Conductor Cues Series

Watch an intriguing conversation about the musical and cultural origins of Madame Butterfly with Austin Opera Scholar-in-Residence Dr. Charles Carson, Vice President of the Austin Japan Community Yoko Stetson, and Sarah and Ernest Butler Music Director Timothy Myers. Plus, savor an up-close performance by soprano Yulia Lysenko, who will be singing the role of Cio-Cio-San in the Saturday, April 26 performance of Madame Butterfly.

Soprano Leah Crocetto joins Sarah and Ernest Butler Music Director Timothy Myers to discuss all things Verdi's Requiem. Crocetto made her Ausin Opera debut singing in Verdi's Requiem on February 1 & 2, 2025. Hear why The New York Times described Leah as having an "agile coloratura technique... with warmth, full penetrating sound and tenderness" in a special performance of all things Verdi.

Take a deep dive into the music and story of Puts and Campbell's The Manchurian Candidate. This engaging and exploratory event is hosted by our Sarah & Ernest Butler Music Director Timothy Myers and features a conversation with librettist Mark Campbell and a performance by The Manchurian Candidate cast member, baritone Mark Diamond.

In this episode of Conductor Cues, we explore the cultural significance of Carmen. Our Sarah & Ernest Butler Music Director Timothy Myers joins special guest Jennifer Wilks, Austin Opera Trustee and Associate Professor and Director of the John L. Warfield Center for African and African American Studies at the University of Texas, to explore the music and history of Bizet’s masterpiece Carmen. Dr. Wilks discusses the many adaptations of Carmen and her new book Carmen in Diaspora: Adaptation, Race, and Opera’s Most Famous Character.

In this episode of Conductor Cues, Austin Opera’s Sarah and Ernest Butler Music Director Timothy Myers and special guest Dr. José R. Torres-Ramos, lecturer in Musicology and Ethnomusicology and Director of the Mariachi Paredes de Tejastitlán at the University of Texas Butler School of Music discuss the marriage of Mariachi and opera in Cruzar la Cara de la Luna. Learn more about the cultural fusion you will experience when you see the world’s first mariachi opera, Cruzar la Cara de la Luna. Enjoy performances by members of the cast Daniel Noyola and Cassandra Zoé Velasco, plus a special performance from Mariachi Paredes de Tejastitlán from the University of Texas Butler School of Music.

In this episode of Conductor Cues, Austin Opera’s Sarah and Ernest Butler Music Director Timothy Myers explores verismo opera’s place in the history of the art form, Wagner and Verdi’s influence on Leoncavallo, and more! Timothy is joined by special guest Austin Opera 2023-2024 Season Scholar-In-Residence Dr. Charles Carson for this rousing discussion. Learn about Pagliacci and enjoy excerpts from the opera performed by principal singers Hailey Clark, Jonathan Burton, and Benjamin Taylor in this episode of Conductor Cues.