Soprano Regina Zona is making a name for herself as one of the "important" singers of her generation. Described as the "perfect voice for Strauss," she continues to amaze audiences with her versatility. Whether it is the demanding music of Mozart and Strauss or the artistry and lyricism of Bellini and Verdi, Dr. Zona finds her way comfortably in all styles.GUEST ARTISTS
Maestro Gaetano Colajanni (Bellini Conservatory, Italy) - Conductor of Don Giovanni
Gaetano Colajanni, born in Enna, Italy, began his musical studies at a young age at the Accademie de Musique de Gilly (Belgium), and continued his musical training at the Conservatorio Royal de Musique in Brussels, where he studied voice with Jules Bastin, clarinet with Pierre De Leye, composition with Marcel Poot and orchestral conducting with Renè Defossez. He further developed his skills in voice with Gina Cigna and in composition with E. Sollima and Franco Donatoni. He graduated with emphases in choral music and orchestral conducting from the Conservatorio di Musica di Stato “San Pietro a Majella” in Naples with Maestro F. De Masi, also studying with Franco Ferrara and Mario Gusella. As Maestro collaboratore at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo, he has directed the Orchestra Alessandro Scarlatti (Naples), the Russian Philharmonic (Bulgaria), the orchestra of the Opera of Pleven, the E.A.O.S.S. (Sicilian Symphonic Orchestra), the Romanian State Philharmonic of Orodea, the orchestra of the Opera of Burgas, and the Haneger Strings Orchestra of Cairo (Egypt).
At Carnegie Hall, he conducted the Orchestra dell’Accademia Musicale Siciliana of which he is the founder, President and resident conductor. With this orchestra, he has toured in Japan (Osaka-Suzuki), France, and the United States (Boston, Philadelphia, Orlando, Washington D.C.), where the group received the official commendation of the United States Senate.
In 1997 he directed the Palermo di Scena Orchestra, accompanying the celebrated trumpeter, Arturo Sandoval.
In 2000 he conducted La Traviata at the Circle Royal Theater in Brussels and in Bulgaria at the Blagoevgrad Opera. He has conducted the State Symphonic Orchestra of Bahia Blanca and toured Tashkent with the State Symphonic Orchestra of Uzbekistan. In Lebanon, in the presence of the Heads of State of Lebanon and various other countries, he conducted the Orchestra dell’Accademia Musicale Siciliana in the Teatro del Casino du Liban and in the St. Elia Cathedral of Beirut on the occasion of their Jubilee 2000 and the Maronite Christian Tricentennial, performing the world premier of music by J. Waked. He has conducted the E.A.O.S.S. (Sicilian Symphonic Orchestra) and the Philharmonic Orchestra of the State of Russia P. Ciakowski in Volgograd.
For a commemoration ceremony for King Hussein of Jordan, he conducted the Mediterranean Orchestra for Peace at Amman in the presence of the royal family. He has conducted the Spartanburg Chamber Orchestra and the Converse Sinfonietta at the Twichell Auditorium and the Turkish Orchestra of Hacettepe in the Presidential Auditorium in Ankara, at the University of Eski?ehir, and at Hacettepe University.
In 2001 he was the musical director for the Accademia Musicale Siciliana, preparing Puccini’s Madama Butterfly for performances in Malta. He also conducted the Petite Messe Solonelle in Montreal and the Polish State Orchestra Filharmonia Lodzka im. Artura Rubinsteina in Paris.
In April of the same year, he conducted the National Orchestra of Malta at the Teatro Manoel and in 2002 the Symphonic Orchestra of the State of Mexico in the Felipe Villanueva Hall in Toluce and in the San Benid Abad Theater, as well as directing Verdi’s Nabucco in Brussels.
Gaetano Colajanni was artistic director for the American Italian Festival, in which the University of Minnesota Duluth, the Conservatorio di Musica “Vincenzo Bellini,” and the Accademia di Belle Arti of Palermo produced the musical Guys and Dolls and Verdi’s La Traviata, achieving a high level of performance with young Sicilian and American musicians and earning high acclaim both nationally and internationally.
In August 2006-2008, he was musical director for the Sieur Du Luth Summer Arts Festival, performing Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, Verdi’s Rigoletto, Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, Bizet’s Carmen, Verdi’s Il Trovatore, Saint-Saëns’s Samson et Dalila, several opera gala concerts, and a symphonic concert in honor of the President of Finland’s receipt of an honorary degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth. He prepared the A.M.S. Orchestra with international artists on tour in Malta, where they performed Suor Angelica, Cavalleria Rusticana, and I Pagliacci in the presence of Riccardo Muti.
He has directed the Symphonic Orchestra of Matsumoto in Japan and the Orchestra of Transylvania for the International Opera Competition “V. Bellini” in Caltanissetta (Sicily). He served as artistic director for the first international opera competition Voci nuove per la lirica (New Voices for Opera) in Pollina, which was presided over by tenor José Carreras and also for the Associated Artists of Brussels, and he collaborates with the Belgian Institute for Italian Culture. He has conducted concerts for the CIMS (Center for Musical Initiatives in Sicily) that have been broadcast internationally. He has served as artistic director on the occasion of the first G. Bizet Opera Competition, organized by the Province of Palermo, and is currently a member of the organizational committees for several international competitions. He received the Polifemo d’Argento prize from the city of Zafferana Etnea, Sicily, which recognizes the distinguished career of a Sicilian musician for work realized both nationally and abroad. He is currently the artistic director for the editing and recording house, Panastudio Production of Palermo and of the Opera Theater Association for the city of Enna.
Recently, he has conducted the world premier of the concerto “Il mondo può cambiare” (TheWorld Can Change) in remembrance of the fourth anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II with the Symphonic Orchestra of the Conservatorio “Vincenzo Bellini” of Palermo.
He has produced recordings for the Vogue, Barbey, and Butterfly labels. He is a professor of orchestral directing at the Conservatorio “A. Scontrino” in Trapani and of composition and score reading at the Conservatorio “V. Bellini” in Palermo, where he is currently the head of harmony and analysis studies for students of the advanced two-year degree program. In 2009 Gaetano Colajanni was invited to conduct in Verdi’s Luisa Miller in Australia at the Melbourne City Opera, where he will return in 2010 to conduct Giordano’s Andrea Chenier and Leoncavallo’s version of La Bohème. He has conducted the Symphonic Orchestra of Assunciòn, Paraguay. He is the promotor/sponsor of several international initiatives that engage young instrumentalists and singers from all over the world.
Born in San Diego, CA, Carol Vaness launched her professional singing career at the New York City Opera, where she appeared regularly from 1979 to 1983. Since then, she has sung on the world's biggest stages and at premier music festivals, collaborated with today's foremost conductors in operatic and symphonic repertoires, appeared on numerous television broadcasts throughout North America and Europe, and compiled a distinguished catalog of recordings.
Leading baritone Kelly Anderson has appeared with opera companies across the United States and abroad, most notably with Houston Grand Opera, New York City Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Washington National Opera, Arizona Opera, Baltimore Opera, Deutsche Opera Berlin, Opera Leipzig, Boston Lyric Opera, Portland Opera, Austin Lyric Opera, Opera North, Florida Grand Opera, Florentine Opera of Milwaukee, Hawaii Opera, Opera Colorado, Central City Opera, and Glimmerglass Opera. Known for having a strong and compelling presence on stage, he has been hailed by critics for possessing a “rich voice and very easy natural phrasing,” (Washington Times). Mr. Anderson returns to Hawaii Opera Theater in 2011 for the role of Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor. He begins the 2009– 20010 season at Chautauqua Opera where he will sing the role of John Sorel in a new production of Menotti’s The Consul. He also sings the role of Ray Cohn in a concert performance of Angels in America with the BBC Symphony at the Barbican Centre in London, which marks the UK premiere of the work. In the previous two seasons, Mr. Anderson performed the role of Lescuat in Manon Lescaut and Escamillo in Carmen with Hawaii Opera Theater. He made his debut with the Tucson Symphony in the World Premiere of Daniel Asia’s Symphony No. 5 where his “resonating baritone was among the highlights of the performance.” (The Arizona Daily Star) On the opera stage, he joined the Fort Worth Opera as Roy Cohn in the North American premiere of Angels in America, the Hawaii Opera Theater as both Lescaut in Manon Lescaut and Escamillo in Carmen, the Palm Beach Opera as Don Pizzaro in Fidelio, and the Lake George Opera Festival as Germont in La Traviata where he was praised for his “booming, fatherly voice and his dramatic performance [which] had just the right balance between firm determination and kindness.” (The Daily Gazette) Recent career highlights include the roles of Rambaldo in La Rondine with the Dallas Opera, Omar in L’Assedio di Corinto and Angelotti in Tosca with the Baltimore Opera, Sharpless in Madama Butterfly with the Naples Opera, Germont in La Traviata for his debut with the Fort Worth Opera, and Jochanaan in Salome, Escamillo in Carmen and in the title role of Le Nozze di Figaro all with New York City Opera. He sang Michele in Il Tabarro with Arizona Opera, Marcello in La Boheme with the Florentine Opera, and the title role in Don Giovanni with Florida Grand Opera, Hawaii Opera, Opera Colorado, and the Washington National Opera. He sang Ping in Turandot and Basil in the United States premiere of Dorian Gray both with the Florentine Opera, Achila in Julius Caesar with the Florida Grand Opera and Portland Opera, Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro with the Florida Grand Opera and the Opera Festival of New Jersey, and Escamillo in Carmen with Oper Leipzig. A sought after soloist on the concert stage, Mr. Anderson has performed with the symphonies of Chicago, Boston, Houston, Cincinnati, St. Louis, Evansville, West Virginia, Florida, Phoenix, Kentucky, Indiana, and Berlin. Highlights include performances of Don Pizzaro in Fidelio and a program of Beethoven with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and Iago in Otello and Scarpia in Tosca both with the Kentucky Symphony, and Escamillo in concert performances of Carmen with the Imperial Symphony in Florida. Mr. Anderson’s recordings include Hans Foltz and the Night Watchman in Die Meistersinger with Sir Georg Solit and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (London/Decca) and the role of Golfredo in Bellini’s Il Pirata (Berlin Classics). 
Rachel Inselman, soprano is an Associate Professor of Voice at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Ms. Inselman completed her Artist Diploma Degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she also received her Master's Degree. She earned her Bachelor's Degree from Oberlin College. Ms. Inselman has performed in numerous opera and musical theatre roles, including Gretel, Despina, Susanna, Adele, Laetitia and Micaela and was an artist apprentice with the Michigan Opera Theatre. She has appeared with various symphony orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, the Paris Sinfonetta, the Toledo Symphony, the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, the Duluth-Superior Symphony Orchestra, and the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Inselman was named a winner at the 1996 Metropolitan Opera District Auditions for the fourth consecutive year. She was a third place finalist at the Met Regional Auditions in 1995 and 1996, and was awarded first prize in the 1996 Schubert Club Scholarship Competition. Ms. Inselman has appeared with Northland Opera Theatre Experience in the roles of Marzelline in Fidelio and Olympia in Les Contes d'Hoffmann. She performed Mahler's Fourth Symphony, Handel's Messiah, Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass, the Brahm's Requiem, the Mozart Requiem, and the Fauré Requiem with the DSSO. In July of 2000, Ms. Inselman appeared with the Shanghai Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra in China to perform Mahler's Fourth Symphony. As a recitalist, Rachel has appeared in numerous locations, including Palermo, Italy; San Jose, Costa Rica; Thunderbay, Ontario; Uvalde, Texas; Stillwater, Oklahoma; Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 2004, she appeared with Opera Roanoke in Virginia for a Viennese Gala, and was the opera director for the Italian American Festival's production of La Traviata. Last summer, Rachel was a vocal coach for the Sieur Duluth Opera Festival for the second year. Recent engagements include the All- American Recital in Michigan, Minnesota, Canada and Turkey as well as the role of Hanna in Lehar's The Merry Widow in the spring of 2008. Ms. Inselman teaches Opera Literature, Song Literature, Diction and applied voice at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Upcoming engagements in 2010 include singing with the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra in Souzhou, China and the DSSO Opera Night.
American pianist and vocal coach Douglas Sumi finished his second season as a Domingo-Thornton Young Artist at LA Opera where he was on the music staff of Das Rheingold and Siegfried, under the baton of James Conlon, and was on Tamerlano, conducted by William Lacy and Il barbiere di Siviglia, conducted by Michele Mariotti, this past fall. In his debut season at LA Opera, Mr. Sumi was on the music staff of Carmen (conductor Emmanuel Villaume), Das Rheingold (conductor James Conlon), and La Traviata (conductor Grant Gershon). 
Born in Seoul, South Korea, Seulgee Lee is a graduate assistant at the
University of Minnesota Duluth where she is majoring in piano
performance under the tutelage of Dr. Alexander Chernyshev. In 2007,
Seulgee Lee graduated from Dankook University in Seoul, South Korea
with a Bachelor of Music degree in composition. She moved to the
United States in 2008 and studied choral conducting with Dr. J.W. Park
at The University of Wisconsin-River Falls where she was also the
accompanist for the concert choir. She is active in accompanying both
vocal literature and chamber music at UMD. Upcoming engagements
include serving as a rehearsal accompanist for the opera, The Elixir
of Love, to be performed at Glensheen in 2010.
Tom Isbell is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama and spent his professional career acting in theatre, film and TV, working opposite Robert DeNiro, Ed Harris, Helen Hunt, Lynn Redgrave, Rosemary Harris, Hal Holbrook, Anne Bancroft, Sarah Jessica Parker, and others. He has taken two productions to the Kennedy Center as part of the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival: Dear Finder in 1999 (co-written with seven students), and The Movie Game in 2002 (written by UMD alum Adam Hummel). A professor at the University of Minnesota Duluth, he was recently named the Albert Tezla Scholar/Teacher of the Year, as well a Horace T. Morse Distinguished Teacher, the highest undergraduate teaching honor given within the four University of Minnesota campuses. His book, Lessons: The Craft of Acting, was released in April, 2006, published by Meriwether Press. His most recent play was Teddy Roosevelt and the Treasure of Ursa Major, directed by Gregg Henry and with songs written by political humorist Mark Russell. It opened at the Kennedy Centers Family Theatre in October, 2006, and will go on a four-month national tour in January 2008. Simon & Schuster will publish a book based on the play, also to be released in January 2008; First Lady Laura Bush has written a forward for the book. Mr. Isbell is currently working on a musical adaptation of Homers Odyssey with noted French composer Louis Dunoyer de Segonzac. 
Brian McCullough is a teacher of the F.M. Alexander Technique in Minneapolis. He teaches Alexander Technique classes at the University of Minnesota and hosts individuals and groups at his private teaching studio. His clients include a wide variety of people of all ages including musicians, actors, dancers, professional speakers, office workers, doctors, dental hygienists, and clergy persons.
Molly McManus has called Duluth her home now for almost ten years. She loves Duluth for the warmth and sense of community it has brought to her life. Before she found her True North here near the greatest of lakes she was active in the live music industry as the Director of Operations at First Avenue. She has had the pleasure of facilitating many thousands of live music events and performances including rock, country, world beat, hip hop and even an opera or two! Molly is also no stranger to the stage herself and was originally trained in Minneapolis at the Children’s Theatre Company. Her passion found its way to yoga and after moving to Duluth she decided to follow her bliss. The diversity in her interests, background, education and experience help her to create a relaxed, inviting and fun atmosphere to teach the wildly beneficial life skills of yoga. She is certified by Yoga Alliance at the RYT 500 level. She enjoys teaching postures and philosophy at Yoga North and with the wonderful students of UMD as well as her role as Administrative Director at the Northland’s premiere teaching school. Molly continues her development with continuous training in anatomy, therapeutic yoga and adaptive yoga as well as any philosophy courses she can find.
Rebecca Katz Harwood’s eclectic career has included work as a performer, choreographer, teacher, researcher, and arts administrator. She received her undergraduate degree from Macalester College, and her MFA in Dance from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Her concert dance choreography has been seen at various venues in Minnesota and New York. In the realm of musical theatre, Ms. Katz Harwood has been fortunate to work with John Carrafa, Kathleen Marshall, and Frank Ventura and the CAP21 Conservatory, among others. A native of Duluth, who began her dancer’s life with the Duluth Ballet (now Minnesota Ballet), she returned to her hometown in the fall of 2006 to join the faculty of the UMD Theatre Department as an Assistant Professor, where she teaches courses in Dance and Musical Theatre. For UMD Theatre, she has choreographed Urinetown!, A Year With Frog and Toad, and Sugar as well as numerous dances for dance concerts. Most recently, she was the Artistic Director and among the choreographers for Action/ReAction, UMD's Main Season Dance Concert, in February 2010. Up next, she is creating a new work CorresponDance, that will premiere as part of a shared bill with Jeffrey Peterson Dance at the Minnesota Fringe Festival this August.
LilaAnn Coates White is a graduate of the National Academy of Arts, a performing arts high school in Champaign, Illinois. Ms. White danced professionally with the Des Moines Ballet, Allergro Dance Theatre in Chatanooga, Tennesee, and the Minnesota Ballet (then the Duluth Ballet). Upon retiring from the stage, Ms. White pursued her undergraduate and graduate degrees in Physical Therapy from The College of St. Scholastica. She also assumed the role of Principal Teacher for the School of the Minnesota Ballet. In the fall of 1999, Ms. White joined the Department of Theatre at UMD as an adjunct assistant professor. She also spearheaded a creative movement dance class for children with physical challenges through the Minnesota Ballet. 
Ken Benson, a Vice-President at Columbia Artists Managemen for 25 years, started his career in advertising, working with Doyle, Dane & Bernbach. In 1977, however, he decided to channel his strong interest in vocal repertoire and career development into the formation of his own artists' management with Eddie Lew. Ken joined CAMI in 1986 and has worked with such artists as Harolyn Blackwell, Rod Gilfry, Marcello Giordani, Thomas Hampson, Jerry Hadley, Lucas Meachem, Aprile Millo, Leona Mitchell, Kurt Ollmann, and Florence Quivar. 
Greg Carpenter joined the staff of Opera Colorado as Director of Development in 2004 and became General Director in September of 2007. He is responsible for the artistic and administrative operations of the company.
Curtis Phillips received an MFA in Scenic Design from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Professional theatrical design credits include produced designs for Off-Off Broadway for The Mint Theatre Company and the American Globe as well as Off-Broadway for the Signature Theatre, Musical Theatre Works, and Manhattan Class Company in New York City. Curtis has also acted as a resident and guest designer for regional theaters across the country, including Theatre Cedar Rapids, Bristol Valley Theatre, Chautauqua Theatre Company and Cumberland County Playhouse where he designed the first licensed production of Disneys Beauty and the Beast. Curtis Has also taught Set Design and Scenic Painting at UW-Madison, Edgewood College and SUNY-Fredonia. 
Mark Harvey has been with the Department of Theatre at UMD for 27 years where is he has designed lighting for nearly 100 drama, musical theatre, dance and opera productions. Most recently Mark has designed lighting for UMD Theatre's Action/Reaction Dance Concert, Urinetown, Crazy for You, Kiss Me Kate, and Hibbing Community College's Beauty and the Beast. Mark's research at the university involves the use of digital technology in the classroom, as well as the development of dance lighting in the United States. As head of the theatrical design program at UMD, Mark supervises lighting, sound and stage management students in the UMD BFA Design/Technical and Stage Management programs. 