Rinaldo

Mezzo-soprano Mairin Srygley is a versatile young artist from Baltimore, MD, praised for the warmth and diverse colors of her voice. This 2022-23 season, she debuts as Penelope of Milica Paranosic’s Penelope and the Geese (University of Delaware, Greece), the title role of Rinaldo (Chicago Summer Opera), and the voice in Christopher Cerrone’s Goldbeater’s Skin (UD Grad Percussion Ensemble). Previous seasons include solo appearances with the National Symphony Orchestra, The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and the Newark Symphony Orchestra, and engagements under the batons of such conductors as Marin Alsop, Helmuth Rilling, and Kenneth Slowik. In concert repertoire, Mairin has a keen interest in the intersection of folk music and art song, as well as musical settings of under- represented languages from Renaissance to contemporary periods. Her holistic career also includes Spanish-English interpretation, social justice work, and voice-speech-language therapy. Mairin studies with Dr. Noël Archambeault at University of Delaware (M.M. Vocal Performance, 2024).

Mezzo-soprano Sequoia Robinette will be making her role debut as Rinaldo with Chicago Summer Opera. Previous roles include Carmen in Bizet’s “Carmen”, Maurya in Vaughan Williams’ opera “Riders to the Sea”, and Third Lady in Mozart’s “The Magic Flute”. Active in the Portland area, Robinette has performed in Gala Concerts with new opera companies such as Lark Opera, where she has sung the works of Verdi, Bizet, and Mozart. Robinette received her Bachelor’s in Voice Performance from Central Washington University. She is very excited to begin her Master’s studies this fall at Portland State University under the tutelage of Baritone Richard Zeller.

"Mezzo-Soprano Isabella Daltoso is excited to be making her Chicago Summer Opera debut as Goffredo in Handel’s "Rinaldo." Isabella is a vocal performance major and dance minor at Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) in Tacoma, Washington, where she is an Agnes Berge Smith Music Scholar and the James D. Holloway Scholar for her class. She is a student of Janeanne Houston. With PLU Opera, Isabella has performed as Sesto in "Giulio Cesare," Dritte Dame in "Die Zauberflöte," Prince Orlofsky in "Die Fledermaus," Grasshopper/Frantik in "The Cunning Little Vixen," and Ruth in "Pirates of Penzance." Isabella made her professional opera debut last year singing with Vashon Opera as Praskovia/Lolo in "The Merry Widow," and in the chorus of "Cavalleria Rusticana." She has also sung with the Choir of the West. Isabella toured New Mexico and Colorado with the choir, and was a soloist in the PLU Christmas Concert “O Nata Lux.” She has performed in masterclasses with esteemed singers, including Sasha Cooke and William Burden. Originally from Vancouver, Washington, Isabella has enjoyed performing with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. In the Spring of 2023, Isabella traveled to Vienna, Austria, where she participated in the IES Abroad Music Program as a member of the Music Performance Workshop. Isabella is also a writer and academic writing tutor.

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Margaux Frohlich is a Franco-American soprano originally from Paris, France, where she resided for the first four years of her life. She is now based in New York and is fluent in French and English.

This summer, Margaux will be returning to Chicago Summer Opera to perform “Almirena” in Händel’s Rinaldo. Last year, she sang the role of “Noémie” in Massenet’s Cendrillon at Chicago summer Opera as well. When she studies at the Peabody Institute, Margaux performed in their scenes program as “Clorinda” in the opening scene of La Cenerentola by Rossini as well as “Suor Dolcina” in the opening of Suor Angelica. In the summer of 2021, Margaux covered the role of “Metella” in Händel’s Silla with Chicago Summer Opera under the direction of Josh Miller. In 2020, Margaux made her Peabody Opera Theatre debut as “Flora” in Benjamin Britten’s Turn of the Screw. Earlier that same year she performed her first opera role as “Dew Fairy/Sandman” in Humperdink’s Hänsel und Gretel through LAHSOW-Bloomington. She completed her Bachelor of Music degree under the tutelage of Randall Scarlata in May 2022 and is now pursuing her Master of Music degree at the Manhattan School of Music under the tutelage of Ruth Golden.

Hailing from Syracuse, New York, Anneke Van Slyke is a soprano pursuing a B.M in Vocal Performance at Baldwin Wallace Conservatory, under the teaching of Dr. Marc Weagraff. Anneke was most recently seen as Ruth in Pirates of Penzance at Baldwin Wallace Conservatory, as well Amore in Monteverdi’s L'incoronazione di Poppea, in the BW Playhouse Square debut. She also had the privilege to play Public Opinion in Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld at the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival. Previously she has been seen as Bradamante in Handel’s Alcina (2021), as well as Amelia in the world premiere of La Casa de Bernarda Alba (2022), both at Baldwin Wallace Conservatory. In addition to opera performance, Anneke is a member of choir and participates in the Baldwin Wallace Conservatory Bach Festival.

Soprano Carson Hardigree is a recent graduate from Furman University, where she studied voice with Dr. Alison Trainer, and majored in Vocal Performance and Music Education. Carson is planning on attending graduate school in the fall of 2023, pursuing a Master of Music in Vocal Performance. While studying classical voice at Furman, she proved herself to be an extremely versatile artist, and performed a wide variety of roles, such as Edith in The Pirates of Penzance, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Jack’s Mother in Into the Woods, Meg March in Little Women, and she was also slated to sing as a Spirit in Cendrillon in the spring of 2020. This past summer, Carson attended the Chicago Summer Opera, where she covered the role of Romilda in Handel’s Serse. In the fall of 2021, Carson also directed a full musical production of Jekyll and Hyde. Carson looks forward to the summer of 2023, when she will return to Chicago Summer Opera’s Young Artist Program and take on the role of Armida in Handel’s Rinaldo.

Minneapolis native Tina O'Malley is currently engaged to premiere the role of Petra in a new chamber opera "The Chisel" and cover the role of Zoey in "Rabbit Season" at the Peabody Institute. She was most recently seen in "Cendrillon" (Sprite #1) with Peabody Opera Theatre and "Le Nozze di Figaro" (Susanna) with FIO Italia. Ms. O’Malley was recently named a finalist in the 2023 Schubert Club Bruce P. Carlson Competition and was the 2022 recipient of the Schubert Club Thelma Hunter Award. She is also a recipient of the Peabody Conservatory Artistic Excellence Award and the Minnesota College and University Council for Music Award (2020). Tina was also a selected soloist for the University of St. Thomas’s Festival Orchestra Concert three years in a row from 2019 to 2021. Ms. O’Malley is currently pursuing her M.M. in Vocal Performance at The Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University under the tutelage of Dr. Stanley Cornett.

Isabella Abbrescia is currently a senior at Northwestern, where she studies with Pamela Hinchman. Her most recent opera projects include playing La Marquesita de Bierzo in El barberillo de Lavapiés, First Spirit in Die Zauberflöte, and Vanderdendur in Bernstein’s Candide. In 2022, she was a national semi-finalist in the NATS competition in the Upper Classical Treble category. Isabella is also deeply involved in choral singing. She has participated in various choir programs, including opera choruses in productions of La Bohème, Monteverdi’s Orfeo, and Jake Heggie’s If I Were You. In 2019, she worked with renowned conductor Anton Armstrong in an Honors Performance Series choir at Carnegie Hall. This fall, she will begin a master's program in Voice.

Brianna Marie Dulock is a Chicago born coloratura mezzo-soprano. She began studying voice at a young age and is a recent graduate from Carnegie Mellon University with a BFA in Vocal Performance. Ms. Dulock's recent performances include Dorabella in Mozart's "Così fan tutte" and Ramiro in Mozart's "La finta giardiniera".

Paola Pelcastregui Pinal was born in Mexico City, where she’s currently studying piano at Conservatorio Nacional de Música under the tutelage of professor Alfredo Aguilar.

She’s currently taking singing lessons with the Mexican soprano Minerva Hernández.

She is also part of the Early Music Workshop at the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica in Mexico under the tutelage of the mezzo-soprano Nurani Huet.

Previously, she took classes with baritone Gabriel Mijares Fernández and performed along with tenor Dante Alcalá and soprano Leticia de Altamirano.

In 2017 she attended the 2nd International Festival of Early Music by the music faculty of UNAM, where she also was present in the lectures and masterclasses taught by Guido Morini and Rosella Croce.

She was Vocal Director at the Thomas Jefferson Musical Theater Company foundation.

To this day she have had performed in important venues such as Sala Ollin Yoliztli, Silvestre Revueltas auditorium at the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica in Mexico, the Instituto Italiano, Biblioteca Lerdo de Tejada, Biblioteca Vasconcelos, Museo Casa de la Bola, Museo Jose Luis Cuevas, Alcazar in Castillo de Chapultepec, Josefa Ortiz de Dominguez Auditorium in Queretaro, Teatro de la Ciudad in Mexico City and Palacio Nacional.

She is a singer and continuist in Alio Modo Ensamble, with whom she have had performed at both of the Early Music Festivals by Conservatorio Nacional de Musica at the Tepotzotlán Early Music Festival in 2020 and 2021.

"Brynn Farlow studies as a tenor in Vocal Performance at the University of Maryland, College Park. She grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina and now lives in Mt Airy, Maryland. She is interested in performing and teaching, especially LGBTQ+ musicians, after university; however, she’s willing to go wherever her career takes her, as long as she remains in music. She’s been involved in the music world for as long as she can remember, singing solos with professional groups such as the North Carolina Symphony as early as ten years old, and now, performing in DC with professional organizations such as The Thirteen Choir, InSeries Opera, and Victorian Lyric Opera Company. She looks forward to remaining involved with whomever and wherever she has the pleasure of being.

Bruce Kenton Isley II from Climax, NC, USA, is a first-year DMA Vocal Performance Candidate at USC. He studies with Professor Jacob Will and his previous roles include Reverend Hale (Crucible with Opera at USC), Narrator (La Belle Helene) with Opera at USC, Dr. Falke (Die Fledermaus) with Opera at USC, Duke Frederick (As You Like It!) with at UNCP, and Tevye (Fiddler on the Roof) with Montecito International Music Festival.

William Volmar is an upcoming fourth year undergraduate student studying vocal performance with Paul Rowe at the Mead Witter School of Music. Recent past performances include the roles of Sid in the University Opera production of Albert Herring and Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd in the Madison Savoyards production of Ruddigore.

Finley Hagan is a senior vocal performance major with an opera minor at Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas. She studies under Professor Daveda Karanas and has been in numerous productions with Texas State Opera. This includes Amastre in Handel’s “Serse,” Donna Eleonora in Salieri’s “Prima la musica e poi le parole,” and was most recently a chorus member in Strauss’ “Die Fledermaus.” Finley is a collegiate member of Sigma Alpha Iota in Texas State’s Theta Omega chapter and will serve as Vice President of Membership in the upcoming academic year.

Alana O’Donnell is a mezzo-soprano and recent University of Michigan-Ann Arbor graduate who studied Voice Performance and Choral Music Education. She will spend her time at Chicago Summer Opera covering for the role of Rinaldo and singing in Carmen’s Opera Chorus.