My dear friend Natalie Aroyan and I wanted to join our voices together even though we are on separate continents. Please enjoy Belle Nuit from The Tales of Hoffmann and if you’re able, donate to the Armenia Fund to deliver humanitarian aid to Armenia and Artsakh. https://www.armeniafund.org
My friend Edward Kim and I have created another video. Very fitting during this time for our first piece to be Tired and now, Waitin….Enjoy!
My lovely friend and colleague, Edward Kim, messaged me after I had posted something about Vaughan Williams’ Four Last Songs. He wanted to figure out a way to collaborate from quarantine and different cities. We both recorded and came up with this. Be on the lookout for more because this was so fun! This is Tired, from Vaughan Williams’ Four Last Songs.
I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jim Cunningham from WQED to chat about Ricky Ian Gordon's, 27. Take a listen below!
Big thanks to Broadway World for the feature on our upcoming production of Ricky Ian Gordon's 27. Click below for the full article and photos!
My dear friend and colleague Adam Bonanni and I sat down with Pittsburgh Magazine for a chat. Click on the link below!
The cast of Little Women at Pittsburgh Opera sits down with Brian Edward for a casual chat and some tea.
Opening night has come and gone and people love Nabucco! Our wonderful photographer David Bachman has made this epic poster to help advertise! Please visit www.pittsburghopera.org for ticket info. 3 shows left!
So much has happened in the last month and I can't believe I haven't updated! First and foremost I finished my first year as a Resident Artist with Pittsburgh Opera. It was one of the most intense 9 months of my life and I wouldn't have traded it for anything. I feel I have learned more in this first year than I have in quite a long time. Next season holds some really exciting things for me so stay tuned!
After our final concert here in Pittsburgh I went home to Tacoma, WA to sing for Tacoma Opera's end of the year fundraiser. I was fortunate enough to get to sing with my friend, tenor Brendan Tuohy. Tacoma Opera is the company where I first got my start and It is always such a pleasure to not only get to go home to the gorgeous northwest but to also see old friends and make music at Tacoma Opera.
While I was home a friend from my days at Sarasota Opera contacted me and invited me to join Seattle Opera's Bravo Happy Hour as their guest singer for an evening. We met at the Sorrento Hotel in downtown Seattle and I sang a few arias for this amazing young professional group that loves opera and wants to know more about it. It is always such a great experience singing opera for people in an intimate setting. They get to see up close what you normally don't get to see in the back of a theater.
Later in the week I collaborated with my old choir director from my days in the Tacoma Youth Chorus and went to my alma mater, Charles Wright Academy, to perform a small concert for the elementary school students. They were such a great audience and already knew so much more about opera than I was expecting!
I will be returning to the great northwest for the month of August to perform the role of Cherubino in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro with the brand new company, City Opera Bellevue. My dear friend Tess Altiveros, who will be singing the countess, and I covered these roles as young artists with Tacoma Opera and I can't wait to finally step into the pants for real! Stay tuned for more updates throughout the summer!
2014-2015 Resident Artists of Pittsburgh Opera
Brendan Tuohy (tenor), me, and Noel Koran (General Director, Tacoma Opera).
Me, Elisabeth Ellis (Pianist), Ksenia Popova (Marketing Coordinator, Seattle Opera)
Judy Herrington (pianist) and me at Charles Wright Academy.
Rodelinda closed on Sunday afternoon and Monday morning we began staging for our Second Stage Project, Mohammed Fairouz's, Sumeida's Song. These next few weeks will be quite the physical, emotional, and musical journey for me and I can't wait to share this moving piece with the Pittsburgh community!
I am thrilled that our Pittsburgh audiences have been loving this show as much as I do!
From: The Pittsburgh Stage Online Magazine- 11/9/14
The smaller parts were in quite capable hands. As Emilia, wife of Iago and Desdemona’s “duenna,” Laurel Semerdjian made the most of the little she had to sing by displaying a mezzo-soprano of lovely, firm quality. She has the fine sense of “repose” so necessary in a role that requires the subtle art of listening and reacting to what is taking place around her. Her appearances in other productions later in the season will be looked forward to, and it is easy to imagine this talented young woman rising to greater heights.
From: Trib LIVE- 11/9/14
Secondary roles were effectively handled...Mezzo-soprano Laurel Semerdjian was excellent as Emilia, Desdemona's maid and Iago's wife.
For the full reviews visit:
http://triblive.com/aande/theaterarts/7097808-74/otello-act-iago#axzz3J3jeJheY
Rehearsals are well under way for Otello and we open in November! I am so happy to be working along side some fantastic colleagues. Verdi really out-did himself with this glorious music and I can't wait to bring it to life. Get your tickets here!
Rehearsals are well under way and Carmen is going up in 3 weeks from today! Visit www.musicacademy.org for ticket information!
I am thrilled to finally and officially announce that I will be joining the Pittsburgh Opera in the fall as a Resident Artist! I have heard nothing but amazing things about Pittsburgh and am excited to start this new adventure. Please check out my newly updated résumé for specifics on what roles I will be singing and covering in my first year with the company!
I have been so happy to escape the cold in my new home of Chicago for the sunny weather here in Sarasota! Il trovatore opened this last weekend to wonderful reviews and I am so thrilled to be working for such an amazing company. We are in the thick of rehearsals for Wagner's Der fliegende Holländer and Verdi's Jérusalem. Below are a few photos of me with my wonderful colleagues on opening night of Verdi's Il trovatore.
Apprentice Artist Women
With my friend Mary Hollis
At the opening party
I was so excited and honored to be a part of the 1st birthday party for CultureMAP Dallas. From the light bites brought in from restaurants around the area, to the amazing music being spun by DJ Lucy Wrubel and DJ Tony Schwa, the party was perfect. In a fusion performance bringing opera and dance music together, DJ Lucy Wrubel spun while I sang the Habanera from Carmen. It was the most unexpected and most wonderful way to kick off Dallas Opera's coming season by bringing new life to the classic aria.
For a review of the party and ways to purchase tickets for Dallas Opera's upcoming production of Carmen, click below!
View of the entrance into the party at the Crow Museum.
The Dallas Opera surprised guests with a pop-up performance by Laurel Semerdjian. Photo by Sylvia Elzafon.
I am thrilled to announce that I will be joining the Sarasota Opera this winter as apart of their Apprentice Artist Program! For more information on the company, please visit:
Thanks to Texas style thunderstorms and unpredictable weather, today's recital has been postponed. Stay tuned for a new date!!
The show at Texas Discovery Gardens went wonderfully! The Women's Chorus of Dallas was incredibly hospitable to me and I felt like one of the gang. The program they sang was stunning and in the setting of the Gardens was even more perfect for a lovely Mother's Day. Thank you to them for the Woman's Voice Award and the opportunity to make music together! The only thing that could have made it better is if my mom were able to come. I attached a picture of us below in honor of her. Happy Mother's Day!!
