We would like to extend a warm welcome to the new members of our LOSA family. As we had quite a number of choristers that retired this past spring, we of course have quite a few new members and also some returning members now in new positions this season. Each individual has been asked a set of questions so that they can be introduced and so that we can learn a little more about each of them. Hope you enjoy!
Cullen Gandy, Tenor
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Gandy: I was singing in a production in the chorus with the Met in New York. During one of the rehearsals, Maestro Palumbo informed us that LOC was going to be auditioning for new choristers and I hopped on the audition! The rest followed from there and, within six months, I was living in Chicago; shouting Verdi with some dynamite musicians.
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Gandy: Dead Man Walking is a piece that I haven’t done before. It seems like a very interesting idea, and I love fodder for reflection.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Gandy: I think my favorite singer, with regard to his technical prowess, has to be Fritz Wunderlich. He has such a boundless and elastic voice.
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Gandy: I studied at Georgia State University and The Juilliard School, respectively. My undergraduate at GSU was in Music and Italian Language (in conjunction with the University of Perugia) as well as minor studies in Economics. My master’s degree at Juilliard was in Voice.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Gandy: Well one of my fondest memories in opera, and my small claim to fame, is when I got to sing a small duet scene with Renee Fleming at LA Opera in their production of A Streetcar Named Desire. Surreal.
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Gandy: I enjoy writing, movies, games, languages, and exercise.
Q: Tell me a little about your family (partner, children, close relatives) and their significance in your life and career.
Gandy: I have one brother, Miller, my mom, Lori, and my late father, Jerry. My dad was the one who always enjoyed classical music and opera; so, I always got a lot of support growing up. I have been lucky, because my family has always stepped up to help me. My girlfriend, Ana, and I have been together almost a year.
Alex Guerrero, Tenor
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Guerrero: I’d say it was a perfect storm of factors. Naturally Lyric’s been on my radar for quite a while as one of the premier opera companies in the US, but the reputation of the chorus specifically is also one that precedes it. I’d also heard from colleagues that the chorus had a high number of openings for tenors and basses in particular this season. So, between all of that, a successful audition, and my tremendous eagerness to really get to know Chicago at long last – I’m a native New Yorker and still primarily based there – it seemed like the perfect time to be here.
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Guerrero: I’m not sure I can pick a single one, but I’m really enjoying the early Verdi style of Luisa Miller – it’s Verdi’s later works I’ve mostly been acquainted with – and this’ll be my first time performing in a Francesca Zambello production, so that’s just fantastic. I’m also really looking forward to Tchaikovsky’s Queen of Spades. Despite the obvious challenges, I LOVE singing in such a beautiful language. Even with its complex grammar and challenging phonology, I find it lends itself incredibly well to a rich breadth of expression not found in many other languages. I’ve also never had a chance to perform anything by Tchaikovsky until now. So that’s really exciting too.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Guerrero: This won’t be surprising, but for a favorite singer I’d have to go with Luciano Pavarotti. The consistency with which he sang throughout the overall course of his career is just stunning, and the sheer beauty of his voice is absolutely thrilling. He struck me as someone who was refreshingly unpretentious given his relationships and collaborations with pop music artists from Aretha Franklin to Celine Dion to Sting. It’s amazing to me he managed to become a household name for people who otherwise don’t know the first thing about opera. I also have huge respect for the work he did on behalf of several charitable causes.
My favorite opera is Il Tabarro from Puccini’s Il Trittico. It made me fall in love with opera. The intense love triangle set to exquisite music, so expertly, using leitmotifs, orchestral colors (to me, often reminiscent of French impressionism), and combined with that inimitable Italian fervor, found only in Puccini’s operas, captivated me in an indelible way as I was learning the piece to perform as Tinca when I was in grad school.
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Guerrero: I received a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Voice from Mannes School of Music, and have completed some doctoral work at Stony Brook University. I can’t claim any degrees in non-music subjects – to the chagrin of my mother. She was hoping I’d be a bit more pragmatic in my studies. However, I was one course shy of getting a double-major degree in music theory and took composition lessons for several years.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Guerrero: This is a little silly, but my birthday’s on Halloween. So, as a child I could never understand why other children didn’t go trick-or-treating on their birthdays!
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Guerrero: I love to unwind with TV and movies, and I’m an enthusiastic food tourist – it’s not unheard of for me and one of my best friends to travel as far as an hour to try off-the-beaten-path restaurants, hole-in-the-wall mom-and-pop places, and difficult-to-come-by cuisines. Among my favorites have been Northern Uzbeki and halal Manchurian. I’m also a bit of a news and geopolitics junkie. I’m very keen on following various forms of media– from mainstream to alternative, conventional to controversial, and from all ends of the political spectrum. I’m especially interested in sources I don’t agree with – it’s utterly fascinating to me what various sources choose to cover, or how they choose to cover the same thing.
Cameo Humes, Tenor
Q: How did you end up at Lyric?
Humes: My introduction to Lyric Opera was an interesting one. I first auditioned back in 2012 while I was studying at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. I actually got wait-listed, but then there was a last- minute opening and I was offered a contract for Die Meistersinger. By that time, I had just made plans to move to New York City, and was having trouble finding adequate (and affordable) housing in Chicago, so I ended up dissolving that contract. I just KNEW I would never be hired at Lyric again because of this, but much to my surprise, I was offered a contract for 3 shows in the 2014-15 season and the rest is history!
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Humes: Dead Man Walking!!! It is such a gripping story about the effects of capital punishment on the families of the victims as well as the convicted. More importantly, it is about the decision (or lack thereof) to seek redemption for ones’ crimes in the hour leading up to death.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera and why?
Humes: Leontyne Price and Aida. Ms. Price has an instrument that is one of a kind and UNMATCHED! She overcame so many obstacles to get to the top and she did it with grace, class, confidence and elegance. She also looks like me, and representation is EVERYTHING in this business. Aida because Verdi is my favorite composer, and the majesty and tour de force that is the Triumphal Scene is thrilling to hear, be it live or in recording. I can literally listen to it multiple times a day!
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside music?
Humes: I was a double major in undergrad. I have a BM in Voice with an Outside Field in Spanish as well as a BA in International Studies (Concentration in Caribbean and Latin America) from Stetson University. I have an MM in Voice from the University of Florida and continued with postgraduate studies at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in outside of Lyric?
Humes: I’ve done some studio recording and background vocals for several recording artists, one of which was featured on the show Empire on Fox!!
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Humes: I have an immense love for Latin tropical music (Salsa, Merengue, Bachata) and I regularly like to go Salsa Dancing! I also enjoy walking by the lake on a beautiful day.
Q: Tell me about your family and their significance in your life and career.
Humes: Family is everything to me, and their love, support and encouragement is the reason why I am here today. Interestingly, I am an identical twin and the twin gene runs strong, as there are 4 sets of twins in my family!
Katelyn Lee, Soprano
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Lee: My first job at Lyric was actually working in the ticketing office, where I started in 2015. I auditioned for LOC in 2016 and was asked to be part of Les Troyens. It was an amazing experience, and the icing on the cake was that I got to share the stage with my husband, Joe Shadday, who was also hired for his first season with LOC that year.
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Lee: Queen of Spades! I’ve never sung an opera in Russian, and I hear the costumes are going to be amazing.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Lee: My favorite singer is Beverly Sills, aka “Bubbles.” She was not only an incredible singer and actress, but her bubbly personality was equally magnetic. My favorite opera is La Traviata, because it’s perfect!
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Lee: I got my BM degree in Voice from University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and my MM degree in Voice from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Lee: I once auditioned for Star Search at a Toys R Us when I was in middle school and forgot almost every single word to my chosen song, “Think of Me” from Phantom of the Opera. Needless to say, I didn’t make the cut.
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Lee: Reading, traveling, running, trying new restaurants, and going to concerts.
Q: Tell me a little about your family (partner, children, close relatives) and their significance in your life and career.
Lee: My mom is a music teacher, and she started a community children’s choir program that I grew up singing in. This experience, along with my mom’s guidance, inspired me to pursue music as a career. I was very lucky to be exposed to opera at an early age and was absolutely enamored of it from the start. By high school, I knew it was what I wanted to do. My husband is a constant source of encouragement. He is open and honest, even when I don’t want to hear it. I also happen to think he’s a fantastic singer and actor, and his performances have always inspired me.
Amanda Runge, Mezzo-Soprano
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Runge: I moved to Chicago from London after getting my masters, in 2007 and I loved the idea of singing with the Lyric Chorus–the voices, the stories, everything bigger than life. I auditioned for every year until I was cast in my first production in 2015 and now in 2019 this is my third production and my first as a member of the core supplementary chorus.
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Runge: Luisa Miller
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Runge: I don’t have a favorite opera singer. I have just seen too many singers do such amazing things to choose one. My favorite opera is difficult as well, but I’m going to go with the Rape of Lucretia. The music represents the drama with such perfection, the opera demands that the singers not only sing but also act unerringly.
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Runge: I have a Bachelor’s in Music from the University of Southern California in LA, and my Master’s of Music from Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, England.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Runge: One of my favorite productions I was involved in was in Berlin in an emptied-out swimming pool. It was a friend’s Opera Company and the production took various pieces from different Baroque operas and cantatas to tell a story. We had period instruments and over 600 people came per night for all 3 performances–really incredible to bring very historic pieces to a modern audience in a way that was impactful.
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Runge: Hmmmmmm, walking, art museums, zoos with my fiancé, or any sort of animal activity (i.e. playing with our dog and cat), and my other career as Senior Director of Development, Major and Leadership Annual Gifts at Ball State University in Muncie, IN!
Q: Tell me a little about your family (partner, children, close relatives) and their significance in your life and career.
Runge: I have an amazing family that consists of my fiancé Joe Court; our 110 lb American Bulldog, Herman; and our kitten, Arnold.
Emma Sorenson, Mezzo-Soprano
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Sorenson: I moved here three summers ago, and I auditioned for the Lyric Chorus this past season! So thrilled to be here.
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Sorenson: I love to move when I sing. So whichever show has the most engaging staging! I cannot wait to find out.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Sorenson: Jennifer Johnson Cano. She is a singer I love to look up to, as a person and as a musician. But, I honestly love so many singers it is difficult to choose a favorite. My favorite opera is The Rake’s Progress, for the satisfying music, and the freakish imagination of almost every production.
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Sorenson: I studied voice at Webster University and The Boston Conservatory, earning a Bachelor’s & Master’s Degree in Opera, respectively.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Sorenson: I moonlight as a commercial model & actress. Ask me about my Dyson commercial! I sunlight as an accountant. Ask me about finance tips!
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Sorenson: I love T.V. and movies, pizza, dancing…sometimes I paint vintage denim… my dog (Wallace), being outdoors, games, video games, shopping at ALDI, drawing, fitness… I generally love it all!
Q: Tell me a little about your family (partner, children, close relatives) and their significance in your life and career.
Sorenson: My family unit at home consists of Me, my husband, Ian, and our Shiba. They are both very supportive of me in my career. I am lucky to have close, supportive parents on all sides and an extended family of friends in several cities!
Nicholas Ward, Baritone
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Ward: I first auditioned for the 2014-15 season and was lucky enough to land two shows as a supplementary chorister. After a few years away from Chicago, I re-auditioned and was even luckier to land a Regular Chorus spot! I also performed with Lyric Unlimited in last season’s Rhoda and the Fossil Hunt.
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Ward: Definitely Dead Man Walking. I’ve done the show before and I know how incredibly powerful it is.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Ward: At the moment, my favorite singer is Bryn Terfel, and I can’t wait for his recital this season. He is legendary! My favorite opera is Verdi’s Falstaff.
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Ward:Both of my degrees are in voice – the University of Michigan for my bachelor’s degree (Go Blue!), and the University of Cincinnati-CCM for my master’s.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Ward:Last season, I suddenly made my Chicago Opera Theater debut stepping on as a cover! At the last minute I took over the role of Mr. Stubb in Moby Dick. It was a roller coaster of a night!
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Ward: Avid Pokemon Go player–gotta catch ‘em all!!
Q: Tell me a little about your family (partner, children, close relatives) and their significance in your life and career.
Ward:I am really fortunate to have a wonderful and supportive family. They’ve always supported me and my career in music. I wouldn’t be here without them today! Also, I met my boyfriend on a gig in Louisville, Kentucky. We’ve now been together for three years!
Kelsea Webb, Soprano
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Webb: Many things led me to Lyric, but the most influential was my time at Indiana University and getting to work with Walter Huff. When I was in graduate school, Maestro Huff was double-dipping as chorus master at both IU and the Atlanta Opera, so I really received a solid, professional chorus training early on in my career. When I got the job at Lyric, it was a very smooth transition!
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Webb: The Queen of Spades!! I LOVE the Russian composers, but I’ve never done an opera in Russian before, so I’m really looking forward to digging into a new language and musical style. I’m also very excited to work with Sondra Radvanovsky for the first time.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Webb: Speaking of Sondra…I’ve always been a huge fan of her singing. She has such a unique ability to utilize every color in her voice and her acting ability is so honest. Everything is in favor of telling the story, and I think that is the essence of a stellar singer. My favorite opera is Eugene Onegin. I love the character arch of Tatyana–how she grows from an innocent teenager to a respectable woman. You feel for her at every turn. Onegin mocks her, kills her brother-in-law, runs himself to ruin, and then comes back begging for mercy. The strength of character that she shows when she turns him down, even in the face of her own love for him, is remarkable. To me it’s such an interesting version of feminism.
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Webb: I hold a Bachelor of Arts degree in Applied Music from Indiana Wesleyan University, and a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Indiana University.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Webb: One time, while on a college choir tour through Italy, we were on our way to sing a Mass at Basilica San Marco in Venice. We started the day on a walking tour and packed our performance clothing to change into later. Unfortunately, this information was not conveyed to the coordinator at the church, so when we arrived, there was no place to change. The only space large enough to accommodate us was in the basement of the church, otherwise known as, the catacombs. We were all quietly and respectfully trying to change our clothes, by candlelight, in the presence of the (long gone) saints.
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Webb: Cross-stitch and tap dancing. I’m really good at one of those things.
Q: Tell me a little about your family and their significance in your life and career.
Webb: My father is a biologist turned university president, and my mother is an opera singer turned psychologist. All of my grandparents were public school teachers including in Math, English, Social Studies/Geography, and Second Grade. I have one younger brother and a sister-in-law. Though academics all, many of them were also amateur musicians. I grew up in a family whose members were highly educated, but also very respectful and appreciative of the arts. I started in school and church plays, and eventually moved into community theatre and then professional theatre. My parents and extended family have always been supportive of my career in the arts, even if they don’t always know what that is. I am very grateful for their enthusiastic support.
Max Wier, Bass-Baritone
Q: How did you end up here at Lyric?
Wier: Since the 2011-12 season, I have been an Extra Chorus member at the Metropolitan Opera. During slower seasons there, I performed as a Supplementary Chorus member here at Lyric in Simon Boccanegra (2012) and Parsifal (2013).
Q: Which production are you most excited about this season?
Wier: I’m most excited about Dead Man Walking. I’ve seen the show produced 3 times and am so excited to finally be in what is essentially the blue print of modern American opera.
Q: Who is your favorite singer and opera, and why?
Wier: I’m obsessed with many for different reasons. Lately, I’ve been listening a lot to Anne Sofie von Otter. I love her clarity of tone, surprising ornamentation, and song interpretation. She is thoughtful, intentional, and her voice has a tone that can’t be beat.
Q: Where and what did you study? Do you have any degrees in music or any outside of music?
Wier: Rice University- Vocal Performance as an undergraduate. Indiana University- Vocal Performance as a master graduate student.
Q: Do you have any interesting stories or events you were involved in not pertaining to Lyric (related to opera or otherwise)?
Wier: Two fun professional opera chorus stories from Houston Grand Opera 2005-7, while still in undergrad and just after:
- In Simon Boccanegra council chamber scene, we had been given an instruction from the director to all pivot on one foot when saying “Assasin”. This later got cut. However, my best friend and I kept the move. I have brought it with me to the Met and to Lyric with a new partner in crime each time. Also in that production, Dimitri Hvorostovsky would come out and grab me by the shoulders to calm me down before turning to sing. So that was always enjoyable.
2. In Aida, Dolora Zajick was singing Amneris for her 20th anniversary of singing the role. She’s done it a lot, so she sang it all down the octave in rehearsals; I did not know the opera well, being 23 and such. So, in the open dress rehearsal, she sang a high note at the end of the Triumphal scene that I had never heard before, causing me to whip my head to the left to stare at her while I was pretty much downstage center. So that was a lesson in how not to pull focus and make sure to do a little research earlier in the process.
Q: What are your favorite hobbies outside of singing?
Wier: Outside of singing, my interests lie in some things that are closely related– Broadway, plays, museums, art cinema, premium televisions– and some things less closely related—architecture (especially mid- century), cars (I watch a ton of YouTube content), going out/socializing, and getting more and more into cooking.
Q: Tell me a little about your family (partner, children, close relatives) and their significance in your life and career.
Wier: My parents are still in San Antonio, where I’m from. They are eternally supportive and always travel to see me perform. A trip to Lyric to see Don Giovanni and Dead Man Walking is in the works. My mother is still active with the Opera San Antonio opera guild, as well as seeing performances each year at Austin Lyric Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and Santa Fe Opera.