Hänsel und Gretel

Jochen Schmeckenbecher, born in Hockenheim, studied with Kurt Moll at the Cologne University of Music. After permanent engagements at the Theater Hagen and the Komische Oper Berlin, he performs the major roles of his fach on international opera and concert stages. His repertoire focuses on German-language works, including Amfortas and Klingsor (“Parsifal”), Kurwenal (“Tristan und Isolde”), Music Teacher (“Ariadne auf Naxos”), Faninal (“Der Rosenkavalier”), Orest (“Elektra”), Peter (“Hänsel und Gretel”), Don Pizarro (“Fidelio”), the title role in “Wozzeck,” Dr. Schön (“Lulu”), and Kaspar (“Der Freischütz”). He has repeatedly achieved great success as Alberich (“Der Ring des Nibelungen”), performing at the Staatsoper Berlin, Staatsoper Hamburg, Vienna State Opera, the opera houses of Frankfurt and Leipzig, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, Tanglewood Festival, Philharmonie Berlin, Kulturpalast Dresden, Müpa Budapest, Opéra national de Paris, and on several CD/DVD recordings. Further engagements have taken him to the Staatsoper Dresden, Munich, Stuttgart, Royal Opera House London, Metropolitan Opera New York, Teatro alla Scala Milan, Teatro Real Madrid, Theater an der Wien, Volksoper Vienna, Salzburg Festival, and the opera houses in Basel, Essen, Lyon, Turin, as well as San Francisco, Dallas, and Philadelphia.

Bass Valeriy Murga studied at the National Music Academy of Ukraine in Kyiv. He was a finalist at both the 41st International Singing Competition in Toulouse (1996) and the 7th Julian Gayarre Competition in Pamplona (1998). In 1997, he won second prize at the Maria Callas Grand Prix in Athens and participated in the Cardiff Singer of the World competition in 1999. From 1997 to 1999, he was a soloist at the Ukrainian National Opera in Kyiv, where he performed roles including Figaro (“Le nozze di Figaro”), Escamillo (“Carmen”), Schaunard (“La bohème”), and the title roles in “Eugene Onegin,” “Don Giovanni,” and “Prince Igor.” His repertoire also includes the roles of Marchese di Posa (“Don Carlo”) and Shaklovity (“Khovanshchina”). At the Zürich Opera House, Valeriy Murga was initially a member of the International Opera Studio and during this time performed, among others, Sciarrone and the Jailor (“Tosca”) as well as Monterone (“Rigoletto”). Since the 2000/01 season, he has been a permanent ensemble member at the Zürich Opera House, where he has performed roles such as Prince Yeletsky (“The Queen of Spades”), Moralès (“Carmen”), Second Soldier (“Salome”), Alessio (“La sonnambula”), Ali (“L’italiana in Algeri”), Wagner (“Faust”), Sacristan (“Tosca”), Butler (“La rondine”), and Bogdanovich (“The Merry Widow”), as well as in family operas including “The Canterville Ghost,” “Robin Hood,” “The Enchanted Pig,” “Jim Knopf,” and “Wir pfeiffen auf den Gurkenkönig” He has also appeared as a guest in Eugen d’Albert’s “Tiefland” at the Liceu in Barcelona and in “L’italiana in Algeri” at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin.

Rosie Aldridge completed her training at the Benjamin Britten International Opera School in London and was a Jerwood Young Artist at the Glyndebourne Festival in 2010. From 2016 to 2018, she was a member of the Vienna State Opera ensemble. Guest engagements have taken her, among others, to the Berlin State Opera, Stuttgart State Opera, and Deutsche Oper am Rhein as the Sacristan Buryja (“Jenůfa”), to the Hamburg State Opera and Opéra national de Paris as Mrs. Sedley (“Peter Grimes”), to the Komische Oper Berlin as Mrs. Lovett (“Sweeney Todd”), to the Royal Opera House London as the Gingerbread Witch (“Hänsel und Gretel”), and to the Glyndebourne Festival as Baba the Turk (“The Rake’s Progress”). Recently, she achieved acclaim as Kostelnička (“Jenůfa”) at the Berlin State Opera and in new productions as Kabanicha (“Kátia Kabanová”), Brangäne (“Tristan und Isolde”), Mrs. Grose (“The Turn of the Screw”), and Marcellina (“Le nozze di Figaro”). Concert engagements have taken her to the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Hallé Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic, and London Philharmonic Orchestra. Rosie Aldridge is renowned for her expressive character portrayals and her stylistic versatility in the lyric-dramatic mezzo repertoire.

Irène Friedli grew up in Räuchlisberg, Switzerland, and graduated from the Basel Music Academy with a soloist diploma. The mezzo-soprano furthered her studies in Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau’s interpretation class in Berlin, attended masterclasses with Brigitte Fassbaender, and continued her training with Helen Keller. She has won numerous prizes at international lieder competitions. Since the 1994/95 season, she has been a member of the Zurich Opera House ensemble, where she has performed roles such as Second and Third Lady (“Die Zauberflöte”), Mercédès (“Carmen”), the title role in Ravel’s “L’Enfant et les sortilèges,” Elsbeth (“Schlafes Bruder”), Lily (“Harley”), Annina and Flora (“La traviata”), Flosshilde (“Das Rheingold,” “Götterdämmerung”), Marcellina (“Le nozze di Figaro”), Emilia (“Otello”), Lucia (“Cavalleria rusticana”), Olga in Peter Eötvös’ “Drei Schwestern,” Marthe in Gounod’s “Faust,” Margret (“Wozzeck”), Lovis in Jörn Arnecke’s “Ronja Räubertochter,” Flower Maiden and Voice from Above (“Parsifal”), Gertrud/Knusperhexe (“Hänsel und Gretel”), Clotilde (“Norma”), Mother/Other Mother (“Coraline”), Card Dealer (“Arabella”), and Nurse (“Boris Godunow”). In the world premiere of the family opera “Odyssee,” she played Eurykleia/Mother, and in “Girl with a Pearl Earring,” she performed Tanneke. In 2012, she appeared at the Opéra Bastille in Paris. Most recently in Zurich, she has sung roles such as the Queen of Hearts (“Alice in Wonderland”), Filipjewna (“Jewgeni Onegin”), Tisbe (“La Cenerentola”), Miss Bentson (“Lakmé”), Frau Waas/Frau Mahlzahn (“Jim Knopf”), Head Cook (“Amerika”), and Ninetta (“I vespri siciliani”).

Svetlina Stoyanova, a Bulgarian mezzo-soprano, was born in Sofia and began her musical career as a soloist in the children’s choir of the Bulgarian National Radio. After studying psychology at the University of Glasgow, she completed a bachelor’s degree with distinction and two master’s degrees in voice and opera at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland under Clare Shearer. In 2017, she won 1st prize at the International Singing Competition “Neue Stimmen” and 3rd prize at the Le Grand Prix de l’Opéra. Following these successes, she was invited by the Opéra de Nice Côte d’Azur and the Anthéa Théâtre to perform as Cherubino (“Le nozze di Figaro”) and in the title role of Rosina (“Il barbiere di Siviglia”) at the Bregenz Festival. From 2018 to 2020, she was a member of the Vienna State Opera ensemble, performing roles such as Rosina (“Il barbiere di Siviglia”), Cherubino (“Le nozze di Figaro”), Dryad (“Ariadne auf Naxos”), and Rossweisse (“Die Walküre”). Since then, she has appeared at La Scala in Milan, the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, the Hamburg State Opera, the Zurich Opera House, and the Glyndebourne Festival. Recent highlights include “La Cenerentola” in Düsseldorf, Athens, and Riga, Stéphano in “Roméo et Juliette” at Theater an der Wien and the Zurich Opera House, and Sesto (“Giulio Cesare”) and Ruggiero (“Alcina”) at the Glyndebourne Festival. She is also in demand as a concert singer, performing at venues such as the Musikverein in Vienna, London’s Wigmore Hall, and in Tokyo.

Siena Licht Miller, a German-American mezzo-soprano, studied voice at the Curtis Institute of Music and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. She completed her training with courses at Opera Philadelphia, the Santa Fe Opera, the Opera Theatre of St. Louis, and the Aspen Music Festival. She is a fellow of the Bagby Foundation and a prizewinner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, the Marilyn Horne Rubin Foundation, and the Gerda Lissner Foundation. Highlights of her career so far include role debuts as Hermia in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Second Lady in “Die Zauberflöte,” and one of the two solo parts in the world premiere of Philip Venables’ “Denis and Katya” at Opera Philadelphia. At the Aspen Opera Center, she sang the title role in Ravel’s “L’Enfant et les sortilèges” under the direction of Robert Spano. She regularly devotes herself to art song, performing in the “The Song Continues” series at Carnegie Hall in honor of her mentor Marilyn Horne and touring the U.S. with a recital alongside pianist Kevin Murphy. In the 2020/21 season, she was a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House, performing in productions such as “Maria Stuarda,” “Simon Boccanegra,” “Viva la mamma,” “Salome,” “Odyssey,” the ballet “Monteverdi,” “L’italiana in Algeri,” and as Flosshilde in “Das Rheingold.” Since the 2022/23 season, she has been a member of the Zurich Opera House ensemble and has recently appeared in “Barkouf,” “Salome,” “Anna Karenina,” “Lakmé,” “La rondine,” “Die Walküre,” and “Götterdämmerung,” as well as in the title role of Handel’s “Serse” at Theater Winterthur.

Christina Gansch, an Austrian soprano, was awarded the Kathleen Ferrier Award in 2014 and completed her studies at the Mozarteum Salzburg as well as at the Royal Academy of Music in London with distinction. During her studies, she made her international opera debut in 2013 in Montpellier as Amore in “Orfeo et Euridice” and appeared in 2014 as Barbarina in “Le nozze di Figaro” at the Theater an der Wien under Nikolaus Harnoncourt. From 2014 to 2016, she was part of the International Opera Studio at the Hamburg State Opera and a member of the ensemble in the 2016/17 season. There, she performed roles such as Pamina (“Die Zauberflöte”), Marzelline (“Fidelio”), and Gretchen (“Scenes from Goethe’s Faust”). In the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World 2021 competition, she represented Austria in the final. Guest engagements took her to La Scala in Milan (Najade in “Ariadne auf Naxos”), the Bavarian State Opera (Gretel in “Hänsel und Gretel”), the Glyndebourne Festival (Mélisande in “Pelléas et Mélisande”), the Opéra National de Paris (Papagena in “Die Zauberflöte”), the Berlin State Opera (Forest Bird in “Siegfried”), and the Salzburg Festival (Servilia in “La clemenza di Tito,” Fifth Maid in “Elektra”). She regularly appears at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden. Her recordings include Zerlina (“Don Giovanni”) with Teodor Currentzis for Sony, as well as Brahms’ “Ein deutsches Requiem” with the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie. Most recently, Christina Gansch successfully made her role debut as Susanna (“Le nozze di Figaro”) at the Welsh National Opera and debuted as Gretel (“Hänsel und Gretel”) at the Semperoper Dresden. She will also appear in this role for the first time at the Zurich Opera House.

Yewon Han is a South Korean soprano. She completed her bachelor's degree in Classical Singing at Seoul National University and continued her training in the Young Artist Program at the Korea National Opera Studio (2021–2022) as well as at the International Opera Studio Zurich (2022–2024). Yewon Han has performed a wide range of roles in Korea and Europe, including Lauretta in “Gianni Schicchi,” Papagena in “Die Zauberflöte,” Adele in “Die Fledermaus,” Romilda in “Serse,” Li Si in “Jim Knopf und Lukas der Lokomotivführer,” Titania in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” and Najade in “Ariadne auf Naxos.” In 2025, she will appear as Ophelia in “Hamlet” at the Buxton International Festival. She has received numerous awards, including 1st prize at the 60th Concurso Tenor Viñas (2023), 3rd prize at the International Singing Competition Neue Stimmen (2022), and several first prizes at major singing competitions in South Korea. In the 2025/26 season, Yewon Han will continue her work as a full ensemble member of the Zurich Opera, performing a diverse repertoire.

Marie Lombard, French soprano, studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris and in Rennes with Stéphanie d’Oustrac. She furthered her training through masterclasses with Lisette Oropesa, Anne Sofie von Otter, Stéphane Degout, Inva Mula, Brigitte Fassbaender, and Mariella Devia. She is an alumna of the Opera Academy of Bordeaux and the Monte-Carlo Opera Academy and has won prizes at the International Competition for Young Singers of the Grand Opéra d’Avignon, the Sumi Jo International Singing Competition, and the International Opera Competition of Marmande. Her roles to date include Inès (“La favorite”), the Princess (“L’Enfant et les sortilèges”), Belinda (“Dido and Aeneas”), Eurydice (“Orfeo ed Euridice”), Adèle (“Die Fledermaus”), Coraline (Adolphe Adam’s “Le toréador”), and the First Lady (“Die Zauberflöte”). Since the 2024/25 season, she has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House. There, she has appeared as Barbarina (“Le nozze di Figaro”) and Contessa di Folleville (“Il viaggio a Reims”) and sang alongside Cecilia Bartoli in a charity gala concert. In the 2025/26 season, she will reprise Barbarina as well as perform Sandmann (“Hänsel und Gretel”) and Lauretta (“Gianni Schicchi”). In the summer of 2026, she will sing Marzelline (“Fidelio”) at the festival in Saint-Céré, France.

Sylwia Salamońska, soprano, studied with Wojciech Maciejowski in Poznań. During her studies, she performed roles such as Susanna (“Le nozze di Figaro”), Donna Anna (“Don Giovanni”), Lauretta (“Gianni Schicchi”), and Zosia (Stanisław Moniuszko’s “Die Geister”). In the 2023/24 season, she was part of the Opera Academy Young Talent Development Programme at the National Opera in Warsaw, where she made her debut as First Attendant of Dirce in Luigi Cherubini’s “Medea.” She also sang Frasquita (“Carmen”) at the Baltic Opera in Gdańsk. In 2024, she performed alongside Luca Pisaroni at the “Stars and Rising Stars” Festival in Munich. She has won numerous international competitions, including first prize at the International Halina Słonicka Singing Competition in Poland, third prize and a special award at the 21st International Juventus Canti Singing Competition in Vrable, Slovakia, and finalist positions at the International Riccardo Zandonai Singing Competition in Riva del Garda and the International Mikuláš Schneider-Trnavský Singing Competition in Trnava, Slovakia. Starting from the 2024/25 season, Sylwia Salamońska will be a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House.

Anna Hauner was born in Aichach, Germany. She studied piano with Benedikt Koehlen and Lied interpretation with Donald Sulzen at the Richard Strauss Conservatory in Munich. Under choral director Hans-Joachim Willrich at the Gärtnerplatztheater Munich, she began studying conducting. She continued her orchestral conducting studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich with Bruno Weil and attended masterclasses with Bernard Ringeissen and Paul Badura-Skoda. A scholarship recipient of the Richard Wagner Association, she made her conducting debut with the Georgian Chamber Orchestra Ingolstadt, soon followed by concerts with the Philharmonie Bad Reichenhall and the Münchner Symphoniker. As a coach and musical assistant, she worked at the Bavarian Theatre Academy August Everding, where she received a teaching assignment for accompaniment in 2010. In October 2009, she was appointed répétiteur at the Bavarian State Opera and was regularly invited for concert performances of operas at the Munich Philharmonie. Since 2015, Anna Hauner has been the solo répétiteur at the Zurich Opera House, where she conducted several performances of the production “Konrad oder das Kind aus der Konservenbüchse.” She has been engaged as a language coach for the Mozart CD with Juan Diego Flórez and as a musical assistant at the Arena Sferisterio Macerata Festival. A major focus of her career is accompanying singers. Anna Hauner has given numerous song recitals and concerts in Munich, Zurich, London, Düsseldorf, and Dublin.

Leon Blohm grew up in Dipshorn near Bremen in a farming family and completed his acting studies at the Zurich University of the Arts in 2025. During his studies, he participated in numerous independent projects and short films. He toured Switzerland with “Fiume” after the play premiered at the Rote Kultur Tage trade union festival at Volkshaus Zurich. With the collective auftrag:okapi, he appeared in “Der einsamste Wal der Welt” at the Vorstadttheater Basel and learned Bernese German for the role of Christeli in the open-air play “Geld und Geist” in Sissach. At the Bockenheimer Depot, he performed as Bert Stern in “Im Spiegelsaal” (directed by Franziska Autzen)—a production for which his cohort was awarded the Ensemble Prize at the Federal Competition for German-speaking Acting Students. For his final performance at ZHdK, he explored the Epic of Gilgamesh, earning the Oprecht Prize. In 2025, Leon Blohm made his film debut with the feature film “Köln 75” at the Berlinale. He lives in Berlin.