La traviata
By Giuseppe Verdi
- “José Maria Condemi has caught and harnessed the enthusiasm of his company brilliantly with this production, [which] overflowed with grace and jubilation. Rebecca Davis embodied Violetta to perfection. It’s a glorious and deadly trip.”
– Charles Donelan / SB Independent
- “Everything about the production – from the singing to the staging – proves flawless, illustrating why the Verdi classic remains a favorite… The staging was exemplary, with honors going to director Jose Maria Condemi. The enthusiastic audience gave the participants a standing ovation at the end.”
– Margo Kline / Noozhawk
- “Opera Santa Barbara brought a bounty of sighs, swoons and, most importantly, impressive singing to the stage last weekend for Verdi’s “La Traviata,” combining some of the best stage and technical talents, which allowed for striking sets and gorgeous costumes, with a fresh but experienced cast of artists.”
– Rita Moran / Ventura County Star
- “José Maria Condemi’s staging was assured in spectacular performances of La Traviata. The creative team accomplished a great deal in evoking a long-gone Paris of the past. The singing from the cast and chorus was excellent throughout. Soprano Rebecca Davis sang the tragic heroine with finessed coloratura, embracing the tragic trajectory of the character. The audience could feel tragic resonance emerge from the first passages of the overture.”
– Robert F Adams / Casa Magazine
Direction
Valéry Ryvkin
Valéry Ryvkin
Conductor / Carmen
Jan/Feb 2002
Conductor / The Barber of Seville
May 2001
Conductor / La traviata
December 2000
Conductor / La Cenerentola
Mar/Apr 2000
Conductor / Le nozze di Figaro
Jan/Feb 2000
Conductor /
Cavalleria Rusticana & Pagliacci
October 1999
Conductor / Madama Butterfly
May 1999
Conductor / Il trovatore
January 1999
Conductor / The Merry Widow
December 1998
Conductor / Don Pasquale
February 1998
Conductor / Così fan tutte
January 1998
Conductor / Tosca
September 1997
Conductor / Don Giovanni
January 1997
Conductor / La bohème
Nov/Dec 1996
Conductor / Carmen
August 1996
Conductor / La traviata
July 1995 (debut)
Artistic Director
1999–2008
Erik Flatmo
Erik Flatmo
Elizabeth Poindexter
Elizabeth Poindexter
Christopher Maravich
Christopher Maravich
Lighting Designer / Falstaff
March 2014 (debut)
Heather Sterling
Heather Sterling
Heather Sterling is an accomplished makeup artist and hair stylist with a wide range of experience that includes work in theater, film, print, and fashion. She is a licensed cosmetologist and has a degree in fine art with an emphasis in psychology. Armed with an extensive knowledge of period makeup and hairstyles, Heather first designed for Opera Santa Barbara in 2006 for the company's performances of Tosca; since then her work has been seen in nearly forty OSB productions. She regularly designs for the Music Academy of the West's summer operas and she recently designed for the Granada Theatre's A Christmas Carol.
Hair & Makeup Designer / Tosca
February 2006 (debut)
Artists
Rebecca Davis
Rebecca Davis
Ryan MacPherson
Ryan MacPherson
Malcolm MacKenzie
Malcolm MacKenzie
Nova Safo
Nova Safo
Michael Krzankowski
Michael Krzankowski
Malatesta /Don Pasquale
April 2013
Baron Douphol / La traviata
March 2011 (debut)
2011 Studio Artist
Gabriel Manro
Gabriel Manro
Gabriel Vamvulescu
Gabriel Vamvulescu
The Sacristan / Tosca
November 2013
Colline / La bohème
November 2011
Doctor Grenvil / La traviata
March 2011 (debut)
Studio Artist
2011
Alissa Anderson
Alissa Anderson
Hailed for her “deliciously over the top” and “powerful mezzo” by Opera News, Alissa Anderson wields her comic prowess, striking features, and her “powerful vocalism” to great acclaim. Ms. Anderson achieved a considerable success and was celebrated for being “impeccably prepared” and “splendid in every way” when she stepped in as Florence Pike in Santa Fe Opera’s Albert Herring under the baton of Sir Andrew Davis. In the 2019/2020 season, Ms. Anderson will make her company and role debuts with Opera Philadelphia as Princess Clarissa in Prokofiev’s The Love of Three Oranges as well as both her role and European debuts as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd with The Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen. In the spring she returns to Opera Birmingham to sing the role of Madame de la Haltière in Massenet’s Cendrillion. The 2017-2018 season featured her debut with Opera Birmingham and Opera Louisiana in the title role of La tragédie de Carmen, her debut with Opera Delaware as Frugola/La Zia Principessa in Il trittico, and her debut with Utah Festival Opera as The Witch in Into the Woods. The 2018-2019 season includes Ms. Anderson’s return to San Diego Opera as Maddalena in Rigoletto, her debut with Opera San Antonio as Marthe in Faust, Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro and Ms. Andrew/The Bird Woman in Mary Poppins in a return to Utah Festival Opera, and the starring role in the world premiere of the opera Debussy & Ravel: The Flowers of Evil with Mercury Chamber Orchestra at the Wortham Center in Houston, TX.
The 2016-2017 season saw her debut with San Diego Opera as Tisbe in La Cenerentola, a New Year’s Eve gala concert with Opera Southwest, Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro with North Carolina Opera, Verdi’s Requiem with the Houston Camerata, and La Zia Principessa/Ciesca in Il trittico with the Opera Company of Middlebury. Other recent performances for Ms. Anderson include La Zia Principessa/Zita in Suor Angelica/Gianni Schicchi with Opera Santa Barbara, Cleo in The Most Happy Fella with Tulsa Opera, Mother Goose in The Rake’s Progress with Utah Opera, and her debut with Houston Grand Opera’s East + West series in River of Light by composer Jack Perla and librettist Chitra Divakaruni. In addition, she made, her “comically perfect” debut as Mistress Quickly in Falstaff with Opera in the Heights, Lampito in Lysistrata with Fort Worth Opera, Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro with Opera Santa Barbara, Emilia in Otello and Zulma in L’italiana in Algeri with Opera Southwest, Madame de la Haltiere in Cendrillion and the Mother in Hansel and Gretel with the Santa Fe Concert Association, Maddalena in Rigoletto with Opera in the Heights, and her return to Santa Fe Opera where she sang the Society Woman in The Last Savage. Recent concert engagements have included John Adams’ Grand Pianola Music with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with Concordia University Symphony Orchestra, her European concert debut as mezzo soloist in Verdi’s Requiem with performances throughout Germany and France and her Lincoln Center debut as the mezzo soloist in Mahler’s 2nd Symphony.
At Sarasota Opera, Ms. Anderson performed the roles of Dritte Dame in Die Zauberflöte, Sandman in Hansel and Gretel, and Flora in La Traviata. As a resident and principal artist with Fort Worth Opera she performed the roles of Tisbe in La Cenerentola, Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors, Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor, and the Angel Trio in Angels in America. Scott Cantrell of the Dallas Morning News praised her 2010 performance of Verdi’s Requiem with the University of North Texas Symphony Orchestra stating, “Mezzo Alissa Anderson supplied aptly rich tones and an awesome chest voice.”
Other notable engagements include her Tisbe in La Cenerentola and Ruth in The Pirates of Penzance with Opera New Jersey, Flora in La Traviata and Mercedes in Carmen with Pensacola Opera, and Flora in La Traviata with Nevada Opera. As a young artist, she performed with the Santa Fe Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Ashlawn-Highland Opera, as well as spending three consecutive summers at the Seagle Music Colony where she sang the title role in Carmen, Anita in West Side Story, Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Alma March in Little Women, Woman in Marry Me A Little, and Hedy La Rue in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
Ms. Anderson holds her Master of Music in Opera Performance from The University of Maryland and her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of North Texas.
The Princess / Suor Angelica
April 2016
Zita / Gianni Schicchi
April 2016
Marcellina / Le nozze di Figaro
March 2012
Flora / La traviata
March 2011 (debut)
Studio Artist
2011
Rebecca Fay
Rebecca Fay