Olivia Kellett is a longtime lover of opera, overjoyed to help bring HMS Pinafore to life for a new audience. Her previous roles include Papagena in The Magic Flute with Santa Monica College Opera, Lady Billows from Albert Herring with Opera Chapman, and Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with the Franco American Vocal Academie. She first appeared with Lyric Opera of Orange County as a cover artist in their production of Purcell’s The Fairy Queen. With this and every performance she hopes to honor the passion for music instilled in her by her teachers, Carol Neblett and Janelle DeStefano.

Tenor Daniel Brennan is a native of New Jersey and currently resides in Los Angeles. He has spent his past four years getting a BFA in Vocal Performance at Carnegie Mellon University. He also had the great pleasure to study with Douglas Ahlstedt. During his time there, he participated in the different choirs, doing co-ed acappella, and performing in different operas at CMU. He also recently joined the Verdi Chorus here in Los Angeles. His most recent roles were Azor in Zemiré et Azor, and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni. Outside of Opera, he hopes to get into voice acting and to start a band.

Scott Ziemann has been called “a vocal talent worth catching” and has sung across Southern California for Long Beach Opera, Pacific Opera Project, Pasadena Opera, Center Stage Opera, PrimaVera Opera, Pacific Lyric Association, and Lyric Opera of Orange County.  Scott has sung roles in La Traviata, Carmen, Gianni Schicchi, Hansel & Gretel, H.M.S. Pinafore, The Old Maid and the Thief, and Susannah and The Fairy Queen.  Last year he sang in Long Beach Opera’s production of Frank Martin’s The Love Potion, La Gazzetta, The Fairy Queen, and La Traviata.  Scott is an Education Artist in LBO’s Opera@School Program bringing live staged musical performances to schools throughout the area.  On the concert stage Scott has performed the Baritone solos in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Orff’s Carmina Burana, and Fauré’s Requiem.  Having sung in Lyric Opera of Orange County’s inaugural production of The Fairy Queen, Scott is excited to return to LOOC again!

Baritone Mark Peng is excited to make his debut with Lyric Opera of Orange County and South Coast Symphony as Sir Joseph in HMS Pinafore. A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, Mr. Peng finds himself in Southern California teaching and performing. He has performed the roles of Betto in Gianni Schicchi, Antonio in Le Nozze di Figaro, and Paris in Roméo et Juliette. In collaboration with Pacific Symphony, he has also appeared in their Family Opera for Kids productions of Cinderella, Pirates of Penzance, and Die Fledermaus.

Jessica Gonzalez-Rodriguez, Mexican-American Mezzo-Soprano, known for her “warm tones and a lyrical upper range,” recently appeared in the Prague Summer Nights Festival as Marcellina and was seen with Opera Santa Barbara in La bohème and Eugene Onegin. In 2019 she also appeared in Vienna as Prince Orlofsky and made her role debut as Frida Kahlo in the opera Frida with Opera Steamboat. Other highlights include Hansel with the Manhattan Opera Studio, Suor Dolcina, the Third Witch in Verdi’s Macbeth, Nancy in Albert Herring as part of the LA Opera Britten/100 celebration with the Repertory Opera Company, Hippolyta in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Chicago Summer Opera Program, and Siebel with the Redlands Opera Theatre, where she was featured as a Resident Artist for their 2016-2017 season.

Andrew Dana Walker returns as Dick Deadeye in Lyric Opera OC’s HMS Pinafore after debuting with the company in Amahl & the Night Visitors. He sings regularly with LA’s Independent Opera Company (Leporello in Don Giovanni, Capulet in Romeo et Juliette) and Guild Opera Company (Don Alfonso in Cosi fan Tutte, Colline in La bohème , Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro), while also singing seasonally with the Verdi Chorus. Andrew performs regularly with the LA Korean Musicians Association as a soloist and section leader. He also performs in student-composed micro operas with UC Riverside, actively stretching musical genre and subject matter to new heights with colleagues.

Norman Espinoza, a Bass from San Jose California, is delighted to be making his Lyric Opera OC debut singing King Balthazar in Amahl & the Night Visitors and returning for HMS Pinafore. Norman has graduated from San Jose State University where he obtain both his M.M. and B.M. in Vocal Performance and recently moved to Orange County. He has performed internationally and with numerous opera companies in the Bay Area. Recognized for his powerful low notes, he has sung the roles of Sarastro, Sparafucile, Senca, Zuniga, and Leporello to name a few. Off stage, Norman has a passion for teaching in the classroom and privately with students of all ages. You can find out more about Norman by visiting his professional Facebook page at www.facebook.com/NormanBassoEspinoza

Jared Hughes studied voice at Fresno City College and Biola University. He currently serves as a bass section leader at First Presbyterian Church of Fullerton and teaches voice at Yamaha Music School in La Habra. He debuted as the title role in Biola University’s 2019 production of Le nozze di Figaro, and performed with the National Concert Chorus at Carnegie Hall in the summer of 2019.

Ashley Chaney, soprano, earned her Bachelors degree in Vocal Performance and Music Education from California Baptist
University. In recent years she has performed in 8 countries and toured across the US. In 2018 she covered the role of Hermia in LOOC’s The Fairy Queen and has worked as stage manager in each subsequent production with the company. She has appeared with Genesis Opera Theatre in their productions of  Amahl & the Night Visitors, Pagliacci, and Suor Angelica as Prima Cercatrice and in scenes as Carmen‘s Frasquita.

A Santa Catalina Island native, lyric coloratura Mary Frances Conover is an alumna of the Huntington Beach Academy for the Performing Arts program of musical theatre & dance and a Vocal Performance Music alumna of Chapman University. Some of her professional work includes live entertainment at Knott’s Berry Farm with shows such as Ghost Town Alive, and A Christmas Carol & The Gift of the Magi at the Bird Cage Theatre. Some favorite roles include Adele, Die Fledermaus; Mabel, Pirates of Penzance; Marilyn Monroe, Rat Pack Legacy; and Despina’s Aria at Carnegie Hall with Angels Vocal  Art. Mary Frances has also performed roles with Opera Chapman, Pacific Symphony, and L.A. Opera.

Axel Mejía-Juárez is an alumnus from the Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music on the campus of Chapman University, where he received his Bachelor of Music with honors in Vocal Performance.

Axel has performed both lyric and character tenor roles such Albert in Albert Herring with Opera Chapman, the Nibble Witch in Hansel and Gretel with Lyric Opera of Orange County, and the 2nd Priest in Die Zauberflöte with Santa Monica College Opera Theatre. He has also had the privilege to cover roles such as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte with Santa Monica College Opera Theatre , and Remendado (for the quintet scene) in Carmen with California Philharmonic.

Bree Betourné, Soprano, is an Orange County native. Bree made her opera debut with the American Premiere of Hans-Andrè Stamm‘s “The Star Child” with Opera Pacific where she played the title role. Since then Bree has compiled an impressive resume of opera, concert, recital and oratorio performances. She has appeared in community and professional opera productions throughout the United States. Bree has performed at the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival’s(HPAF) production of “Puccini’s Suor Angelica” and as a featured soloist in “Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater”, the prestigious OperaWorks productions of “Woman- An Opera Pastiche” and “Altered States”, a series of SoCal Baroque concerts, Lyric Opera of Orange County’s productions of “The Fairy Queen” and “Hansel and Gretel”. Bree also appeared as a featured soloist in Lyric Opera of Orange County’s “Opera Outsiders” Concert. Bree has received numerous awards including Overall Winner and Audience Favorite at Lyric Opera of Orange County’s inaugural High Note Vote Competition. Ms. Betourné recently returned from the HPAF’s production of “Company” and returns to Lyric Opera OC for their 2020 season.

Jenna Jacobson has been singing professionally since age six. An alum of UCLA, she is a published writer, former editor for The Getty Foundation, and has 15+ years of experience in straight theatre and technical theatre. Favorite past roles include Nicklausse in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof, and Pamina in Die
Zauberflöte. Most recently, she premiered Rachel/Cleopatra in Samson and the Burning Bush. Her extensive choral experience includes the Eric Whitacre Virtual Choir Project, and nationwide performances with the Angeles Chorale, with whom she will tour South America this summer. She is also a soloist for Rejoice! Gospel Choir of Dublin, Ireland,
where she began pre-masters studies last year at the Royal Irish Academy of Music and participated in the renowned Feis Ceoil Festival.