Rigoletto

Liparit Avetisyan comes from Armenia and studied from 2008 to 2011 at the Tchaikovsky State Conservatory in Moscow and the State Conservatory of Yerevan. In 2016, he made his debut at the Cologne Opera as Fenton in “Falstaff”. This was followed by debuts as Rodolfo in “La bohème” at the Frankfurt Opera and as Alfredo in “La traviata” at the Royal Opera House in London. He also sang this role at the opera houses in Sydney, Yerevan, Dresden’s Semperoper, the State Operas in Hamburg and Berlin, Cologne Opera, the Stanislavsky Opera in Moscow, the Bavarian State Opera and the Bolshoi Theatre. As Nemorino (“L’elisir d’amore”) he appeared in London and Dresden, where he also sang Edgardo di Ravenswood (“Lucia di Lammermoor”) and the Duca di Mantova (“Rigoletto”). He is a regular guest at the Stanislavsky Opera in Moscow; there, in addition to Alfredo, he has sung the Prince in “The Love for Three Oranges”, Des Grieux (“Manon”) and Nemorino. Together with the Armenian State Philharmonic, he performed as Duca di Mantova and as Rodolfo, and sang the tenor parts in the Verdi and Mozart Requiems. His concert engagements have taken him to Russia, Estonia, France and the USA. He has worked with conductors such as Constantin Orbelian, Anton Orlov, Vahan Martirosyan, Lior Shambadal, Michael Güttler and Vladimir Jurowski. In recent seasons, he made his debut as Lensky (“Eugene Onegin”) at the Opéra National du Rhin, as Tamino at the Castell de Peralada Festival, and as Duca di Mantova in Melbourne and Seattle, and sang, among others, Duca di Mantova at the Vienna State Opera and made his role debut as Vaudémont (“Iolanta”) under the direction of Kirill Petrenko with the Berlin Philharmonic.

Nina Minasyan, soprano, was born in Armenia. She received her vocal training at the State Conservatory of Yerevan. In 2010, she became a soloist at the opera studio there. From 2011 to 2013, she participated in the Young Artist Program of the Bolshoi Theatre, where she made her debut in the role of Xenia (“Boris Godunov”). Her repertoire includes, among others, the Queen of the Night (“Die Zauberflöte”), Gilda (“Rigoletto”), Violetta Valéry (“La traviata”), Adina (“L’elisir d’amore”), Norina (“Don Pasquale”), Sophie (“Der Rosenkavalier”), Princess Eudoxie (“La Juive”), the Queen of Shemakha (“The Golden Cockerel”) as well as the title role in “Lucia di Lammermoor”. She has appeared at venues including the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Hamburg State Opera, the Vienna State Opera, the Bavarian State Opera, Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, and the Opéra national de Paris, as well as at the festivals of Aix-en-Provence and Glyndebourne. Recent engagements have taken her as Violetta Valéry to the Arena di Verona, the Deutsche Oper Berlin and the Semperoper Dresden; as Lucia to the Bavarian State Opera; as Lauretta (“Gianni Schicchi”) to the Opéra de Monte-Carlo; as Adina to the Teatro Regio di Parma; and as Mélisande (“Pelléas et Mélisande”) to the Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège.

The bass Brent Michael Smith is from the United States. He studied voice at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia and at the University of Northern Iowa, as well as piano at Hope College in Michigan. He was a finalist in the Queen Sonja International Music Competition (2021) and a semifinalist in the Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions (2020), and he has been a prizewinner at international singing competitions such as the Grand Rapids Opera Competition, the Giargiari Bel Canto Competition, the Opera Birmingham Competition, the Opera Index Competition, and the Concorso Lirico Internazionale di Portofino. He has also received scholarships from the Loren L. Zachary Society and the Young Patronesses of the Opera Competition in Miami. In the United States, he has sung Zuniga ("Carmen"), Friedrich Bhaer (Mark Adamo’s "Little Women"), and Ashby ("La fanciulla del West") at Michigan Opera, Antonio ("Le nozze di Figaro") at Toledo Opera, Ariodante ("Xerxes") at the Glimmerglass Festival, Lakai ("Ariadne auf Naxos") at the Santa Fe Opera, as well as Celio (Prokofiev’s "The Love for Three Oranges") and Peter Quince ("A Midsummer Night’s Dream") at Opera Philadelphia. During the 2020/21 season, he was a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House and joined the ensemble in the following season, 2021/22. Since then, he has appeared at the Zurich Opera House in roles such as Sparafucile ("Rigoletto"), Raimondo ("Lucia di Lammermoor"), Prince Gremin ("Eugene Onegin"), Frère Laurent ("Roméo et Juliette"), Fafner ("Das Rheingold"), and Cesare Angelotti ("Tosca").

Yajie Zhang, mezzo-soprano, was born in Anhui, China, and began her training in Shanghai. She continued her studies first in Hanover and then in Karlsruhe. In 2013, she made her operatic debut as Maddalena (“Rigoletto”) with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Engagements have taken her to the Hanover State Opera, the NCPA in Beijing, the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, and the Opéra National de Paris. In 2017, she received the Grand Prix, the Opera Prize, and the Junior Jury Prize as the youngest participant at the International Vocal Competition in ’s-Hertogenbosch. She has given song recitals—often with her recital partner Hartmut Höll—at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, the Oxford Lieder Festival, the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, and in Beijing. Her operatic repertoire includes roles such as Nicklausse / the Muse (“Les Contes d’Hoffmann”), Cherubino (“Le nozze di Figaro”), and Tisbe (“La Cenerentola”). From 2020 to 2022, she was a member of the Opera Studio at the Bavarian State Opera and from 2022 to 2024 a member of the ensemble at Leipzig Opera, where she appeared as Hänsel (“Hänsel und Gretel”), Suzuki (“Madama Butterfly”), Flora (“La traviata”), the Page (“Salome”), and Mrs Sedley (“Peter Grimes”). She also appeared in Braunfels’ “Die Vögel”, Georg Friedrich Haas’ “Thomas”, Wagner’s “Parsifal”, Weber’s “Der Freischütz”, Janáček’s “The Cunning Little Vixen”, Strauss’ “Ariadne auf Naxos”, and Dvořák’s “Rusalka”. At the Bavarian State Opera, she recently appeared as the Second Maid (“Elektra”) and will return to Munich in the 2024/25 season as Flosshilde (“Das Rheingold”).

Cashlin Oostindië is a Dutch mezzo-soprano. She received her training at the Amsterdam Conservatory and in Athens, as well as privately with Lauren Athey-Janka and Eva-Maria Westbroek. During her studies, she was a member of Young Opera Noord Holland, sang Marcellina ("Le nozze di Figaro"), participated in the chorus of Poulenc’s "Dialogues des Carmélites," and performed as a soloist at the Lefkas Music Week Festival in Greece. In concert, she has sung the alto parts in Bruckner’s "Requiem" and Rossini’s "Petite Messe solennelle." She regularly gives song recitals in the Netherlands with pianist Florence van der Does. Since the 2025/26 season, she has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zürich Opera House.

Mexican-American baritone Trevor Haumschilt-Rocha is a graduate of San Diego State University and the Juilliard School in New York. He won first prize at the International Singing Competitions Giulio Gari in New York and Opera at Florham in New Jersey, was runner-up at the Neue Stimmen competition in 2024, and received scholarships from the Richard Tucker Foundation and the Jensen Foundation. In the summer of 2024, he was a Renée Fleming Fellow at the Aspen Music Festival, where he performed the roles of Count Almaviva ("Le nozze di Figaro") and Peter ("Hänsel und Gretel"). In 2025, he participated in the Young Singers Project at the Salzburg Festival and made his debut there in Krzysztof Warlikowski’s production of "Macbeth" under the musical direction of Philippe Jordan. He was also featured in a concert performance of "Andrea Chénier" conducted by Marco Armiliato. Since autumn 2024, Trevor Haumschilt-Rocha has been a member of the opera studio at the Vienna Volksoper. There he made his European debut as Duke Robert in Lotte Beer's production of "Jolanthe und der Nussknacker" and appeared in "Die Fledermaus," "Die Zauberflöte," and Jonathan Dove’s "Das verzauberte Schwein." In the 2025/26 season in Vienna, he will perform Count Almaviva in Mozart's "Le nozze di Figaro," Falke in "Die Fledermaus," and Emperor Overall in the Ullmann and Mozart evening "KaiserRequiem." He will make his debut at the Zurich Opera House in December 2025 as Monterone in "Rigoletto."

Steffan Lloyd Owen, baritone, is from Wales and studied at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. He has received numerous singing awards in the United Kingdom, including the W. Towyn Roberts Scholarship Prize, the Blue Riband Osborne Roberts Memorial Prize at the National Eisteddfod of Wales, and the Kathleen Ferrier Bursary Prize. In 2025, he won the Josep Palet Singing Competition and was selected as a finalist in the Paris Opera Competition. He has sung Sciarrone and the Jailer in a semi-staged production of "Tosca" alongside Sir Bryn Terfel and Kristine Opolais at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod, Escamillo ("La tragédie de Carmen") at the Buxton International Festival, the Doctor in Verdi’s "Macbeth" at Mid Wales Opera, as well as the title role in Hans Krása’s children’s opera "Brundibár" and Guglielmo ("Così fan tutte") at Welsh National Opera. Concert highlights include Mozart’s "Requiem" with the Orchestre National de Bretagne in Rennes, as well as Beethoven’s Mass in C major and "Choral Fantasy" with the BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales and the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera. Since the 2024/25 season, he has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House, where he has already sung roles such as the Usher ("Rigoletto"), Silvano ("Un ballo in maschera"), Hermann ("Les Contes d’Hoffmann"), and Sciarrone ("Tosca").

Salvador Villanueva is a Mexican tenor. He completed his vocal training at the Universidad de Sonora and subsequently at the Mexican Opera Studio, where he sang roles including Goro in "Madama Butterfly" and Remendado in "Carmen." In the 2023/24 and 2024/25 seasons, he was a member of the Opera Studio at the Amsterdam Opera, performing roles such as Gastone ("La traviata"), Borsa ("Rigoletto"), the tenor role in Tom Johnson’s The Four Note Opera, and the Sailor ("Dido and Aeneas"). In 2024, he returned to Mexico to sing the title role in Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette. Salvador Villanueva was a finalist in singing competitions in Mexico City and ’s-Hertogenbosch. He has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zürich Opera House since the 2025/26 season.

Evan Gray is a Swiss bass-baritone from Winterthur. He began his musical training as a treble with the Zürich Boys’ Choir and later transitioned to the bass voice. After initial vocal studies at the Winterthur Conservatory, he continued his education at the prestigious Curtis Institute in Philadelphia. His roles to date include the Forester ("Das schlaue Füchslein"), Figaro ("Le nozze di Figaro"), and Leporello ("Don Giovanni"). As an accomplished recitalist, he has performed Schubert’s "Winterreise" and Vaughan Williams’ "Songs of Travel" multiple times and has collaborated with artists such as Julius Drake and Robert Holl. From 2023 to 2025, he was a guest at the Marlboro Music Festival, where he developed a close artistic relationship with pianist Mitsuko Uchida, who has invited him back for the summer 2026 edition. Since the 2025/26 season, Evan Gray has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zürich Opera House.

Flavia Stricker, soprano, is from Brazil and studied at the Lübeck University of Music. She sang Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte) at the University of Music and Theatre Hamburg and Galathée (Franz von Suppé’s Die schöne Galathée) at the Lübeck University of Music. Since the 2023/24 season, she has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zürich Opera House, where she has performed roles including Madama Cortese (Il viaggio a Reims), Kate Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly), Contessa di Ceprano (Rigoletto), the Widow in Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and in Stravinsky’s Les Noces. At the Théâtre de La Monnaie in Brussels, she sang in Rossini’s Petite Messe solennelle. In 2025, she performed as Rosalinde (Die Fledermaus) with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.

Karima El Demerdasch is a German-Egyptian mezzo-soprano. She studied in Cairo and at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London with John Evans. In 2024, she was a finalist at the Kathleen Ferrier Awards and in 2023 participated in the Georg Solti Accademia. In Guildhall School productions, she performed roles such as Prince Orlofsky ("Die Fledermaus") and Dido ("Dido and Aeneas"). In a 2023 production by Opera Kipling, she sang the title role in "La Cenerentola" at the Upstairs at the Gatehouse theatre in London. In 2025, she took part in the Young Singers Project of the Salzburg Festival and made her debut at London’s Barbican Hall. Since the 2025/26 season, she has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zürich Opera House.

Guram Margvelashvili is from Georgia. He completed his vocal studies in 2024 at the State Conservatory in Tbilisi. From 2019 to 2023, he was a member of the Tbilisi Opera Studio, where he performed roles such as the Priest and Papageno in "The Magic Flute," Valentin in Gounod’s "Faust," and the title roles in "Don Giovanni" and "Eugene Onegin." He also sang Belcore in Donizetti’s "L’elisir d’amore." Guram Margvelashvili has received several scholarships and was a finalist in the Giuseppe Di Stefano International Singing Competition in Sicily and the Tamar Iveri International Singing Competition in Georgia. Since the 2025/26 season, he has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zürich Opera House.