Eklund Opera Program
Welcome to the鈥疎klund Opera Program鈥痑t the 抖阴传媒在线 College of Music!听
The Eklund Opera Program has been designated a 鈥淧rogram of Excellence鈥 by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. The opera program produces five fully staged operas biennially, ranging from classic operatic favorites to musical theater repertoire and contemporary opera. Each production is backed by a full orchestra involving both students and professionals. As universal musicians, vocalists are asked to perform in a variety of venues. Performing in the historic听Macky Auditorium or the welcoming , students are exposed to operatic production on both听 grand and intimate stages. Opera performance doesn鈥檛 end at the stage. Other performance opportunities for students include an annual student-directed opera scenes program, as well as one of the foremost academic contemporary opera workshops, CU NOW. Students also participate in audience engagement, donor relations and community outreach through our Opera Theater Singers.
Leigh Holman
A dynamic force in the opera world, moves seamlessly between her roles as a stage director, producer, educator and innovator. But you鈥檙e also likely to find her on stage as a professional jazz vocalist performing the Great American Songbook at local venues with members of the CU 抖阴传媒在线 jazz faculty and other leading musicians鈥攁 reflection of the versatile, holistic and vibrant artistry she brings to her leadership of the听Eklund Opera Program. Holman鈥檚 work as a director and master teacher is acclaimed internationally. Her directing engagements include a critically acclaimed production of Mozart鈥檚 鈥淒ie Entf眉hrung aus Serail鈥澨齠or the听Pafos Aphrodite Festival听in Cyprus and Rossini鈥檚听鈥淟a cambiale di matrimonio鈥澨齠or the听Piccolo Opera Festival Friuli Venezia Giulia. She is also a returning teacher for the听Accademia Internationale del Musical听in Rome, Italy. In North America, she has directed for听Florida Grand Opera听and听Op茅ra de Montr茅al, among others.MORE
Nicholas Carthy
Professor of Opera and Opera Music Director Nicholas Carthy听studied at the Guildhall School of Music in London with Mary Peppin and John York, and in 1981 won an Austrian government scholarship to study at the Mozarteum Salzburg with Hans Leygraf. Upon completing his studies, he was offered a post as Kapellmeister at the Landestheater in Salzburg where he made his operatic debut conducting Mozart鈥檚 鈥淢arriage of Figaro.鈥 During this time, he was also an assistant at the Salzburg Festival听working closely with both Bernard Haitink and Sir Georg Solti. MORE
Jeremy Reger
Teaching and mentorship are Jeremy Reger鈥檚 true passions, and he鈥檚 worked with some of the top vocal performers and coaches in the country, including at the Minnesota Opera, Indiana Opera Theater, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and the Ann Arbor Opera. In 2014, he coached and performed at the Opera Studio de Recife in Brazil. Reger has also been on the faculty of Music Academy of the West and worked for Virginia Opera.听A strong supporter of local arts organizations, he has also played with the Virginia Symphony, the Williamsburg Symphonia and the Cantabile Singers Art Song Project. MORE
In October 2014, longtime 抖阴传媒在线 resident Paul N. Eklund made a transformative gift that, combined with additional university commitments, established a $2 million endowment for the program. 鈥淧aul鈥檚 investment is a bold statement that says, 鈥楾he arts are important,鈥欌 says Leigh Holman. 鈥淚n this crazy world we live in, when everyone is on their iPhones and not connecting as much, the arts still bring people together.鈥 Funding from the endowment helps support the three full productions annually, an opera scenes program for students and CU NOW, a program in which students work directly with living composers to develop and perform their music. The endowment also enables the program to provide the most professional experiences possible for students.
Contact
Leigh Holman
Associate Professor of Opera; Director, Eklund Opera Program + Resident Stage Director; Artistic Director, CU New Opera Workshop (CU NOW)
leigh.holman@colorado.edu