FGO’s Studio Artists are an elite cadre of young professional singers, carefully selected via an intensive nationwide audition process. They take up residency in Miami to perform mainstage roles, concertize throughout Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, and serve the community as FGO’s opera ambassadors. This season, the six award-winning stars include sopranos Page Michels and Ashley Shalna, mezzo-soprano Erin Alford, tenors Charles Calotta and Joseph McBray, and bass-baritone Phillip Lopez. 

Two artists return to the Studio after a successful 2021-22 season. Page Michels appeared as Lucy in Fellow Travelers and A Page in Rigoletto. In 2022, she will open the season in the leading role of secret wife Carolina in the Sunday matinee performance of El matrimonio secreto and essay one of opera’s most famous and beloved arias, “O mio babbino caro,” as Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi. After receiving accolades for his performances last season as The Young Collector in A Streetcar Named Desire, Borsa in Rigoletto, and Tommy McIntyre in Fellow Travelers, Charles Calotta will perform the leading roles of young lover Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi and Buoso’s Ghost and Scarpia’s evil henchman Spoletta in Tosca.

The Studio is also welcoming four new singers in 2022-23. Tampa native and graduate of both the University of Florida and the University of Miami, soprano Ashley Shalna made her FGO debut in 2021 as Clara in Il signor delusoand returns this season in the roles of Elisetta in El matrimonio secreto (Sunday matinee performance) and Nella in Gianni Schicchi and Buoso’s Ghost. Mezzo-soprano Erin Alford, hailing from Long Beach, CA, makes her FGO debut as jealous aunt Fidalma in El matrimonio secreto, La Ciesca in Gianni Schicchi and Buoso’s Ghost. Tenor Joseph McBrayer of Dallas, Georgia will debut in the leading role of secret husband Paolino in El matrimonio secretoand as Gherardo in Gianni Schicchi and Buoso’s Ghost. Baritone Phillip Lopez will debut as the deceived father, Geronimo, in El matrimonio secreto, Betto in Gianni Schicchi and Buoso’s Ghost, and the Jailer in Tosca. 

The FGO Studio Artists are managed by Studio Artist Program Manager Matt Cooksey, under the artistic leadership of Director of Artistic Administration Mitch Roe and General Director and CEO Susan T. Danis. Established in 1984, the FGO Studio enjoys an international reputation as a highly competitive and comprehensive career development program. The young professionals chosen demonstrate extraordinary potential for significant contributions to the field of opera. Alumni of the program include award-winning countertenor Key’Mon Murrah, most recently awarded Finalist and Encouragement award of Placido Domingo’s international Operalia competition; Grammy-winning soprano Jessica E. Jones; Metropolitan Opera mezzo-soprano Raehann Bryce-Davis; Metropolitan Opera tenor Andrew Bidlack; and Miami’s own mezzo-soprano Amanda Crider, founder and Artistic Director of illuminarts.

First Sing is the Studio Artists’ first public appearance and an opportunity for music lovers to meet these rising stars and hear them at the beginning of their FGO adventures. Many patrons enjoy tracking the young singers’ progress throughout the season. In addition to their mainstage appearances, the Studio Artists engage in a series of performances in Broward and Miami-Dade Counties, including a Zarzuela concert, the SongFest series which explore a variety of themes including contemporary opera, the compositions of Michael Ching (composer and conductor of Buoso’s Ghost), and the gems found in operas’ final acts, and a grand finale concert. 

“We are so excited to bring these concerts to Coral Gables and Oakland Park this fall,” said Cooksey. “The Studio this year is made up of some of the best singers from all four corners of the United States: California, Oregon, New York, and even here in Florida. Not only is this concert our first opportunity to showcase the new Studio Artists, but our audience will be able to hear selections from all of the main stage operas as part of this program.”

“It is a great first opportunity to see these exceptional emerging artists before watching them perform some of these full roles on the mainstage,” added Roe. 

The First Sing concerts take place on Friday, October 21, 8:00 pm at The Miracle Theater, 280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables; and on Saturday, October 22 at 7:30 pm, The Center for Spiritual Living, 4849 Dixie Highway, Oakland Park. Each performance is approximately 75 minutes long. Admission is free, and open seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Visit fgo.org for more information about First Sing and the 2022-23 concert season.