Roy Stevens, General Director
Roy Stevens, a native of Modesto, has been an international opera singer since 1987. His career includes leading performance in theaters and with symphony orchestras in 20+ countries, on 5 continents and in 14 languages; from the national theaters of Albania and Guatemala to Milano’s famed Teatro Alla Scala. As Producer, Organizer and Casting Director, he has led leading international operatic productions in Albania, Panama and Nepal, as well as organizing other major events locally and regionally. Roy looks forward to continuing to fulfill Buck Townsend’s dream of professional opera in Modesto and the Central Valley.
Annalisa Winberg, Artistic Director
Annalisa Winberg is a Modesto-based international opera singer who has performed with orchestras and opera theatres around the world, including the Dallas Opera, Boston Opera Theatre, German National Theatre of Weimar, New Israeli Opera, Kamptal Festpiele, Tirole Festspiele, National Theatre of Guatemala, New York Opera Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and many others. Annalisa made her debut as opera Stage Director with Opera Modesto’s 2018 production of Madama Butterfly and she looks forward to collaborating with Roy Stevens to develop future programming, collaborations and educational training opportunities for regional youth.
Ryan Murray, Music Director
Ryan Murray’s dynamic conducting, natural musicality and deeply held passion for the arts have allowed him to steadily build a robust career since his professional debut at the age of 22. Ryan is currently the Associate Conductor for the Modesto Symphony Orchestra, Music Director for the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra and Resident Conductor & Choral Director of the Music in the Mountains Summer Festival. Ryan garnered national recognition for his dynamic, compelling performances of contemporary opera and is winner of the 2016/17 American Prize in Opera Conducting for his highly lauded production of A Streetcar Named Desire. Ryan is also a past winner of the Vienna Philharmonic’s prestigious Ansbacher Fellowship for Young Conductors, and spent the summer in residence alongside the Vienna Philharmonic at the 2014 Salzburg Festival. Ryan holds degrees, summa cum laude, in Bassoon Performance and Voice Performance from CSU, Sacramento.