La Carmencita: Reviving Carmen with a Bold Modern Latin American Perspective
For this YouTube Exclusive video we had a conversation with Pedro Giraudo, Sasha Gutierrez, Melissa Bonetti and José Maldonado, the artists behind the opera La Carmencita, a reimagining of Bizet's Carmen. Discover how this modern Latin American retelling brings fresh cultural significance and accessibility to the timeless art form of opera.
More about Melissa Bonetti Luna
Dominican American, Mezzo- soprano, Melisa Bonetti Luna’s recent performances include the premiere of The Climate Opera Project at BAM with American Opera Projects, Carmen in Hogfish Festival’s collectively devised new adaptation, Maddalena in Rigoletto with Opera San Jose, and the premiere of Five Ways to Die with Experiments in Opera. Some highlights include soloist for Bach’s Magnificat at Carnegie Hall with the Cecilia Chorus of New York, new compositions set to Ancient Tang Poems with the Philadelphia Orchestra and iSing! Festival in Lincoln Center and the Kimmel Center, the grammy-nominated original cast album of Three Way by Paterson and Cote, which she also premiered with Nashville Opera and AOP, a Naxos recording of a new wind orchestra arrangement of Granados Tonadillas, Lorca in Ainadamar with the Lexington Philharmonic and Kentucky Opera, Zerlina in Don Giovanni with Virginia Opera, and the premiere of Paraíso by Sokio and Tiniacos at National Sawdust with New Latin Wave. Melisa is excited for her upcoming roles in Zorro by Hector Armienta with Opera San Jose, and a premiere production with White Snake Projects with music by Jorge Sosa. Other companies that Melisa has sung with include Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Beth Morrison Projects, Des Moines Metro Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Sichuan Symphony Orchestra, Opera Columbus, Dayton Opera, Union Avenue Opera, and The Dessoff Choirs.
More about José Luis Maldonado
“It is ‘more than singing’; we present our souls to the world through our instrument with words, music and body language. As an artist, I always want to create beauty and profundity through my singing.” Hailed by Opera News as a “seemingly unlimited baritone,” International vocalist Josè Luis Maldonado, from Los Angeles, California attended Cal State Fullerton (BM), and Manhattan School of Music (MM); he is currently attending Michigan State University as a candidate for a doctorate in music, vocal performance under the tutelage of Dr. Mark Rucker.
He currently performs a Hip Opera concert tour with Opera Grand rapids in a fusion of opera and hip hop. He is a career grant recipient from the Opera Buffs Inc. and Richard F. Gold Career Grant recipient from the Shoshana Foundation. Maldonado’s roles include Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte), Don Magnifico (La Cenerentola), Escamillo (Carmen) , and the title role of Falstaff (Falstaff). He recently performed with The Palm Springs Opera Guild in their Opera in the Park Concert under the baton of Maestro Brent McMunn and made his Long Beach Opera debut in Anthony Davis’ Central Park Five. In 2022, he covered Sir Bryn Terfel as Sir John Falstaff in Falstaff at the Aspen Music Festival. He reprised Falstaff in March 2023 at Michigan State, and returned to Aspen to sing Father Arguedas in the opera Bel Canto, by Jimmy López as a Renée Fleming Fellow. Maldonado was a finalist in the inaugural Duncan Williams Competition, a collaborative effort by Manhattan School of Music and New York City Opera, and was a District winner for the Metropolitan Opera Competition, Audience Prize winner in the Opera Ithaca Competition, and a finalist in the Tenor Vinas Competition in Spain.
Maldonado finished a tour with OperaMaya in Cancún, Mexico last summer. In Aspen he performed a Zarzuela concert with world-renowned Metropolitan Opera Star Ana Maria Martinez, and took lessons with legendary sopranos, Carol Vaness and Renée Fleming. Maldonado just debuted the role ofDon Giovanni in Michigan, before returning to Los Angeles and debuting with Lyric Opera of Orange County in Falstaff and the Father in Hansel y Gretel. He then made his Pacific Opera Project (POP) debut as the Gamekeeper in Dvorak's Rusalka. This is Maldonado’s second production with The Opera Next Door, as Escamillo in Carmencita, an Argentinian adaptation in Spanish of Bizet’s Carmen.
More about Sasha Gutierrez Montaño
Praised for her “versatility” and “splendid vocalism” (Voce di Meche), Colombian soprano Sasha Gutiérrez is a distinguished opera performer, soloist, recitalist, and impresario. Her roles include Mimì in La Bohème, Micaëla in Carmen, the title role in Puccini’s Suor Angelica, Helena in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Fiordiligi in Mozart’s Così fan tutte. She has also been recognized for her excellence in recital performance, winning Colombia’s esteemed Jóvenes Intérpretes Competition in both 2013 and 2016, as well as the National Singing Competition and Brahms Song Competition in Colombia in 2013 and 2015, respectively. A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, Ms. Gutiérrez was honored with the International Advisory Board Scholarship and Colombia’s Jóvenes Talentos Scholarship from ICETEX. She has made guest soloist appearances with prestigious ensembles such as the United Nations Symphony Orchestra, Dartmouth Symphony Orchestra, and Bogotá Philharmonic. She has graced renowned venues including the Kaufmann Center, Lincoln Center, the Hopkins Center for the Arts, the Met Museum, and Symphony Space. In 2023, she made her European debut with Teatro Grattacielo at the Heraklion Cultural Center. In response to the challenges of the pandemic, Sasha founded The Opera Next Door (TOND), an independent opera company based in Brooklyn. TOND’s mission is to foster community engagement through free, site-specific opera productions in collaboration with local groups and leaders in diverse, working-class neighborhoods. The company's debut production of Mozart’s Così fan tutte in May 2021 was met with acclaim, attracting over 600 attendees. For her efforts in creating opportunities for fellow musicians during the pandemic, Sasha was named one of Musical America’s Top 30 Professionals of the Year 2021.
The Opera Next Door will make its Lincoln Center debut in December 2024.
More about Juan Hernández
In the 2024-2025 season, Puerto Rican tenor Juan Hernández will be joining Sarasota Opera’s Apprentice Artist Program as Federico in Stiffelio and covering the role of Conte Almaviva in Il Barbiere di Siviglia. Role credits include: Tebaldo in I Capuletti ed i Montecchi (TN Cover), Bearnardo in Abrazo de Oso (CI), Nemorino in L’elisir D’amore (CTO), Jerome in Great Moments in Human History (TOND), Danieli in I Vespri Siciliani (NAO), Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte (TOND), Conte Almaviva in Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Teatro Nuovo Cover), Peppe in Pagliacci (PBO Cover), Tebaldo in I Capuletti ed i Montecchi (PBO Cover). Recent awards include: MO Laffont Competition PR District Encouragement Award (2022), Revelación Masculina FOSLP Concurso de Canto Linus Lerner (2021), MO Laffont Competition PR District Encouragement Award (2019), NATS NYC District Competition First Place (2019).
More about Pedro Giraudo
Latin GRAMMY Award-winning bassist and composer Pedro Giraudo is one of today’s most compelling tango artists. After two decades performing with leading tango interpreters, he debuted his own Tango Orchestra at Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night Swing in 2015 and has since become a cultural ambassador for the passionate music of his native Argentina. In 2018, his album Vigor Tanguero won the Latin GRAMMY for Best Tango Album. He also contributed to Ruben Blades’ GRAMMY-winning Tangos and has collaborated with artists such as Pablo Ziegler, Paquito D’Rivera, and Dizzy Gillespie protégé William Cepeda. Pedro’s work bridges tango and jazz, featuring collaborations with Branford Marsalis, Kenny Garrett, and Miguel Zenón. As musical director, he led productions like Blind and Tango Connection and performed with ensembles such as Forever Tango and Tango Metropolis. Additionally, Pedro has arranged and performed with the New York Philharmonic and played bass for the New York City Ballet Orchestra. His music has graced renowned stages worldwide, including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall. A prolific artist, Pedro continues to captivate audiences globally with his innovative interpretations of Argentine tango.
More about Rebecca Miller Kratzer
Rebecca Miller Kratzer (she/her) is a New York-based theatre and opera director. She is thrilled to serve as The Opera Next Door’s resident stage director. Rebecca makes work that sits at the intersection of opera, music, dance, and theatre through an artistic practice rooted in collaboration, joy, and ritual. Past operatic credits: Director: Enemies, A Love Story, Westminster Opera Theatre; In Real Life, Mostly Modern Festival; La traviata, City Lyric Opera, New York; Antigone, Phoebus und Pan, Longy School of Music; Don Quichotte, Opera Saratoga; The Trojan Women, Columbia University; Cendrillon, Alcina, Second Nature, Opera del West; Don Giovanni, Fidelio, La Cenerentola, NEMPAC Opera; assistant director for Grounded, Washington National Opera; Man of La Mancha, Opera Saratoga; rehearsal observer for New Dark Age, Royal Opera House. She holds a BA in Theater Arts from Brandeis University and an MFA in Directing from Columbia University, Proud AGMA Member and SDC Associate Member.
More about Santiago Gutiérrez
Yachari Santiago Gutiérrez Montaño, a composer and vocalist from Cali, Colombia. Based in New York City, Santiago is a multifaceted artist engaged in composing, performing, producing, and visual arts. His compositions have received international recognition, with performances across South America, North America, and Europe, and he currently serves as composer-in-residence for "Music at Co-Cath" in Brooklyn.
In the realm of vocal performance, Santiago has explored various settings, including classical, choral, and chamber music with a recent focus on contemporary vocal works and performance art. As of summer 2024, he celebrated his European debut as a composer with "Siluetas Lejanas" in Germany and is working on a transcultural project involving Haitian Creole sacred music.
"With sound, I am finding shape. I aim to compose spaces of experimentation, expansion, contemplation, communication, and plurality. Sound cannot exist in solitude, a characteristic celebrated in my music."
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