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Des Moines Metro Opera Announces Casting for 2026 Festival Season

Indianola, IA—Des Moines Metro Opera (DMMO) Linda Koehn General and Artistic Director, Michael Egel, has announced the casting for the company’s 2026 Festival Season. The season runs June 26 through July 19 and features the return of Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca, Carlisle Floyd’s Of Mice and Men and a company premiere of Karol Szymanowski’s King Roger. 
 
"We are thrilled to unveil complete casting for our highly anticipated 2026 Festival Season, featuring three all-new productions brought to life by a roster of world-class artists drawn from across the globe,” said Michael Egel. "Once again, our commitment to showcasing extraordinary talent at pivotal moments in their international careers takes center stage.” 
 
“The 2026 Festival Season continues to define a distinctive artistic niche for Des Moines Metro Opera as a champion of important early to mid-20th-century works—pieces that are widely admired yet still establishing their rightful place in the core repertory of world opera houses,” said Egel. “The season opens with Puccini’s Tosca not seen here since 2009 and in a new production. We then celebrate the 100th anniversary of Polish composer Szymanowski’s masterpiece King Roger in a striking new production. Finally, DMMO pays tribute to the centennial of American composer Carlisle Floyd, featuring one of his most celebrated works Of Mice and Men based on the novella by John Steinbeck in a new co-production with Houston Grand Opera. Spanning a rich and diverse musical landscape, the 2026 season offers audiences an expansive musical tapestry and a storytelling journey with something to captivate every listener.” 
 
2026 Casting Highlights 
The season welcomes several major artists in their DMMO mainstage debuts:
  • Tosca: Tenor Brian Michael Moore as Mario Cavaradossi and tenor Lucas van Lierop as Spoletta.
  • Of Mice and Men: Tenor John Findon as Lennie Small, tenor Adrian Kramer as Curley and baritone Dean Murphy as Slim.
  • King Roger: Soprano Lydia Katarina as Roxana and tenor Lucas van Lierop as Edrisi.
 
Mainstage creative debuts include Christopher James Ray (conductor, Of Mice and Men), Jimmy Stubbs (scenic designer, King Roger) and Kara Harmon (costume designer, Of Mice and Men).
 
Notable returning artists include:
  • Tosca: Soprano Laura Wilde as Floria Tosca, baritone Norman Garrett as Baron Scarpia, bass Wei Wu as Sacristan and bass Alan Williams as Angelotti.
  • Of Mice and Men: Baritone John Moore as George Milton, soprano Cadie J. Bryan as Curley’s Wife and bass-baritone Kevin Deas as Candy.
  • King Roger: Baritone Alexander Birch Elliott as King Roger II and tenor Christopher Sokolowski as the Shepherd.
 
DMMO’s Marshall and Judy Flapan Music Director and Principal Conductor, David Neely, returns to lead Tosca and King Roger, while DMMO Artistic Partners Kristine McIntyre and Chas Rader-Shieber direct Of Mice and Men and King Roger, respectively. Joshua Borths returns to the festival following his 2025 directorial debut with The Flying Dutchman to direct Tosca. The Irene Graether Chorus Director and Director of the Apprentice Artist Program, Lisa Hasson, returns as Chorus Director for all three productions.
 
The season also sees the return of key designers and choreographer: Steven C. Kemp (scenic design, Tosca), Luke Cantarella (scenic design, Of Mice and Men), Robert Perdziola (costume design, Tosca and King Roger), Kate Ashton (lighting design, Tosca and Of Mice and Men), Connie Yun (lighting design, King Roger), Brittany V.A. Rappise (wig/makeup design, Tosca, Of Mice and Men, King Roger) and Isaac Martin Lerner (choreographer, King Roger).
 
2026 Festival Season Information 
All three productions will be presented in rotating repertory at the intimate 467-seat Pote Theatre at the Blank Performing Arts Center in Indianola, Iowa. Each opera features English supertitles projected above the stage. The Des Moines Metro Opera Festival Orchestra, made up of professional musicians from across the country, will perform for all three productions.
 
Subscription packages and individual tickets are available now. Full production and ticket information is available by visiting desmoinesmetroopera.org/2026/ or by calling Des Moines Metro Opera's box office at (515) 209-3257.
 
[Full casting, performance dates, and production credits for each opera follow]:
 
* Denotes mainstage debut
† Denotes former DMMO Apprentice Artist 
‡ Denotes current DMMO Apprentice Artist
 
TOSCA 
Music by Giacomo Puccini 
Libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa 
Premiered: January 14, 1900, at Teatro Costanzi, Rome 
Seven performances: June 26, June 28, July 3, July 8, July 11, July 16, July 19 
Performed in Italian with projected English translations 
Previous DMMO productions: 1981, 1998, 2009 
 
PRODUCTION 
Conductor: David Neely 
Stage Director: Joshua Borths 
Scenic Design: Steven C. Kemp 
Costume Design: Robert Perdziola 
Lighting Design: Kate Ashton 
Wig and Makeup Design: Brittany V.A. Rappise 
Chorus Director: Lisa Hasson 
 
CAST 
Floria Tosca: Laura Wilde 
Mario Cavaradossi: Brian Michael Moore * 
Baron Scarpia: Norman Garrett 
Sacristan: Wei Wu 
Angelotti: Alan Williams † 
Spoletta: Lucas van Lierop * 
Sciarrone: Titus Muzi III ‡ 
Jailer: Robert Frazier ‡ 
Shepherd: Liam Chicas *
 
Returning to our stage for the first time in 17 years, Tosca features Puccini’s most memorable melodies and romantic orchestrations. The opera diva Floria Tosca steadfastly lives for art and love. However, when the corrupt Scarpia discovers Tosca’s lover, Cavaradossi, aided the escape of a political prisoner, her world comes down to one final, fatal question: how far will she go to protect the man she loves?
 
Leadership production support is generously provided by Stan and Mary Seidler/The Seidler Foundation. 
 
OF MICE AND MEN 
Music and libretto by Carlisle Floyd 
Premiered: January 22, 1970, at Seattle Opera 
Five performances: June 27, July 5, July 10, July 15, July 18 
Performed in English with projected English text 
Previous DMMO production: 1985
 
Of Mice and Men is a Co-Production of Des Moines Metro Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Florida State University and Lyric Opera of Kansas City. 
 
PRODUCTION 
Conductor: Christopher James Ray * 
Stage Director: Kristine McIntyre 
Scenic and Projection Design: Luke Cantarella 
Costume Design: Kara Harmon * 
Lighting Design: Kate Ashton 
Wig and Makeup Design: Brittany V.A. Rappise 
Chorus Director: Lisa Hasson 
 
CAST 
Lennie Small: John Findon * 
George Milton: John Moore † 
Curley's Wife: Cadie J. Bryan † 
Curley: Adrian Kramer * 
Candy: Kevin Deas 
Slim: Dean Murphy * 
Carlson: Ethan E. Burck ‡ 
Ballad Singer: Luka Tsevelidze ‡ 
Haygood: Cameron Howard ‡ 
Luke: Mario Manzo ‡ 
Pete: Douglas Culclasure ‡ 
Johnson: Harrison Hancock ‡ 
1st Man: Shijin Sun ‡ 
2nd Man: Hunter Warnick ‡ 
3rd Man: Rick Hale ‡ 
4th Man: Michael Breaux ‡ 
 
John Steinbeck’s timeless story Of Mice and Men—in the hands of the Father of American Opera, Carlisle Floyd—becomes a deeply moving opera of great beauty and power.  
  
George and Lennie are two migrant ranch workers who dream of owning a small piece of land and a shack they can call their own. But George cannot always shield Lennie—a childlike giant with a love for soft things—from the dangers around them. As tensions rise on the ranch, the cruelty of the boss, the loneliness of the workers, and the restless unhappiness of the boss’s young wife set in motion a chain of events that will change their lives forever. 
  
Presented as part of the Carlisle Floyd Centennial, this masterful adaptation brings Steinbeck’s unforgettable characters vividly to life through Floyd’s richly expressive score. 
  
Leadership production support is generously provided by Nix and Virginia Lauridsen/Lauridsen Family Foundation.
 
KING ROGER 
Music by Karol Szymanowski 
Libretto by Karol Szymanowski and Jaroslaw Iwaszkiewicz 
Premiered: June 19, 1926, at Teatr Wielki, Warsaw 
Five performances: July 4, July 9, July 12, July 14, July 17 
Performed in Polish with projected English translations 
Company Premiere 
 
PRODUCTION 
Conductor: David Neely 
Stage Director: Chas Rader-Shieber 
Scenic Design: Jimmy Stubbs * 
Costume Design: Robert Perdziola 
Lighting Design: Connie Yun 
Wig and Makeup Design: Brittany V.A. Rappise 
Chorus Director: Lisa Hasson 
Choreographer: Isaac Martin Lerner 
 
CAST 
King Roger II: Alexander Birch Elliott † 
Roxana: Lydia Katarina * 
Shepherd: Christopher Sokolowski 
Edrisi: Lucas van Lierop * 
Archbishop: Ben Strong ‡ 
Deaconess: Margaret Macaira Shannon ‡ 
Tenor Chorus Solo: Cameron Howard ‡ 
Soprano Chorus Solo: Eliza Lucyna ‡ 
 
When an enigmatic Shepherd from the East arrives at the Christian court of King Roger, his presence disrupts the court’s established values and view of the world. Do his teachings bring goodness and joy—or destruction and chaos? King Roger himself grapples with questions of self-knowledge, spirituality and his very identity as a monarch and a man.
 
Leadership production support is generously provided by Nancy Main. 
 
About Des Moines Metro Opera 
Lauded by The New York Times in 2025 as “one of the country’s most ambitious and successful smaller companies,” Des Moines Metro Opera is a professional opera company located in the heart of Iowa that has taken its place among America’s leading opera festivals. Founded in 1973, DMMO is one of the largest performing arts organizations in the region, presenting over 100 performances across Iowa every year. Learn more about Des Moines Metro Opera. 
 
The 2026 Festival Season runs June 26–July 19 and includes the return of Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca, a centennial celebration of composer Carlisle Floyd with Of Mice and Men and a company premiere of Karol Szymanowski’s rarely performed Polish masterpiece, King Roger.
 
The Lauridsen Family Foundation is the Presenting Sponsor of the 2026 Festival Season 
 
Media Resources 
High-resolution imagery and additional press materials are available in the PRESS KIT 
 
 
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