Rodgers and Hammerstein’s
Oklahoma! in concert
Friday, July 13, 7:00pm
Sunday, July 15, 7:00pm
Idaho Botanical Garden
Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Music by Richard Rodgers
Original Dances by Agnes de Mille
Based on the play “Green Grow the Lilacs” by Lynn Riggs
Rodgers & Hammerstein’s first collaboration remains, in many ways, their most innovative, having set the standards and established the rules of musical theatre still being followed today. Set in a Western Indian territory just after the turn of the century, the high-spirited rivalry between the local farmers and cowboys provides the colorful background against which Curly, a handsome cowboy, and Laurey, a winsome farm girl, play out their love story. Although the road to true love never runs smooth, with these two headstrong romantics holding the reins, love’s journey is as bumpy as a surrey ride down a country road. That they will succeed in making a new life together we have no doubt, and that this new life will begin in a brand-new state provides the ultimate climax to the triumphant OKLAHOMA!
Synopsis
Act I: In Oklahoma territory in 1906, cowboy Curly McLain looks forward to the beautiful day ahead as he wanders into farm girl Laurey Williams’s yard (“Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’”). He and Laurey tease each other, while Laurey’s Aunt Eller looks on. There will be a box social dance that night, which includes an auction of lunch baskets prepared by the local girls to raise funds for a schoolhouse. The man who wins each lunch basket will eat the lunch with the girl who prepared it. Curly asks Laurey to go with him, but she refuses, feeling that Curly had waited too long. He attempts to persuade her by telling her that he will take her in the finest carriage money can buy, “The Surrey With The Fringe On Top”, but she teases him about it until he says he made it up to get back at her, and Laurey flounces off, not realizing that Curly really has rented such a rig.
The sinister farm hand Jud Fry has set his sights on Laurey and asks her to the dance. She accepts to spite Curly, although she is afraid of Jud. Meanwhile, cowboy Will Parker returns bedazzled and souvenir-laden from a trip to modern “Kansas City”. He won $50 at the fair, which, according to his girlfriend Ado Annie’s father, Andrew Carnes, is the money he needs to marry Ado Annie. Unfortunately, he spent all the money on gifts for her. Ado Annie confesses to Laurey that while he’s been away, she has been spending a lot of time with Ali Hakim, a Persian peddler. Laurey tells her she’ll have to choose between them, but Ado Annie insists she loves them both (“I Cain’t Say No”). Laurey and her friends prepare for the social, while Gertie, flirts with Curly (her obnoxious laugh floating in to taunt Laurey). Laurey tells her friends that she doesn’t really care about Curly (“Many a New Day”).
Andrew Carnes discovers Annie with Ali Hakim. After questioning Ado Annie about their relationship, he forces Hakim at gunpoint to agree to marry her. Hakim and the other men lament the unfairness of the situation (“It’s a Scandal! It’s a Outrage!”). Curly discovers that Laurey is going to the box social with Jud and tries to convince her to go with him instead. Afraid to tell Jud she won’t go with him, Laurey tries to convince Curly (and herself) that she does not love him (“People Will Say We’re in Love”). Hurt by her refusal, Curly goes to the smokehouse where Jud lives. Curly suggests that since Jud does not feel appreciated, he could hang himself, and everyone would realize how much they care about him (“Pore Jud is Daid”). Their talk turns into an ominous confrontation about Laurey. Later, Jud’s resolve to win Laurey becomes even stronger – he is tired of being on his own in his “Lonely Room”.
Confused by her feelings for Curly and her fear of Jud, Laurey purchases a “magic potion” (really a bottle of smelling salts) from Ali Hakim, which the unscrupulous peddler guarantees will reveal her true love. She muses on leaving her dreams of love behind and joining the man she loves (“Out of My Dreams”), then falls asleep under the influence of the laudanum (“Dream Sequence”). In an extended dream ballet sequence, Laurey first dreams of what marriage to Curly would be like. Her dream takes a nightmarish turn when Jud kills Curly, and she cannot escape him, confused by her desires. The dream makes her realize that Curly is the right man for her, but it is too late to change her mind about going to the dance with Jud; he has come for her, and they leave for the box social.
Act II: At the social, during the upbeat square dance (“The Farmer and the Cowman”), the rivalry between the local farmers and cowboys over fences and water rights has led to fighting, which Aunt Eller ends by firing a gun to silence everyone. Laurey is upset when she sees Curly at the dance with Gertie. In an effort to rid himself of Ado Annie, Ali Hakim buys Will’s souvenirs from Kansas City for $50. The auction starts and Will bids $50 on Ado Annie’s basket, not realizing that without the $50, he would no longer have the money her father insisted he needs to “purchase” marriage with her. Desperate to be rid of Ado Annie, the peddler bids $51 to get the basket so that Will can approach Andrew Carnes with the $50 and claim Ado Annie as his bride. The auction becomes much more serious when Laurey’s basket comes up for auction. Jud has saved all his money so he can win Laurey’s basket. Various men bid, trying to protect Laurey, but Jud outbids them all. Curly and Jud engage in a ferocious bidding war, and Curly sells all his prized possessions to raise money: his saddle, his horse, and even his gun; without these, Curly can no longer be a cowboy and will have to become a farmer. Curly outbids Jud and wins the basket. Jud then tries to kill Curly with a “Little Wonder” (A metal tube used for looking at pictures, but with a hidden blade inside). His plan is foiled when Aunt Eller (knowing what is happening) loudly asks Curly for a dance. Later that night, Will and Annie work out their differences, as she reluctantly agrees not to flirt with other men (“All Er Nuthin’”).
Jud confronts Laurey about his feelings for her. When she admits that she does not return them, he threatens her. She then fires him as her farm hand, screaming at him to get off her property. Jud furiously threatens Laurey before he departs; Laurey bursts into tears and calls for Curly. She tells him that she has fired Jud and is frightened by what Jud might do now. Curly, seeing that she has turned to him for guidance and safety, reassures her and proposes to her, and she accepts (“People Will Say We’re In Love” (Reprise)). He then realizes that he must now become a farmer.
Three weeks later, Laurey and Curly are married and everyone rejoices in celebration of the territory’s impending statehood (“Oklahoma!”). A drunken Jud reappears and attacks Curly with a knife. As Curly dodges a blow, Jud falls on his own knife and soon dies. The wedding guests hold a makeshift trial for Curly, at Aunt Eller’s urging, as the couple is due to leave for their honeymoon. The judge, Andrew Carnes, declares the verdict: “not guilty!” Curly and Laurey depart on their honeymoon in the surrey with the fringe on top.
Cast
Laurey Williams – Jena Carpenter
Curly McLain – Jason Detwiler
Aunt Eller – Suzanne Hansen
Jud Fry – Jim Poston
Ado Annie Carnes – Tiffany Calás
Will Parker – Scott Noland
Ali Hakim – David Noland
Creative Team
Music Director – Stuart Weiser
Chorus Master – Kelly Kaye
Chorus
Sopranos
Heather Ballantyne
Kathleen Beynun
Courtney Christensen
Vicki Kreimeyer
Lura Penland
Holly Salewski
Nancylee Summervill
Mezzos
Shelby Ann Boice
Erin Case
Vicke Lee
Ellen McKinney
Martha Miles
Tenors
Kyle Christensen
Tim Judy [Ike Skidmore]
Alexander Lundquist [Andrew Carnes]
Robert Sandberg
Wally Tuck
Basses
Victor Castillo
Fernando Menéndez
Bob Wallace
Jena Carpenter [Laurey Williams]
Soprano Jena Carpenter began her vocal career at the age of fourteen with Opera Idaho’s Children’s Chorus. She received her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Vanderbilt University in 2009 and her Master’s in Opera Performance from The Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Mannheim, Germany, in April, 2012.
In her young career, Jena Carpenter has performed the roles of Pamina (The Magic Flute – English), Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi), Liesel and Mother Superior (The Sound of Music), Marianne (Tartuffe), Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Despina (Cosi Fan Tutte) and recently covered the role of Servilia in Mozart’s La Clemenza di Titowith The National theater Mannheim.
She has worked internationally with directors Günter Krämer and Jutta Gleue. Artists Lothar Odinius, Yuriy Mynenko, Valer Barna – Sabadus, and Katharina Göres. Conductors Dan Ettinger, Robin Fountain, and Cosima Osthoff. Master classes and Professors include Bo Skovhus, Sue Patchell, Margo Garrett, Gabriele Lechner, Rudolf Piernay, Dr. Jonathan Retzlaff, and Gloria Parker.
Jena Carpenter is a three-time finalist at the National Association of Teachers of Singing vocal competition and has been awarded the Robin Nell Dickerson Prize, the David K. and Anne Potter Wilson Scholarship and The Bayreuth Scholarship from Vanderbilt University and The Wagnerian Society of Mannheim.
Jena has over eight years of experiences in Classical Ballet and has performed in The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She is currently studying Modern Dance with Regina Baumgart and Feldenkrais Technique with Andrea Haupt.
While a lover of classical music, Jena Carpenter also records and performs repertoire from Pop and Country cultures. Her latest Pop project is working with American composer Lucy Kobusingye. Their recently released single My Dream of You can be purchased on CDbaby.com.
Jason Detwiler [Curly McLain]
With nearly forty roles to his credit, baritone Jason Detwiler is becoming well-known for his magnetic and energizing stage performances. His voice and acting have been described as “emotionally fervid”, “richly expressive” and “commanding”, as he possesses a diverse repertoire ranging from the comedic Papageno (Die Zauberflöte) and Guglielmo (Cosi fan tutte) to the dramatic Germont (La Traviata) and Escamillo (Carmen). Among his most widely acclaimed roles are the title roles of Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Eugene Onegin, as well as Malatesta (Don Pasquale), Zurga (Les Pechêurs de Perles), and John Proctor (The Crucible). His concert credits include: Bach’s St. John’s Passion, Haydn’s Creation, Mozart’s Requiem, Faure’s Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Dvorak’s Te Deum, Saint-Säens’ Christmas Oratorio, Mollicone’s Beatitude Mass, Ahabin Bernard Herrmann’s Moby Dick and Einhorn’s Voices of Light.
The 2011-12 season was full of reprises and debuts as Jason returned to Opera Coeur d’Alene as Valentin (Faust), to Opera San Jose for his first Tonio in I Pagliacci, to Opera Idaho reprising Melchior (Amahl & the Night Visitors), to Stockton Opera for a double bill of I Pagliacci (Tonio) and Gianni Schicchi, to Ensemble Parallèle as St. Plan (Four Saints in Three Acts) and Nick Carraway (The Great Gatsby), and to Opera Santa Barbara as Count Almaviva (Le Nozze di Figaro). In his first European appearance, Jason sang the Ambassador in Michael Dellaira’s new opera The Secret Agent, co-produced with L’Opéra-théâtre d’Avignon in Avignon, France. He has recently returned to Seattle’s Sunset Club for a gala concert of The King and I.
So far the coming season shows a number of local appearances in his hometown. With a return to the Boise Philharmonic to take part in their first Picnic at the Pops: the music of Gerschwin, Jason then expands his repertoire with his debut as Ford in Opera Idaho’s first Falstaff. Next winter, also through Opera Idaho, he will collaborate with Laura Edson, a dance choreographer and former dancer with The Trey McIntyre Project, to bring a unique, semi-staged concert of Schubert’s Winterreise in the intimate Egyptian Theater.
Jason has performed nationally with San Diego Opera, Virginia Opera, Syracuse Opera, Sacramento Opera, Spokane Opera, Opéra Louisiane, Shreveport Opera, Festival Opera of Walnut Creek, Opera Coeur d’Alene, Rimrock Opera, Sonoma City Opera, West Bay Opera, Trinity Lyric Opera, Vallejo Symphony Orchestra, the American Philharmonic Sonoma County, the Idaho State-Civic Symphony, the Boise Philharmonic, the Boise Master Chorale, the Masterworks Chorale of San Mateo and the Auburn Symphony. From 2002-2006, he was part of Irene Dalis’ Opera San Jose as a Principal Resident Artist. While there, he sang Dandini (La Cenerentola), Falke (Die Fledermaus),Papageno, Valentin, Silvio (I Pagliacci), Escamillo, Marcello (La bohème), John Proctor, and the title roles of Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Figaro among others. In 2009-2010, Jason became Opera Idaho’s first Artist-in-Residence, singing lead roles, giving concerts, and leading master classes for the Resident Company. Other major roles include: Yeletsky (Pikovaya Dama), Mr. Gobineau (The Medium), Harlekin (Ariadne auf Naxos), Mr. Webb in Ned Rorem’s Our Town, Sharpless (Madama Butterfly), the title role in Vaughan Williams’ Pilgrim’s Progress, and Billy Bigelow (Carousel).
Currently, Mr. Detwiler resides in Boise, Idaho with his wife, mezzo-soprano Michele Detwiler, and their two children.
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Suzanne Hansen [Aunt Eller]
Suzanne Hansen, mezzo soprano, went on to finish a MM from University of California, Santa Barbara, after having completed her undergraduate degree in Voice from Florida State University. Singing comic works such as The Music Shop and Pizza con Funghi as well has the more dramatic La Traviata, Marriage of Figaro, and Trouble in Tahiti. Suzanne enjoys a wide range of operatic repertoire and has performed with such opera companies as Opera Illinois, Great Lake Lyric Opera, Michigan Opera Theater, and the South Georgia Opera. She also enjoys orchestral and chamber works, especially the Durufle and Verdi Requiems; as well as touring in Amahl and the Night Visitors. Suzanne moved to Boise three years ago with her family. She and her husband have five children.
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Jim Poston [Jud Fry]
Jim Poston caught the singing bug early in life when in High School, he performed the lead musical theatre role of Emile in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific.
While embarking on a musical academic career at Simpson College he sang many leading roles including Billy Begelow from Carousel, Schaunard from La bohème and Guglielmo from Cosi fan Tutte. Later, while pursuing a Master’s degree from the Boston Conservatory, he sang the role of the Count from The Marriage of Figaro to rave reviews and sold out performance halls.
He participated in three prestigious apprentice programs in Des Moines, IA, Central City, CO and in Lake George, NY. While there he performed numerous scenes and experts from a wide variety of operas written by composers such as Mozart, Puccini, Verdi and Britten.
His experience spans from the opera stage to the concert hall where he’s performed excerpts from Rigoletto and Porgy and Bess with the Laredo Philharmonic Orchestra and sung the baritone solo’s in Handel’s Messiah with the Boise Chorale.
Jim began his collaboration with Opera Idaho when he sang the role of Sharpless from Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in that company’s 2003 production. Since then he’s performed in several smaller roles in La Traviata, The Merry Widow and The Barber of Seville. He also sang opera and musical theatre excerpts to a sold out audience in Sun Valley and has sung many times with Opera Idaho at Boise’s Botanical Garden summer series.
For many years Jim toured the Treasure Valley singing the baritone character in Opera Idaho’s Opera in a Box performances for thousands of school children. He’s an award winning news anchor and reporter having worked in cities from Boston to Laredo to Des Moines. He came to Boise with his wife on 9/11 and began working for KBCI-TV, Channel 2 and later for KIVI-TV Channel 6 in Nampa. Currently he teaches Theatre Appreciation at the College of Western Idaho and is a graduate research assistant in the Communication department at Boise State University working towards his Master’s degree. Mr. Poston also has his own home business as a professional voice over actor.
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Tiffany Calás [Ado Annie Carnes]
A native of Boise, Tiffany received her Bachelor of Music Degree in Vocal Performance and Pedagogy from Brigham Young University. She has also studied at The Manhattan School of Music, where she was the Assistant Director of the Preparatory Division.
Tiffany is a member of Opera Idaho’s Resident Company and has been a soloist for many of their concerts and season extras. Principal roles include Zita (Gianni Schicchi), Mercedes (Carmen), Katisha (The Mikado), a female lead in Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, Alisa (Lucia di Lammermoor), Mrs. Gibbs (Our Town), Nettie Fowler in last summer’s Carousel, and Mama McCourt in The Ballad of Baby Doe. She has also been in Tosca, The Merry Widow, Nosferatu, and La Traviata. Directing the choruses for Il Barbiere di Siviglia, La bohème, and L’elisir d’amore has also been a highlight with Opera Idaho. Other opera credits include Le Nozze di Figaro, Romeo et Juliette, Les contes d’Hoffmann, Die Zauberflöte, Don Giovanni, and the title role of Menotti’s The Medium. As a frequent concert soloist, she has sung several cantatas and oratorios of Handel, Mozart, Bach, Vivaldi and Haydn. Earlier this year, Tiffany sang the role of Dido in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas with Boise Baroque Orchestra. She also enjoys Music Theater and has been a lead in numerous productions.
Tiffany is a regular soloist for many local organizations, community events, and for her church. She has toured throughout the United States and abroad. An educator, as well, Ms. Calás was the Director of Opera Idaho’s three Children’s Choruses and Outreach Program from 2005 – 2009 and also directed and performed in the ’10 and ’11 Outreach tours. She is Co-Founder and Co-Director of MDT Workshop, a music theater program for youth. In addition, she is an Adjunct Voice Professor at Boise State University and maintains a private voice studio in Meridian, where she lives with her extremely supportive husband, Luis, and her adorable boys, Ian, Luke, and Gabe. Tiffany is also pursuing her PharmD and plans on entering Idaho State University’s School of Pharmacy next fall.
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Scott Noland [Will Parker]
A native of Boise, Scott Noland received a vocal performance degree from Boise State University where he performed the roles of the Sailor in Dido and Aneas, Basilio in Le Nozze di Figaro and Ralph Rackstraw in H.M.S. Pinafore. Scott’s roles with Opera Idaho include Samuel in The Pirates of Penzance, Lt. Joseph Cable, USMC in South Pacific in concert, the Officer in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Monostatos in The Magic Flute, Dr. Blind in Die Fledermaus and Goro in Madama Butterfly. His oratorio works include the tenor solos in Handel’s Messiah with the Boise Philharmonic, Bach’s Magnificat, Herzogenberg’s Die Geburt Christi and Vaughan Williams’ Mass in G Minor. Mr. Noland’s other roles include Roger in Grease, Enock Snow in Carousel, Little Bat in Susannah and The Balladeer in Sondheim’s Assassins.
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David Noland [Ali Hakim]
David Noland eagerly returns to the Boise stage after a long hiatus. A native of Boise, David enjoys opera, oratorio, and musical theatre. He received his music education in Denver and Chicago where he was the tenor soloist in Handel’s Messiah, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Bach’s B Minor Mass, Hayden’s Creation, and Dubois’ Seven Last Words of Christ. He has appeared as featured soloist with Boise Philharmonic and Boise Master Chorale and has performed with community theatre. A veteran of many performances over the years, he has a special penchant for character roles as is evident in his portrayal of the witch in two separate productions of Hansel and Gretel.
Among other productions with Opera Idaho, Mr. Noland has appeared in The Pirates of Penzance (Major General Stanley), HMS Pinafore (Captain Corcorain), The Mikado (Ko-Ko), The Magic Flute (Monostatos), Madama Butterfly (Goro), The Marriage of Figaro (Don Basilio), South Pacific (Luther Billis), Carousel (Jigger) and his favorite role of King Kaspar in Amahl and the Night Visitors.
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Stuart Weiser [Conductor]
Stuart Weiser has an extensive background in musical theatre pit conducting. Originally from the New York City area, Stuart has worked in the nonprofit sector for more than 30 years, many of those years with performing arts companies. In addition to Opera Idaho’s productions of South Pacific and Carousel, he has served as musical director and/or conductor for productions of Cabaret, Stop the World I Want to Get Off, Brigadoon, Man of La Mancha, Canterbury Tales, Camelot, Peter Pan, Barnum, Les Miserables, and A Chorus Line. Stuart has resided in Boise since March 2008, and currently works as an independent consultant in nonprofit management and fundraising. He holds a BA in Special Studies / Music Education from the State University of New York at Fredonia and a Master of Science in Leadership and Business Ethics degree from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Idaho Chapter, has been designated a Master Trainer in Fundraising by the national Association of Fundraising Professionals, and is one of only 23 individuals in Idaho to have been earned the title of Certified Fund Raising Executive.
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Kelly Kaye [Chorus Master]
Kelly Kaye holds Bachelor and Master Degrees in Piano Performance/Accompanying (Arizona State University, 1985) and has been singing both as a soloist and in choirs since she was very young. After graduation from ASU, she was awarded a scholarship to the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria to study opera coaching. Kelly teaches and directs choirs at South Junior High, Boise. She is Opera Idaho’s Chorus Master, as well as a member of the Boise Philharmonic Master Chorale. Previously, she had a long and eclectic musical career in Arizona, Vienna, Austria and Seattle, Washington, working as accompanist, vocal coach, music theater director, recitalist, chorus member with Seattle Opera, cabaret performer, piano teacher, voice teacher and guest soloist with numerous groups and venues. She has been a member of choral organizations from her very early years and began private voice studies at age 14.
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Heather Ballantyne, Soprano Heather Ballantyne has been a member of the Opera Idaho Resident Company for several years and has had the opportunity to perform in Opera Under the Stars, Opera Idaho Christmas programs, and Puccini’s Suor Angelica. When not performing with the OI, Heather involves herself with several community theatre groups. Her greatest loves are her family and performing. Most recently, she was able to share the stage with two of her children in Spotlight Theatre’s production of Bye Bye Birdie. Heather studied Music Education at BSU and was in the studio of Karma Ellsworth. She currently resides in Nampa with her husband and five children. 
Kathleen Beynun, Soprano Kathleen Beynun was born into a musical family. Her parents met at the USO where her mother played piano as her father sang. She learned four-part harmony around the campfire with her family. Kathleen taught herself piano, was a clarinetist in the high school band, a percussionist in the honor orchestra, and a soprano in the choir. She also performed in USO shows during the Vietnam war. A glimpse came of what real performing could be when she was in the Oxnard College Choir and had the opportunity to sing under the direction of Carmen Dragon for a summer concert of Broadway music. Moving to Boise in 1994, Kathleen joined the Sweet Adelines, began singing lessons with DeNice Jensen, and then joined the Boise Master Chorale. She has sung the National Anthem for the Veteran’s Day ceremony, performed as a back-up singer for the Chieftains of Ireland, and Sarah Brightman. Having been invited to sing with Opera Idaho in 1999 for the first Opera Under the Stars, she finally found her niche! Bringing enthusiasm and creativity to the stage, she has gone on to be in the chorus for Die Fledermaus, La bohème, Don Pasquale, Carmen, La Traviata, Lucia di Lammermoor, Carmina Burana, Faust (in which she lead the country dance), and Madama Butterfly. She has also appeared in several performances of Opera Under the Stars, as well as several Christmas shows with Opera Idaho. 
Courtney Christensen, Soprano Courtney Christensen grew up in Meridian, Idaho. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University-Idaho with a degree in music education. Currently, she teaches choir at Heritage Middle School. Oklahoma! in Concert is her first production as a member of Opera Idaho’s Resident Company. She is excited to work with such a talented group of musicians. 
Vicki Kreimeyer , Soprano Vicki Kreimeyer sings with the Boise Philharmonic Master Chorale and the Boise Baroque Orchestra. She was a soloist in the Knock ‘Em Dead Theater’s production of A Little Night Music by Stephen Sondheim. 
Lura Penland, Soprano Lura Penland is a graduate of Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Music in Performance Music Theatre where she was seen as Mrs. Anderssen in Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music and Una Conversa in Puccini’s Suor Angelica. Lura has been seen as Berta in Opera Idaho’s main stage production of Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia and as Sister Genovieffa in Suor Angelica. Other productions include Gounod’s Faust; Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore; Puccini’s La bohème, Tosca and Madama Butterfly; Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado; Verdi’s La Traviata; Bizet’s Carmen; Henderson’s Nosferatu; and Lehár’s The Merry Widow. 
Holly Salewski, Soprano Holly Salewski is an Idaho native and has a long-time association with Opera Idaho. She initially began with the Opera Idaho Children’s Chorus under the direction of Linda Berg and has been a part of the Resident Company since 2005. Past performances include operas such as Bizet’s Carmen, Puccini’s La bohème, Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Gounod’s Faust, and Bernstein’s Candide. She most recently sang in Opera Idaho’s 2011 productions of Carousel by Rodgers & Hammerstein and The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert & Sullivan. Ms. Salewski holds a BBA in Management and Marketing from Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri, and currently works in the non-profit sector both in professional and advisory positions. |
Nancylee Summervill, Soprano Nancylee Summervill relocated to Boise from Denver and was delighted to sing with the Opera Idaho Resident Company in Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors. Nancylee is known for her work as an oratorio soloist and for lead roles performed as a member of the Colorado Opera Workshop. Her solo performance credits include the Colorado Chorale, Colorado Women’s Chorale, and featured soloist with the Evergreen Symphony. Her most recent directing credits include The Mystery of Edwin Drood, the first musical theatre production produced by Boise Little Theatre. She currently teaches children’s classes in language, movement and music, and also enjoys directing liturgical dance ensembles. Nancylee taught music education courses for Metro State College and Colorado Christian University and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education, Language Arts, and a Master of Arts in Music Education from the University of Denver. She has been awarded a master’s level certificate in vocal performance by The Voice Care Network, St Cloud University. She currently teaches vocal music education classes for Riverstone International School. 
Erin Case, Mezzo As a native of Boise, Erin has been singing locally as a soloist and in choirs since she was very young. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Music General in 2007 from Boise State University where she studied Vocal Performance under the direction of Dr. Laura Rushing Raynes. During her college music career, she actively participated in BSU Meistersingers, Chamber Singers, and University Singers. In 2008, she sang with the chorus in Opera Idaho’s production of Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor and then took a four-year break from Opera Idaho to raise three handsome little boys. In 2009-2010, she worked with TaVaci School of Performing Arts, teaching voice and dance performance to elementary-aged kids. Erin is currently the choir director for her church. She delights in sharing music with others around her, and she does so by teaching voice lessons, group and line dancing on the side when she can manage a little time away from her strapping young husband and fabulously fun household of mini-male musicians. 
Vicke Lee, Mezzo Vicke Lee has performed with Opera Idaho since 1994, when she sang in Madama Butterfly. It was her first opportunity to perform Puccini’s exquisite music. She has been hooked on the art form ever since. Since then, she has performed in Puccini’s Tosca; Verdi’s La Traviata; Bizet’s Carmen; Puccini’s La bohème and Madama Butterfly; Donizetti’s Don Pasquale and L’elisir d’amore; Mozart’s Don Giovanni; Lehár’s The Merry Widow; Strauss’s Die Fledermaus; Gounod’s Faust; and Douglas Moore’s The Ballad of Baby Doe, to name a few. Vicke looks forward to more performances in the future. Ellen McKinney, Mezzo Ellen McKinney is a local engineer, technical writer, and educator who uses the rewards of these daily pursuits to support the activity from which she derives her greatest pleasure: singing fine music with talented people. To that end, she is currently an active member of the Opera Idaho Resident Company and the Boise Philharmonic Master Chorale, and has sung with Boise State’s University Singers, the Boise Choristers, and various local musical theater performing organizations. It has been a particular pleasure for Ellen to collaborate with the talented staff, performers, and crew of this production of Oklahoma! In Concert. 
Martha Miles, Mezzo Martha Miles received her Bachelor of Music Therapy degree from Shenandoah Conservatory of Music in Winchester, Virginia. She received her Master of Arts degree from Texas Woman’s University in Denton, Texas, with an emphasis in vocal performance. After she graduated, she toured the United States as a professional vocalist with the Norman Luboff Choir. Martha joined Opera Idaho’s Resident Company in 2009 and has performed in the choruses of Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors, Rorem’s Our Town, Rodger’s & Hammerstein’s South Pacific, and Moore’s The Ballad of Baby Doe. She also sang the role of Mrs. Mullin in Carousel. Martha has performed with various choral groups and theatre companies in the Treasure Valley, including Critical Mass, Encore Theatre Carolers, Majors and Minors, Encore Theatre Company, Knock ‘Em Dead Dinner Theatre, and Starlight Mountain Theatre. Favorite roles performed include Golde in Bock, Harnick & Stein’s Fiddler on the Roof, Queen Aggravain in Rodgers & Barer’s Once Upon a Mattress, and Mother Abbess in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music. She is currently the soprano soloist at Boise First Presbyterian Church. Martha is a software training analyst at Micron Technology, Inc. where she has worked for the past 25 years. |
 Kyle Christensen, Tenor
A lifelong lover of music, Kyle Neil Christensen began studying music in middle school by joining the choir and taking piano lessons. At the age of 14, he began studying the guitar and occasionally writes his own songs. Throughout high school, Mr. Christensen participated in both a cappella and jazz choirs. During this time, he fell in love with a variety of genres including classic rock, folk, jazz, and classical music. After graduating, he went on to study music for a year at Brigham Young University-Idaho and has recently transferred to Boise State University to continue pursuing a degree in vocal performance and where he performed the role of Lord Tolloller in Iolanthe. Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Carousel was his first production with Opera Idaho. Mr. Christensen hopes one day to have his own vocal studio. 
Tim Judy, Tenor Tim Judy originally hails from Nebraska. His first exposure to opera was at age 12 when he was cast as Amahl in the Menotti opera, Amahl and the Night Visitors. After attending Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, he married and continued to sing in choirs while raising a family. His interest in opera was rekindled when he enrolled in an opera workshop and performed in scene selections from Mozart’s Don Giovanni and The Marriage of Figaro, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, and Bizet’s Carmen. Tim has been in a number of Opera Idaho productions, including in the role of Jigger Craigin in last years Carousel, and had several minor parts in the recent production of The Ballad of Baby Doe. 
Alexander Lundquist, Tenor A multi-faceted musician, Alexander Lundquist joined Opera Idaho’s Resident Company in the summer of 2010. While his performance in the chorus of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Carousel were his first ventures into operatic stage productions, he has an extensive performance history in both trumpet and voice. Alexander has been a member of the Boise Philharmonic Master Chorale since 2005 and performed with the group in Carnegie Hall in May 2010. As a trumpet player, he was a member of the Kappa Kappa Psi Intercollegiate National Invitation Band that performed in Phoenix, Arizona, in July 2009. While earning a minor in music, Alexander performed with every major wind ensemble at Boise State and performed at numerous bowl games with the Keith Stein Blue Thunder Marching Band, most notably at the 2004 Tournament of Roses Parade and as a soloist at the 2010 Fiesta Bowl. 
Robert Sandberg, Tenor Robert Sandberg has performed with Opera Idaho in Donizetti’s La Fille du Régiment, Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance, and Puccini’s La bohème. He has always loved singing and has trained with Norman DeVol of the San Francisco Opera and Tara Victoria Smith of Opera Idaho. Robert’s dramatic personality feels at home on the stage, and he’s happy to be performing again with the opera. 
Wally Tuck, Tenor Wally Tuck was asked to try out for Opera Idaho by the Chorus Master Dale Ball following a stage production at Promised Valley Playhouse. He debuted with Opera Idaho in the 1997-1998 productions of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale and Bizet’s Carmen. Since then he has sung tenor in several productions, including Gounod’s Faust, Rossini’s La Cenerentola and Il barbiere di Siviglia, Strauss’s Die Fledermaus, Mozart’s The Magic Flute and Don Giovanni, Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Carousel, and Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance. |
Victor Castillo, Tenor Victor Castillo is a native of southeast Idaho. He became one of the youngest members of Utah Festival Opera Company (UFOC)’s Young Artist Program in 1997, singing in the chorus of both the grand and light operas after graduating from Preston High School. At Utah State University (USU), Victor was involved with USU Opera, as well as with USU’s Main Stage Theatre, performing roles such as Filch in Three Penny Opera, Toby in The Medium, and the Father/Voice Keeper in the children’s show Bocon. Other shows included The Royal Family, Romeo and Juliet, Hansel and Gretel, A Little Night Music, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, and Help, Help the Globlinks. During this time, Victor entered the Cache Valley School of Ballet and principled with Cache Valley Civic Ballet (CVCB). Dancing roles included Step Mother in Cinderella, Demetrius in Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Van Helsing in Dracula. After several summer seasons with UFOC, including an amazing 2003 season as a featured artist in Madame Butterfly, and Dorthy Danner’s staging of Fiddler on the Roof. Victor moved to the east coast where he began working as a singer and dancer at Walt Disney World Resorts. He could be found in most of the parades and Disney’s The Lion King show in Animal Kingdom. Leaving the hot south for the cold of Brunswick, Maine, Victor found a new home working with Maine State Music Theatre both onstage and behind it. He performed the role of himself in Who Killed Chuck Abbot. Leaving Maine to work in Boston, Massachusetts, he continued singing and dancing with the Boston Men’s Chorus, singing the 25th Anniversary Concert with Linda Eder, and as a soloist for the commissioned piece Robert Ward’s A Walt Whitman Oratorio in Boston’s Symphony Hall. He returned to Utah to dance the Role of Drosselmeyer in Nutcracker and Bottom in Midsummer Night’s Dream with CVCB and then reprised the role of Drosselmeyer in Northern Plains Ballet’s Nutcracker in Bismarck, North Dakota. Victor made his Boise debut with Opera Idaho’s concert version of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific. He has also sung in the chorus for productions of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly and La bohème, and worked with Knock Em’ Dead Theatre in their production of Bye, Bye Birdie. 
Fernando Menéndez, Baritone Born in Guatemala, Fernando Menéndez began studying voice there as a student of Dr. Angélica Rosa Sepúlveda. After moving to Idaho, his love for the art form led him to continue his training and is currently a student of Jason and Michele Detwiler. Since August 2009, Mr. Menéndez has performed with the Opera Idaho chorus in Gounod’s Faust; Rossini’s La Cenerentola; Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors; Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific; Rorem’s Our Town; Puccini’s Madama Butterfly and La bohème; Donizetti’s La Fille du Régiment; Gilbert & Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance; and Douglas Moore’s The Ballad of Baby Doe. 
Bob Wallace, Baritone In his youth, Bob Wallace played jazz, folk, country/rock guitar, saxophone, and upright bass. Singing began in middle age with his first gig in the 1988-89 season of the Boise Master Chorale. During the 1990’s, Opera Idaho recruited chorus members from the B.M.C., putting him in the right place at the right time. He was delighted to experience the important role stage choruses have in many complex, emotionally-rich performances. Through opera, he rediscovered his childhood love of the Broadway musical and met its antecedents bel canto and beyond. Singing and performing compliment Bob’s law practice, most of whose 35 years have been and remain in the courtroom. |
