Artistic Staff

Pacien Mazzagatti (Conductor), who Opera News cited as “clearly a name to watch,” when he conducted a concert performance of Dicapo’s double-bill production of Rachmaninoff’s Francesca da Rimini and The Bells, began his association with Dicapo Opera in 2002-03 as assistant conductor and chorusmaster for L’Elisir d’Amore. He was immediately re-engaged for the music preparation of Edgar and that same season made his Dicapo conducting debut in Pagliacci. Since then, he has conducted Dicapo productions of Faust, The Magic Flute, Madama Butterfly, Falstaff, the New York premiere of Robert Ward’s Claudia Legare, La Bohème, A Grand Night for Singing and most recently Manon Lescaut. In addition, he arranged, conducted and performed a program of vocal works by Puccini set to original choreography by Nilas Martins. Mr. Mazzagatti is a native of Philadelphia, earned a bachelor of music degree from Temple University in piano at 19, and a masters degree from Manhattan School of Music. He has won several prizes at national and international piano competitions including The Stravinsky Awards International Piano Competition, The International Young Artists Competition, and the Concorso Pianistico Città di Senigallia.

John Farrell (Set Design), is the resident designer for Dicapo Opera where he has created over fifty productions since 1992. Mr. Farrell has also designed for Brooklyn Academy of Music, Naked Angels, The Julliard School, One Dream, The Directors Company, AMAS Repertory Theatre, Theatreworks USA, The Arclight, The John Houseman, and The Douglas Fairbanks Theater. In Mexico City John has done two productions for Morris Gilbert: Fiddler on the Roof and Besame Mucho. Across the United States, some notable productions include Sacco and Vanzetti at Tampa Opera, La Vie en Bleu at The Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, “The Summer of ‘69” off-broadway in New York, and Dodsworth at Casa Mañana in Texas. Mr. Farrell has been the exclusive Set and Illusion designer for the Magician Criss Angel since 1993. During that time they have done two seasons of Mindfreak for A&E totaling 40 episodes.

Francine D. Harman (Choreographer) has been associated with Mr. Capasso for over Twenty years. A studio trained dancer and graduate of the prestigious High School of Performing Arts in New York City, Ms. Harman has brought her expertise in Stage Movement to the Dicapo stage in productions which include Faust, Madame Butterfly and the recently completed La Bohème. In addition to productions on the Dicapo Stage, she has assisted Mr. Capasso in productions for L’Opera de Montreal [Rigoletto], Toledo Opera [La Bohème and Norma] and Augusta Opera [Il Trovatore, Side by Side by Sondheim]. Elsewhere, she has staged productons of The Tales of Hoffman, Carmen, Le Nozze de Figaro and several productions of The Magic Flute. She is pleased to be participating in this production.

Angela Huff (Costume Designer) was born and educated in Dusseldorf, Germany. In London, Ms. Huff worked on a number of feature motion pictures including Little Women, The Crucible and Gulliver’s Travels. She has collaborated with opera director, Phillip Parr on productions of La Bohème, Cosí Fan Tutte and The Magic Flute. With Theo Crosby, the noted architect who designed the New Globe Theatre in London, she designed the costumes for the diorama that is in the lobby of the theatre. Tosca was her first opera with Dicapo and she then went on to design The Rape of Lucretia, Werther, Rigoletto, La Bohème, L’Amico Fritz, Street Scene, Passion, Faust, Falstaff, Madama Butterfly, La Traviata, The Merry Widow and Thérèse Raquin.

Susan Roth (Lighting Designer) designs for a number of regional opera companies in the U.S. Recent opera designs include Aida for Tampa Opera, Rigoletto for Augusta Opera and Carmen with Denyce Graves, for Orlando Opera. Ms. Roth is resident designer for Dicapo Opera Theater in New York, where her recent work includes Falstaff and La Traviata. National theater tour credits include Dreamgirls, Cabaret, Purlie and the first U.S. tours of Little Shop of Horrors and One Mo Time. Ms. Roth also designed the U.S. premier of Public Enemy, a play by Kenneth Branagh, at the lrish Arts Center; West Side Story and Crazy for You at the Westbury Music Fair, and the world premier of Feau Follet for the Elisa Monte-Dance Company.

Fight master Dale Girard (Co-fight Coordinator) is an award-winning fight director and author of the combat stage manual Actors on Guard. His work has been featured in professional theaters and opera houses throughout the U.S. and Canada—from New York City Opera and The Goodspeed Opera House to Opera Colorado and Opera Alaska—as well as in several feature films. The president of the Society of American Fight Directors and a member of the United Stuntmen’s Association, Mr. Girard holds college and university classes and seminars across the country in stage combat, acting, and dramatic movement. He is currently on the faculty of The Hartt School in Hartford, CT, where he teaches acting and stage combat.

Robert Westley (Co-fight Coordinator) has choreographed staged violence for theatres, opera houses and film companies across the country. Recent fight directing credits include the New York City premieres of Second Stage Theatre production of Butcher of Baraboo, directed by two time Tony Award winning actor Judith Ivey, The Screams of Kitty Genovese, The Salacious Uncle Baldrick and Waiter, Waiter. Other premieres include The Bigger Man at Los Angeles’ Circle X theatre and Gabriel’s Daughter for Central City Opera. Additionally Robert’s work has been seen at such venues as Chautauqua Opera, The Lyric Opera of Chicago, Opera Providence, The Colorado Shakespeare Festival and the New York Fringe Festival. Recent opera productions include Tosca, I Pagliacci, Les Contes D’Hoffmann and Carmen. Robert has instructed at Boston University’s Opera Institute, the North Carolina School of the Arts, National Theatre Conservatory, Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute, the Asolo Conservatory, the Manhattan School of Music and numerous workshops and intensives in America and Great Britain. Mr. Westley is happy to be making his Dicapo premiere with this production.

Artistic Staff

Upcoming Operas

Make a Donation

Sign Up For Our Newsletter