Artists and Production

Andrew Krikawa - Eugene Onegin - Andrew Krikawa (Baritone) moved to Vashon Island from New York City nearly seven years ago. While based in New York he sang for numerous companies including New York City Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Virginia Opera, Cedar Rapids Opera, Opera Festival of New Jersey, Nashville Opera, Annapolis Opera, Central City Opera, Pensacola Opera, Eugene Opera, and DiCapo Opera Theatre. Andrew’s most performed roles include Marcello (La Bohème), Sharpless (Madame Butterfly), Germont (La Traviata), Albert (Werther), Silvio (I Pagliacci), and Guglielmo (Cosí fan tutte). Career highlights have also included appearances with Pittsburgh Opera as Abert in Werther and performances of Cosí fan tutte with the world renowned Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Mr. Krikawa is a Sullivan Foundation award winner and a recipient of the Richard F. Gold Career Grant. He holds a Masters degree from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston.  Mr. Krikawa helped found Vashon Opera and participates in much of the day to day work for the company.  He was seen in the Vashon Opera productions of La Bohème as Marcello, The Tender Land as Top, and The Barber of Seville as Figaro.

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Noah Baetge - Lensky - Noah Baetge (Tenor) earned his bachelor of music degree in vocal performance from Pacific Lutheran University, where he was awarded the Mary Baker Russell Music Scholarship. After graduating, he sang in young artist programs such as Tacoma Opera’s Next Generation Artist Program (2006); Seattle Opera Young Artist Program (2006-08), where he performed Fenton in Verdi’s Falstaff and Rinuccio in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi; and Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara (2007), singing Rodolfo in Puccini’s La Bohème. In 2009 Mr. Baetge was a Grand Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council competition, and joined the Resident Artists of Pittsburgh Opera performing in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia and Remendado in Bizet’s Carmen. Mr. Baetge has performed as a soloist with Seattle Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Skagit Opera, Spokane Opera, Seattle Symphony, Erie Philharmonic, Salem Chamber Orchestra, Yakima Symphony Orchestra, Concert Opera of Seattle, and Seattle Philharmonic. Mr. Baetge began study in The Juilliard School’s Artist Diploma in Opera Studies program and will graduate in 2012, and made his Met debut in Ariadne Auf Naxos as the Offizier in 2011.

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Jennifer Krikawa - Tatyana - Jennifer Krikawa (Soprano) has sung for numerous opera companies such as New York City Opera, Virginia Opera, Connecticut Opera, Sarasota Opera, Opera North, Augusta Opera, Annapolis Opera, Central City Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Israel Vocal Arts Institute. Jennifer's most performed roles include: Fiordiligi (Cosí Fan Tutte), Mimi (La Bohème), Musetta (La Bohème), Micaela (Carmen), Gretel (Hansel und Gretel), Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), Susannah (Susannah), Frasquita (Carmen), Antonia (Les Contes d'Hoffman),and Yum Yum (The Mikado). Mrs. Krikawa has appeared at Carnegie Hall as the soprano soloist for Scarlatti's Dixit Dominus, Vaughan William's Benedicite, and Poulenc's Gloria and has appeared at Benaroya Hall as soloist in Mozart's Requiem. She pursued contemporary music studies at The Banff Centre for the Arts and she holds a Masters degree from The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. Her awards include First Place NATS winner, First Place Opera Theater of Connecticut Amici Competition, Olga Berzins Vocal Scholarship Award, Metropolitan Opera National Council Regional Finalist in Boston and Metropolitan Opera National Council Honorable Mention in Connecticut. She has recorded a CD titled "Songs of Walt Whitman" composed by Malcolm Peyton with Centaur Records. Jennifer has been seen as a soloist with The Vashon Island Chorale for the past five years and cantors at St. John Vianney Church.

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Melissa Schiel - Olga - Melissa Schiel (Mezzo-soprano) has established herself as a preeminent stage performer, recitalist and pedagogue. She has been hailed as a “...velvety mezzo-soprano, who displays bona fide acting smarts as well.” (Victoria Times Colonist). Schiel has performed with numerous companies and orchestras including Opera Ontario, Aspen Opera Theater Center, Tanglewood Music Center, the Boris Brott Festival and the Mountain View International Festival of Song. Currently on faculty at Central Washington University, Schiel has established herself as a uniquely versatile musician, performing a broad spectrum of repertoire. Consistently seeking to champion the works of contemporary composers, Schiel has premiered several modern works including the role of Estelle Oglethorpe in Later the Same Evening: a 2007 opera by John Musto inspired by art work of American Edward Hopper in collaboration with the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Schiel has also performed concert and oratorio works including Handel’s Messiah, Bruckner’s Te Deum, Beethoven’s Symphony No.9, and Bach’s Christmas Oratorio. She recently sang Verdi’s Requiem with the Yakima Symphony Orchestra. On the opera stage her roles include: Dorabella (Così fan tutte), Olga (Eugene Onegin), Oberon (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), The Fox (The Cunning Little Vixen), Maddelena (Rigoletto), Zita (Gianni Schicchi), Dinah (Trouble in Tahiti), Dritte Dame (Die Zauberflöte), The Old Lady (Candide), Berta (Il barbière di Siviglia) and Mrs. Herring (Albert Herring). Upcoming performances include Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder and Mozart’s Requiem with the Central Washington University Symphony Orchestra. Originally from Kitchener-Waterloo, Canada Melissa currently resides in Ellensburg, WA with her husband Nikolas Caoile and their infant son Kieran.

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Beth Madsen Bradford - Filipyevna - Beth Madsen Bradford (Mezzo-soprano) has been praised by critics for her “lovely, vibrant tone” and “gutsy” performances. Roles include Carmen (Carmen), Eboli (Don Carlo), The Witch (Hänsel und Gretel), Zita (Gianni Schicchi), Mrs. Peachum (The Beggar’s Opera), Marcellina (Le Nozze di Figaro), The Old Lady (Candide), Tisbe (La Cenerentola), Berta (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Phoebe (Yeomen of the Guard), Little Buttercup (H.M.S. Pinafore), Ruth (Pirates of Penzance) and Dame Hannah (Ruddigore). Favorite concert credits include Verdi’s Requiem, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, Haydn’s Mass in Time of War, Mozart's Requiem, Bach’s Magnificat and St. John Passion, Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, and Handel's Messiah. Beth has appeared with Portland Opera, Tacoma Opera, Skagit Opera, Oregon Symphony, Aspen Opera Theater, Juneau Symphony, Portland Chamber Orchestra, Walla Walla Symphony, Opera Theater Oregon, and Des Moines Metro Opera, among others. Originally from Mt. Vernon, Washington, she now resides in Portland with her husband, Tyler, and their son, Nathaniel.

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Nerys Jones - Madame Larina - Nerys Jones (Mezzo-soprano) was born and educated in Mid Wales and studied at both the Royal Scottish Academy and Guildhall schools of music and drama. Early soprano roles include Karolka (Jenufa) and Marzelline (Fidelio) for Scottish Opera with the American director Stephen Wadsworth and Norina (Don Pasquale) with Welsh National Opera on the BP Tour. In 1994 she joined English National Opera where she remained a company mezzo-soprano for six seasons, roles including Cherubino, Despina, Zerlina, Second Lady, Melissa (Princess Ida), Bird (Blond Eckbert), Proserpina (Orfeo), Flora (La Traviata), Pitti Sing (Mikado), Mercédès (Carmen), Nursing Sister (Suor Angelica), Rosette (Manon), Kitchen Boy (Rusalka), Hansel (Hansel and Gretel), Flower Maiden and Second Squire (Parsifal), and Sister Mathilde (Dialogues des Carmélites). She has performed with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the Scottish Early Music Consort and the National Youth Orchestra of Wales at the National Eisteddfod. Recitals include the North Wales Music Festival with the pianist Malcolm Martineau, and a celebration concert for the composer, Geoffrey Bush, at St John’s Smith Square, London. Other appearances include Cherubino, Rosina and Dorabella for Grange Park Opera, Dryad in a concert performance of Ariadne auf Naxos at the Barbican Concert Hall conducted by the late Richard Hickox, Lisetta (Il Mondo della Luna) and Pippo (La Gazza Ladra) at Garsington, Stewardess (Flight) with Reisopera in Holland, Vlaamse Opera and the Adelaide Festival. The title role La Cenerentola for Opera Zuid and Pitti Sing (The Mikado) for La Fenice in Venice. Hansel with Reisopera in Holland and Prince Charmant in Cendrillion for Puget Sound Concert Opera and understudied at the Seattle Opera on their World Premier piece “Amelia”. Nerys lives in Seattle with her husband and two daughters Celyn and Mali.

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Jonathan Silvia - Prince Gremin - Jonathan Silvia (Bass-baritone) is in high demand as a vocalist throughout the Puget Sound region. Formerly a member of the Seattle Opera Chorus, he has since performed there as a principal in The Magic Flute and La Traviata. He performs regularly with a number of local opera companies, such as Tacoma Opera, Bellevue Opera, Puget Sound Concert, Skagit Opera, and several others. On the national stage he performed the title role in Markheim at Des Moines Metro Opera while an apprentice there. The composer, Carlisle Floyd had been in attendance. Other roles he has performed recently include Filippo II in Don Carlo, Nilakantha in Lakmé, Fiesco in Simon Boccanegra, Colline in La Bohème, Basilio in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro, and Sam in Trouble in Tahiti. For Vashon Opera, Jonathan has sung the roles of Alcindoro/Benoit (La Bohème), Don Basilio (Il Barbiere di Siviglia) and Zuniga (Carmen). Eugene Onegin is Jonathan’s fourth production with Vashon Opera.

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Misha Myznikov - Zaretsky - Misha Myznikov (Baritone), originally from Russia, has performed with the Seattle Opera since 1993 which includes the principal roles of Guillot in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin and coro bit in Verdi’s La Traviata. Recent Engagements include Figaro in Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro and Silvio in Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci with NW Lyric Opera; Alfio in Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana and Marcello in Puccini’s La Bohème with Kitsap Opera; Giuseppe in Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers and the role of Peter in Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel with the Renegade Opera. For The Seattle Opera Guild, Mr. Myznikov previewed Eugene Onegin, Heggie’s The End of the Affair and The Magic Flute. He has sung in numerous operas with Everett Community College including: The Barber of Seville, The Marriage of Figaro, Carmen, Don Pasquale and Fiddler on the Roof. In Shoreline Community College’s Opera Work Shop, Mr. Myznikov performed the role of David in Samuel Barber’s A Hand of Bridge, and with Community Outreach Productions by Hans Wolf, he sang roles in operettas Offenbach’s Robinson Crusoe and Lehar’s The Count of Luxemburg.

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Kevin Joyce - Triquet - Kevin Joyce is a singer/songwriter, actor, writer and director. Trained as a vocalist, he is a founding member of the University of Salamanca Chamber Choir (Spain), with whom he toured Europe as a soloist. Kevin composed, directed and performed vocal music scores for 10 productions with UMO Ensemble, a Vashon-based theater company. From 2000-06, he performed and directed with Teatro Zinzanni, singing alongside Joan Baez, among many others. He co-composed and starred in Rain City Rollers, a musical based on the 1936 Roller Derby, directed by Nikki Appino, and his award-winning solo musical monologue, A Pale and Lovely Place, created in 1996, was recently re-mounted in Seattle. Critics called the show “hilariously entertaining”. Since 2003, Kevin has run EnJoy Productions with his wife Martha Enson. EnJoy creates customized shows for large-scale special events, combining theater, specialized skill acts, music, comedy and visual entertainment. An avid singer/songwriter, his CD Say It features an all-star list of collaborating musicians, including Francine Reed, Stu Hamm, Eyvind Kang, and Hans Teuber and is available on iTunes. Kevin performs his original music in local venues and house concerts, much of which is satirical and inappropriate for family audiences, unless they are families who are OK with inappropriate material. Kevin and Martha have a 9 year old daughter, and have lived on Vashon for 22 years. A huge fan and admirer of Vashon Opera, Kevin is thrilled to be part of this production.

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James Brown - Conductor, Stage Director, Orchestral Arranger, - Jim Brown enjoys an eclectic career of singing, teaching, stage direction, conducting and composing. His work has been seen recently at Vashon Opera in Il Barbiere di Siviglia (stage director, conductor and arranger) and Madama Butterfly (stage director). Other recent productions as stage director include Handel’s Semele (PLU Opera), La Bohème  (Bellevue Opera) and Sweeney Todd (Lakewood Playhouse). Upcoming productions for James include Francesca Caccini’s La liberazione di Ruggiero dall'isola d'Alcina (producer) for Cornish School of the Arts and Eugene Onegin for Vashon Opera (conductor and arranger).

As a singer, Jim has distinguished himself on the opera and concert stage. The tenor has appeared with Seattle’s world-renowned community of early music specialists in concerts and operas at Seattle’s Town Hall, St. James Cathedral, Intiman Theatre and the Moore Theatre. At the Moore Theatre, Jim performed with Tony award winners Handspring Puppet Company and celebrated artist William Kentridge. Jim has appeared as concert soloist at the Aspen Music Festival, Ravinia Festival and Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. He will sing the tenor solos in upcoming 2011 Messiah with the Tacoma Symphony under the baton of Geoffrey Boers. Jim has sung with New Orleans Opera, New York City Opera, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Rogue Opera, Skylight Opera Theatre and Tulsa Opera. He is the Chair of Vocal Studies at Pacific Lutheran University where he directs the opera and oversees a large voice program. Jim holds degrees from Loyola University/New Orleans, The Juilliard School and the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

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Charlotte M. Tiencken - Director - Charlotte M. Tiencken is an Arts Administrator, Director, Producer and Educator who has been working in the producing and presenting fields for over 25 years. Currently, she is Managing Director at Book-It Repertory Theatre in Seattle, WA. Prior to moving back to the Seattle area in September of 2003, she was General Manager at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in Massachusetts for four seasons. She has also worked at the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts in Tacoma, WA, Tacoma Little Theatre, Tacoma Actors Guild, The Evergreen State College, The Arkansas Arts Council, Arkansas Children’s Theatre, Spirit Square Center for the Arts in Charlotte, NC, and the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. She has directed or produced over 100 productions. Tiencken is a member of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, the Western Alliance of Arts Administrators, Theatre Communications Group and the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers and is past President of the Board of Arts Northwest, the presenting service organization for Washington, Idaho and Oregon. She has served on the board of the Pat Graney Dance Company and on granting panels for the Washington State Arts Commission. She most recently completed her term on the Board of Theatre Puget Sound, a regional service organization for theatres in the Puget Sound area. She received her MFA from The University of Texas at Austin and is a member of the faculty at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA. She lives on Vashon with her husband, Bill, two dogs and three cats.

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