Jayme Alilaw has been most recently seen in the role of Marketing Director (Tony Caruso’s Last Broadcast – world premiere) for the National Opera Association’s National Convention. She has performed at the Lancaster Performing Arts Center with the Antelope Valley College Master Chorale, under the direction of Dr. David Newby, as a featured soloist in Handel's Messiah. As a Sergeant in the U.S. Army Reserves, Jayme has sung for numerous official memorial, promotion and award ceremonies throughout the United States and Iraq, as well as for Welcome Home ceremonies for troops returning from deployment. Jayme is a member of the internationally-acclaimed Northridge Singers, under the direction of Paul Smith. Jayme is a senior at California State University-Northridge, where she has been seen as Despina (Cosi Fan Tutte) and Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi), and will be singing the title role in the opera scenes production of L’incoronazione di Poppea as well as premiering “An Evening of Spirituals”, a concert collaboration of various musicians she has organized in order to present the traditional folk music throughout the community.

Julia Aks, mezzo-soprano, is currently a senior at Oakwood Secondary School and has been studying voice privately for four years with Joann Zajac. Musical Theater roles include: Baker's Wife (Into the Woods), Smitty (How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying), and Florence Gill (The Mystery of Edwin Drood). Theater roles include: Mrs. Stevenson in (Sorry, Wrong Number), Lydian Emerson (The Night Thoreau Spent In Jail), Helena (A Midsummer Night's Dream), and the Angel in an upcoming production of Angels in America. Ms. Aks recently played the part of The Artist in Lightsong Films' independent film The Watermelon, which is currently in post-production. She was a Semi-Finalist in the 2008 Spotlight Awards in the Classical Voice division.

Light lyric coloratura soprano Alysha Conroy graduated in May of 2007 from the California institute of the Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Vocal Performance. Her roles include Adele (Die Fledermaus), Ninfa (L’Orfeo), Soprano I (Attunement), Suor Genevieffa (Suor Angelica), and most recently Habinnas (The Satyricon). In addition, she has participated in several chamber ensembles and recitals. She is very pleased to announce that she will be attending CSUN’s Graduate Voice Performance program in pursuit of her Masters of Music Degree in Fall of 2008.

Emily Dyer is a sophomore at Valley Christian High School and a student of Marya Basaraba. She has performed at the Orange County Performing Arts Center with the Pacific Chorale Children’s Chorus and toured Austria, Hungary, and the Czech Republic with the Southern California Children’s Chorus. In 2006, she sang in the El Dorado Opera Company production of Don Giovanni and the Culver City Grace Lutheran Performing Arts Ministry 2006 and 2007 productions of Amahl and the Night Visitors. In 2007, she was a scholarship recipient as a Young Artist Performer for the Bear Valley Music Festival production of The Merry Wives of Windsor. This year, she was a semi-finalist for the Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Awards, and is currently a semi-finalist in the Orange County Performing Arts Center Tomorrow's Stars Awards and Rotary Club Awards. As a soloist, Emily has sung in the La Mirada Theater Broadway Showcase, a Pepperdine University Benefit Concert, and at the Walt Disney Concert Hall as the only vocalist in the Los Angeles Philharmonic International Youth Orchestra Festival. On television, she was seen on KNBC as a featured soloist in the "Children of Darfur Benefit Concert", presented by the Pasadena Human Relations Commission. On stage this year, Emily performed the role of Liesl in The Sound of Music.

Darron James Flagg is developing a wide-ranging international and regional career. In Southern California, he has performed in Opera Pacific’s productions of Norma with Dame Joan Sutherland and in the musical Showboat. As soloist, Mr. Flagg has been heard in Russia, Sweden, and Germany. As a recitalist, he has performed in New York City as a part of Lincoln Center’s Meet the Artist series. Mr. Flagg’s appearances on the west coast include concert work with the Valley Choral Society and the Folsom Lake Symphony. Mr. Flagg is also a past winner of the Southeast Symphony Young Artist competition. Recently, he was selected to participate in the New Israel Opera House Young Artists Studio in Tel Aviv.

During the 2006-2007 season, Mr. Flagg was heard as tenor soloist with the in the Verdi’s Requiem; Bruckner’s Te Deum; Handel’s Messiah; Haydn’s Creation; and in a concert version of Gershwin’s Porgy & Bess with the Oakland East Bay Symphony. For the 2007-2008 season, Mr. Flagg assumed the lead role of Rodolfo in Puccini’s La Boheme for both Livermore Valley Opera and Verismo Opera and played the role of Roderigo for Sacramento Opera’s production of Verdi’s Otello. Future engagements include performances in Fresno Grand Opera’s production of Gershwin’s Porgy & Bess.

For over twenty-five years, Maurice Godin has been acting in theatre, television and film. His theatre career has taken him from coast to coast across Canada where he has starred in the major theatres of almost every province, including the prestigious Shaw Festival and the Stratford Shakespearean Festival, where he garnered critical acclaim for his portrayal of Arturo Ui in Brecht’s The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui. Some of his numerous theatre credits include Mercutio (Romeo and Juliet), D’Artagnan (The Three Musketeers), Constantin (The Seagull), Puck (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), and Rochester (Jane Eyre).

Maurice has also performed extensively in Musical Theatre most notably in the roles of the Emcee (Cabaret), the Master (Godspell), Joey Evans (Pal Joey), Herschel Blackwell (Fire), and in an award winning performance of Screamin’ John (John Gray’s Rock and Roll. He returned to the Stratford stage to give a much-lauded performance as Edmund (King Lear) starring Christopher Plummer and was on Broadway with The Farnsworth Invention. He has also directed a variety of staged readings in Los Angeles.

Among his many television credits Maurice Godin has guest starred on The Practice, Ally McBeal, Friends, Vegas, Monk, Malcolm In the Middle, and Sienfeld. Maurice has also played recurring characters on Poltergeist, Third Rock from the Sun, Spin City, Threshold and House. He has been a series regular on Café Americain, Life with Roger, and Working. Maurice’s feature film work includes such Canadian films as White Room, Salt Water Moose, Double Take, and an unforgettable film location in the beautiful city of Prague where he was fortunate enough to portray George Bizet in Bizet’s Dream. He played the flamboyant role of Hector in the film Boat Trip as well as a comic turn as Wesley the bumbling burglar in the film Chestnut (Hero of Central Park).

Maurice Godin is currently working on a novel inspired by a childhood raised in an Acadian household.

Soprano Stephanie Howard is currently getting her Masters degree in Music from CSU Northridge, studying with Dr. Deanna Murray. She has performed as Dew Fairy (Hänsel und Gretel, Le Rossignol (L’Enfant et les Sorteleges), and First Touriere (Suor Angelica). She has also been seen in Giulio Cesare, Madame Butterfly, Carousel, Fiddler on the Roof, and The Sound of Music.

Mezzo-soprano Anna Kirsten Larsen has performed the roles of Frau Reich (The Merry Wives of Windsor), Zia Principessa (Suor Angelica), and Maman (L'Enfant et les Sortileges), Dido (Dido and Aeneas), Katisha (The Mikado), and has participated in the AIMS program in Graz, Austria and Operaworks’ Summer Intensive program. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from The University of California, Irvine and is currently pursuing a Master of Music degree at California State University, Northridge.

With an extensive musical theatre background, bass-baritone Justin Lunsford entered college having already performed nearly 40 roles, including Don Quixote (Man of La Mancha) and The Father (Children of Eden). Justin has been seen in recent performances as L'Imperiale Commisionario (Madame Butterfly), Simone (Gianni Schicchi), Falstaff (Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor), and Macheath (Threepenny Opera). He recently participated in a masterclass with Austrian director Adreas Mitizek and is a junior at California State University Northridge.

Shelly McDowell has been seen locally as a soloist in the concert production of Porgy and Bess with Opera Pacific under the baton of Maestro John DeMain, Soprano soloist in the Mozart C Minor Mass conducted by Dr. Jonathan Talberg at the Pasadena Pops Summer Nights Concert, and as Soprano soloist in Poulenc’s Gloria performed at the Karen Carpenter Center of the Performing Arts. Shelly received her Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), where she performed the roles of Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviliga), Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), Sophie (Der Rosenkavalier), and Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel) for the undergraduate opera scenes program and had the opportunity to tour Portugal as a member of the CCM Chamber Choir. Shelly is currently completing her Masters in Opera Performance at the California State University, Long Beach, where she has performed the role of Despina (Cosí fan tutti). She is a recipient of the Jenkins Family Foundation Scholarship and is a member of the Opera Pacific Opera Chorus.

Multi-talented as an instrumentalist, singer, and actor, bass Philip Luther Nash’s stage credits include The Silver Whistle, Fiddler on the Roof, The Pirates of Penzance, A Sleep of Prisoners, All Over Town, and A Marriage Proposal. Mr. Nash sings regularly with the Crystal Cathedral Choir for the weekly worldwide “Hour of Power” telecast, has sung back up for Barry Manilow, and has sung with the William Hall Chorale.

Also known for his speaking voice, Mr. Nash has been on the radio as a free-lance traffic and news reporter and also works as a professional speaker and voice over artist. Philip graduated from Cal State L.A. with a Bachelor of Arts degree in music with the bassoon as his major instrument and is currently pursuing his Master of Music degree in bassoon performance and Azusa Pacific University.

Tenor Robert Norman has appeared as Goro (Madama Butterfly) with the Bear Valley Opera, as Tevye (Fiddler on the Roof) with STARS. At California State University-Northridge, Mr. Norman has been seen in a wide range of roles, including Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi), the Witch (Hansel & Gretel, Tolomeo (Giulio Cesare), Enoch (Carousel), and Fenton (Die Lustigen Weiber von Windsor). He has performed the tenor solos in Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s St. John Passion, and Mozart’s Requiem and is a proud alumnus of OperaWorks’ summer intensive program. Robert is a member of Classical Singers Association and is currently pursuing his Masters Degree in Opera Performance at CSU-Northridge.

Laura Parker has performed leading roles in operas including Powder Her Face, Miss Lonelyhearts (West coast premiere), Tony Caruso’s Final Broadcast (world premiere), and Revolution of Form. Laura has been a national finalist in the Charles Lynam Vocal Competition and a finalist in the Burbank Philharmonic’s Young Artist Competition, and made her debut with the Burbank Philharmonic Orchestra as the featured soloist in a tribute to Warner Brothers motion pictures in 2006. Laura is also known for her improvisational skills, having improvised classical arias for Classical Singer and Opera America events, as well as at the Hollywood Ford Amphitheater in collaboration with dance troupe Lux Aeterna in the hip-hop production Breaking the Cypher produced by J.U.I.C.E.. Ms. Parker recently completed her Masters degree in vocal arts at the University of Southern California and received her Bachelor of Music degree in voice from Boston University. She will make her LA Opera debut in September in Suor Angelica.

Professor Paton currently teaches voice major students from Moorpark College. He is retired from the University of Colorado at Boulder and has also taught singing at the University of Southern California and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He studied at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and the Eastman School of Music, in addition to study in Germany and Italy. As a singer he performed with the Boston Symphony, the Chautauqua Opera and many other organizations, and gave many concerts, especially of German lieder.

A 16-year-old student at Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, bass Sean Sullivan has just completed a run as Mr. Macafee in the FCOP production of Bye, Bye Birdie. Past FCOP credits include Mr. Peachum (The Begger's Opera) and Carl Olsen (Street Scene). A professional boy soprano from the age of eleven, Sean made his bass debut in 2006 with the LA Opera as Young Prince Hrothgar in Elliot Goldenthal's Grendel. Sean sang four seasons with the Los Angeles Children's Concert Choir and with the Los Angeles Opera Children's Chorus in La Damnation de Faust, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Carmen, I Pagliacci, and Parsifal. He has also performed Bernstein's Mass, Britten's War Requiem, and Carmina Burana with the LA Master Chorale, and has premiered Manzanar, An American Story under the baton of Kent Nagano and Henri Dutilleux's The Shadows of Time as a soloist with Esa-Pekka Salonen. Sean has performed in venues including the Hollywood Bowl, Royce Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and in 2005 sung the title role in Amahl and the Night Visitors with Intimate Opera Company. Sean has recorded various commercials and soundtracks including The Polar Express and Christmas with the Kranks. As a young actor, Sean appeared on film in Simon Birch and on TV in The Practice and The War at Home.

With over 50 roles in his repertoire, Corey Trahan is an active performer in opera, oratorio, music theatre, operetta and recital venues and has recently transitioned from singing lyric baritone roles to character tenor repertoire. Recent engagements included a return to Des Moines Metro Opera for their 2007summer season in productions of Carmen (Remendado) and A Midsummer Night's Dream (Snout) and a debut with Louisiana Lyric Opera in their inaugural season productions of Little Shop of Horrors (Seymour) and Pirates of Penzance (Samuel). For the 2007-08 season, Corey has performed in productions of Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Verdi’s La Traviata a debut with Louisiana Delta Ballet’s production of Power & Grace, Puccini’s Tosca (Spoletto), Oklahoma! (Will Parker) with the Natchez Festival of Music, a debut with New Jersey Opera Theatre in The Merry Widow (Njegus) and a return to Opera Birmingham for Puccini’s Turandot (Pang). Corey serves as Visiting Artist for the Northeast Louisiana Arts Council and is a member of its three resident touring ensembles and has toured this region since 2002. His academic training includes a Bachelor of Music from Louisiana State University and the Master of Music degree from the University of Houston, both in Voice Performance. Corey is a current member of the American Guild of Music Artists, Actor’s Equity Association, and National Association of Teachers of Singing and resides in New York City.

Soprano Hannah Waldman recently appeared as the Nun (Tony Caruso’s Last Broadcast – world premiere) in Los Angeles and as Gilda (Rigoletto) with the Tuscia Opera Festival in Italy. She has performed numerous roles, including Juliette (Roméo et Juliette), Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Duchess (Powder Her Face), Maiden (Mollicone‘s Coyote Tales, conducted by the composer), Hébé (Rameau‘s Les indes galantes), and Céphise (Royer’s Le pouvoir de l’amour - modern premiere). She was also a finalist for the Long Beach Mozart Festival and the Hennings-Fischer Burbank Philharmonic Orchestra Young Artist Competitions.

Ms. Waldman recently graduated with honors from the USC Thornton School of Music with a Master of Music degree in vocal performance, She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Oberlin College and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and resides in Los Angeles.

Argenta Walther has established herself as a unique and versatile musician. As a member of the Piedmont Choirs and the San Francisco Girls Chorus, Argenta performed numerous world premieres, appeared frequently with the San Francisco Symphony, and debuted as The Bird Seed Vendor in Charpentier's Louise with the San Francisco Opera. Ms. Walther earned her Bachelor of Music Degree at the University of California at Santa Cruz where she performed six main stage opera roles with UCSC Opera Theatre, ranging from Britten's Oberon to Mozart's Zerlina. Dedicated to exposing audiences to the timeless messages of great song literature, Argenta has appeared on the recital series of the Boulder Public Library and the Berkeley Arts Festival and was a participant in the Professional Division of Songfest at Pepperdine University. Other engagements have included performances with the California Music Festival, the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, OperaWorks, and as guest alto soloist with the Boulder Chamber Orchestra and the Santa Barbara Master Chorale.