Hailed by The New York Times for a voice that is “fully powered and persuasively expressive,” highlights of recent seasons for Grammy award-winning baritone Matthew Worth include the title role in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Boston Lyric Opera, the premiere and recording of the Narrator in Richard Danielpour’s The Passion of Yeshua, the title role in the world premiere of JFK with Fort Worth Opera, the world premiere of The Manchurian Candidate with Minnesota Opera, and Moby Dick at the Kennedy Center with Washington National Opera. He has performed Valentin (Faust) with Santa Fe Opera and Harlequin (Ariadne auf Naxos) with Lyric Opera of Chicago. Other notable roles include the title role in Don Giovanni, Dottore Malatesta (Don Pasquale), Mercutio (Roméo et Juliette), and Tarquinius (The Rape of Lucretia). He has performed leading roles at Santa Fe Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Castleton Festival, Tanglewood Festival, Pittsburgh Opera, and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, under such luminary conductors as James Levine, Lorin Maazel, and Sir Andrew Davis.

A native of the Bronx, mezzo-soprano Naomi Steele is an emerging artist recognized for her dynamic stage presence and vocal versatility. She has brought to life a wide range of leading roles, including Madame Flora in The Medium (Menotti), Isabella in L’italiana in Algeri (Rossini), Anaide in Zazá (Leoncavallo), and the Sorceress in Dido and Aeneas (Purcell). Her notable cover assignments include Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro, Dido in Dido and Aeneas, Idraspe in Erismena, and Annina in Der Rosenkavalier.

Steele has appeared in Wednesdays at One at Alice Tully Hall and was featured in Songfest, curated by Brian Zeger. Last spring, she returned to Alice Tully Hall for The Juilliard School’s production of L’enfant et les sortilèges, performing the roles of Maman, La Tasse, and La Libellule. She participated in SongStudio at Carnegie Hall in 2026, working closely with world-renowned faculty and guest artists. Her summer seasons have included notable training opportunities, such as serving as an Apprentice Singer with The Santa Fe Opera.

Most recently, Steele joined Wolf Trap Opera as a Studio Artist, performing Mère Jeanne in Dialogues of the Carmelites and covering both Mère Marie (in Carmelites) and Marcellina (in Figaro) within the same season. In 2026, she will make her Opera Parallèle debut as Sister James in Doubt and return to The Santa Fe Opera as an Apprentice Singer, covering Unulfo in Rodelinda and Third Lady in The Magic Flute. Beginning in the 2026–2028 season, she will join the Opernstudio at Komische Oper Berlin.

She holds a bachelor’s degree from The Crane School of Music and recently earned her Master of Music in Vocal Arts from The Juilliard School. Driven by a passion for storytelling and musical excellence, Steele is committed to delivering compelling performances to audiences everywhere. She is a proud recipient of the Novick Career Advancement Grant.

Douglas J. Cuomo has composed for the concert, operatic and theatrical stage, a well as for television and film. His expressive musical language, with its arresting juxtapositions of sound and style, is a natural outgrowth of his wide-ranging background and training. A professional guitarist while still in his teens, he alternated years of college – studying jazz, world music and ethnomusicology at Wesleyan University in Connecticut and University of Miami– with years on the road playing in jazz, pop and funk bands.

His chamber and orchestra works include: a raft, the sky, the wild sea, a concerto for the jazz saxophonist Joe Lovano, for The London Philharmonic, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and the Winston-Salem Symphony; Seven Limbs for the Aizuri String Quartet and guitarist Nels Cline, premiered as livestreams for UCLA Center for Performing Arts, Moss Arts Center and Aperio Music for the Americas; Black Diamond Express Train to Hell, a double concerto for cello and sampler, commissioned by the American Composers Orchestra and The Orchestra of the Swan, premiered at Carnegie Hall; Objects in Mirror for the Orchestra of the Swan; The Fate of His Ashes; A Requiem for Victims of Power for the chorus Seraphic Fire and organ;Only Breath, commissioned and performed by Maya Beiser, at Carnegie Hall, The International Festival of Arts and Ideas, Ravinia and others; Tree of Pearls, Torio and No Fear of Silence, a set of chamber works for shakuhachi flute and western instruments; as well as pieces for Chanticleer, Christine Brewer, Young People’s Chorus of NYC, Ashley Bathgate and more. Upcoming works include La Cita, a suite of Spanish love poems for the Romero Guitar Quartet and singer, a work for harpist Lavinia Meijer and evening length pieces for cellist Seth Parker Woods and for Sandbox Percussion.

His operatic works include: Savage Winter, produced by American Opera Projects, premiered at Pittsburgh Opera and at BAM’s Next Wave Festival (2018); Doubt, with libretto by John Patrick Shanley, commissioned by Minnesota Opera (2013) with a cast that included Denyce Graves and Christine Brewer; and Arjuna’s Dilemma, produced by The Music-Theatre Group and premiered at the BAM Next Wave Festival (2008), which became the first opera performed in Nepal with twelve performances in Kathmandu in 2016.

Work for television and film includes themes for Sex and The City (HBO);NOW with Bill Moyers and Wide Angle (PBS); music for Homicide: Life On The Street (NBC) and others, over twenty documentary and feature films, and music for over a dozen Broadway plays.

Cuomo’s work has been supported through grants, awards and fellowships including: Opera America’s Opera Fund Grant; Two National Endowment of the Arts awards for Artistic Excellence in the Creation and Development of New Work; American Music Center’s Composer Assistance Grant; Resident Artist Fellow at The MacDowell Colony, The Lucas Artists Residency at Montalvo, The Hermitage Artist Retreat, and The Blue Mountain Center; New York State Council for the Arts recording grant; Argosy Foundation Grant; Mary Flagler Carey Charitable Trust for development. His theme for Sex and The City was chosen by TV Guide as one of the top 50 television themes of all time.

He has lectured widely on music, collaboration and creativity at numerous universities including New York University, Wesleyan University (CT), The Henry Mancini Institute at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami (FL), University of California at San Diego, Hunter College and others, as well as at The Asia Society, the Rubin Museum, Guggenheim Museum, Opera America, the Carnegie Hall Choral Institute and The US Navy CNO Strategic Studies Group.

Cuomo co-leads the band Turquoise Lake with the Afghan singer Humayun Khan, and has performed as a guitarist at venues including The Kennedy Center, BAM, The Beacon Theatre, National Sawdust, Roulette, Birdland, and the Knitting Factory.

His compositions are published exclusively by Schott Music

John Patrick Shanley is an acclaimed American playwright, screenwriter, and director. Known for his compelling storytelling, sharp dialogue, and exploration of complex human relationships, Shanley has made a significant impact on the world of theater and film. Shanley’s career began in the 1980s when his play “Danny and the Deep Blue Sea” gained critical acclaim and established him as a talented playwright. His subsequent works, including “Italian American Reconciliation” (1986) and “Savage in Limbo” (1984), further demonstrated his prowess for crafting thought-provoking and emotionally charged stories. In 1987, Shanley achieved widespread recognition with his play “Moonstruck”. The romantic comedy earned an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. In addition to his success in theater and film, Shanley has also ventured into directing. He has helmed productions of his own plays as well as other works, showcasing his ability to bring his vision to life on stage. His directorial work includes the film adaptation of his play “Doubt” (2008), for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Director. Throughout his career, Shanley’s work has been marked by his exploration of complex themes such as love, faith, and the human condition. He has received numerous awards and accolades for his contributions to the arts, including a Pulitzer Prize for Drama for “Doubt”(2005) and a Tony Award for Best Play for the same production.Through his work, he continues to inspire and provoke audiences, leaving a lasting legacy in the realm of storytelling.

Conductor, Nicole Paiement is the Founder and General & Artistic Director of Opera Parallèle (OP). Recently for OP, Paiement conducted Glass’ La Belle et la Bête and Everest: An Immersive Experience by Talbot, a work she originally premiered on stage at The Dallas Opera, where she is Principal Guest Conductor. An active guest conductor, Paiement has performed with companies including the Washington National Opera, Seattle Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago and The Atlanta Opera. In 2020 Paiement made her debut with L’Opéra de Montréal with Benjamin’s Written on Skin, returning in 2023 to conduct Golijov’s Ainadamar. This season Paiement also made her UK debut with the English National Opera conducting Heggie’s It’s a Wonderful Life, and conducted a series of concerts with the Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana in Palermo, Italy. Upcoming engagements include a return to London to conduct Talbot’s Everest with the BBC Symphony at the Barbican Center. The 2023/2024 season will include 2 world premieres with OP, a return to The Dallas Opera, followed by a debut with the Volksoper Vienna conducting both a symphonic concert and an opera by John Adams. Photo Credit: Cory Weaver

Brian Staufenbiel is the creative director for Opera Parallèle where he has directed and spearheaded the conceptual designs of the company’s productions since it was founded in 2010. Specializing in multimedia, immersive, and interdisciplinary productions, he actively works across a wide range of artistic disciplines collaborating in film and with media designers, choreographers and dancers, circus and fabric artists, and designer fabricators. His progressive approach to stagecraft has garnered critical acclaim for many of the company’s productions, including Wozzeck, Orphée, Champion and Dead Man Walking. Most recently he finished the Cocteau Trilogy with Opera Parallèle’s acclaimed production of La Belle et la Bête, and the first fully immersive opera experience of Talbot and Scheer’s Everest. On film Staufenbiel recently directed pieces for the online festival season of the Sun Valley Music Festival, a film of Dove/Angelis’ Flight for Seattle Opera, a graphic novel opera film of Talbot/Scheer’s Everest with Opera Parallèle, and a feature length film of Gordon Getty’s opera Goodbye, Mr. Chips. Upcoming film projects include a documentary about the life of Frederica von Stade with Paper Wings Films, and Out of the Darkness, a dance film about Japanese incarceration camps in the United States during World War II. Staufenbiel recently directed Golijov/Hwang’s Ainadamar at L’Opéra de Montréal which will be reprised at Victoria Opera next season. Other upcoming directing engagements include Das Rheingold for Seattle Opera and Calgary Opera and The Shining for Atlanta opera. Photo Credit: Cory Weaver.

American Conductor and Pianist Donald Lee III is quickly gaining notoriety for his versatility and charisma both on the podium and at the keyboard. A recipient of a 2025 Solti Foundation Career Assistance Reward, Lee has appeared in concert with the Des Moines Metro Opera Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago Chorus, and members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Lee recently served as the assistant conductor for the world premiere of She Who Dared at Chicago Opera Theater. The summer of 2025 brought him to Chautauqua Institute, working closely with Denyce Graves, conducting scenes and playing selections from the new opera Loving v. Virginia and song cycle Cotton by Damien Geter, as well as preparing the chorus for a reading of Missy Mazzoli’s new opera Lincoln in the Bardo, and to Jackson State University conducting members of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra in a variety of operatic repertoire as part of the Inaugural S.O.S. Opera Bootcamp. In recital he collaborated with Lawrence Brownlee appearing with the Norwegian Opera and Ballet, and with Nicole Heaston and Justin Austin at Houston Grand Opera. 

In the 2025-26 season Lee will lead the Bay Area Rainbow Symphony in Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Damien Geter’s Sinfonia Americana  and Joel Thompson’s To Awaken the Sleeper, joins the Reno Chamber Orchestra on the podium for their All That Jazz program featuring works by Florence Price, Claude Bolling, Arturo Marquez, and George Gershwin, and will be the guest conductor for the Charleston Gospel Choir presenting their annual Gospel Christmas Concert. He also joins the Washington National Opera serving as the cover conductor for Treemonisha and Virginia Opera as the harpsichordist and repetiteur for their production of La cenerentola.   His season concludes with his return to Cincinnati Opera as the assistant conductor for Carmen and the world premiere of Lalovavi, for which he is also chorus master.

Phaedra (she, her) is a dynamic creative artist dedicated to theatre, production, and community advocacy. As an associate producer and casting manager at the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company (SFBATCO) and a 2022-2023 Theatre Bay Area Arts Leadership Resident, she passionately supports Black theatre and strives to create inclusive spaces for Black creatives. Phaedra co-hosts the podcast Creatively Shaded, which amplifies Black theatre experiences in the Bay Area. Her directorial work includes Clybourne Park and Legally Blonde, while her acting credits feature The Black Feminist Guide to the Human Body, The Color Purple, and Ain’t Misbehavin’. She was recently honored with the 2024-2025 Black Futures Award for her commitment to innovation and inclusion in the arts. Phaedra continues to make a significant impact in the theater community through her advocacy and creative endeavors. @phaedratboughton

Y. Sharon Peng is pleased to be reprising at Opera Parallèle after its tremendous run of La Belle et La Bête. A member of IATSE 706, her works range from stage to editorial to film & television. Recent stage productions include Into the Woods (Foothill Musical Theatre), Failure: A Love Story (Castilleja School), and The Producers (Hillbarn Theatre). She can also be found at San Francisco Opera, both in the wig shop and as a show foreperson, as well as heading Wigs & Makeup for the Merola Opera Program. She stewards the Wig & Makeup Department at Opera San José. For more of her work, visit her online portfolio at ysharonpeng.net.

Jacquelyn Scott works as a production designer, art director, scenic designer and props designer for theater and film across the Bay Area. Her work has been seen at American Conservatory Theater, San Francisco Playhouse, Magic Theatre, Shotgun Players, The Cutting Ball Theater, Word for Word, and Z Space. Past favorite credits include Kander and Ebb’s Cabaret and Nia Vardalos’ Tiny Beautiful Things at the SF Playhouse, Lloyd Suh’s The Chinese Lady at the Magic Theatre, Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabbler at The Cutting Ball Theater, and Talbot’s Everest with Opera Parallèle.