Studio Artist with the Florentine Opera for the
2016/17 and 2017/18 seasons, where her roles included Second
Lady in The Magic Flute, First Witch in Dido
and Aeneas, and Mrs. Hurstwood in the world premiere
of Sister Carrie, which was recorded and released
on the Naxos label. Other recent credits include Cherubino
in Le nozze di Figaro, Carmen in The Tragedy
of Carmen (Brooks/Bizet), and Beggar Woman in Sweeney
Todd. Pursuing an avid interest in newly composed
music, Ashley has premiered works by several composers
including Robert Aldridge, Emile Naoumoff, and Forrest
Pierce, along with commissioning a song cycle by American
composer Nathan Jones (Six Qabbani Love Songs).
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