Union 50 Cast

Opera Cabaret at Union 50 Cast

Daniel Narducci

Daniel Narducci has appeared across the globe on opera, concert, and musical theatre stages from New York’s Lincoln Center to the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Mr. Narducci has performed with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Boston Pops, Chicago Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, Baltimore Symphony, Toronto Symphony, Houston Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, and the Detroit Symphony. He portrayed Lancelot on two national tours of Lerner and Loewe’s Camelot, most notably opposite Robert Goulet’s Arthur. Daniel’s role debut as Arthur in Camelot was in Indianapolis Opera’s production of Camelot for which he was awarded Best Actor in a Musical by the BroadwayWorld Indianapolis Awards. Other roles with the Indianapolis Opera include Marcello in La Bohème and Escamillo in Carmen. He has appeared in principal operatic roles with the Washington National Opera, New Orleans Opera, Central City Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Kentucky Opera, Nashville Opera, and Opera Santa Barbara.

Daniel co-starred with Frederica von Stade and the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra in a program broadcast internationally by PBS entitled Pops at the Phil: A Century of Broadway. Mr. Narducci created the role of Captain Hook on the world premiere complete recording of Leonard Bernstein’s Peter Pan, co-starring Linda Eder. He was featured on the BBC television documentary Kurt Weill in America: I’m a Stranger Here Myself. Daniel received his Doctor of Music in voice from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and is a member of the voice faculty at the Ball State University. www.danielnarducci.com

Heather Hertling Narducci

Heather Hertling Narducci has spent her life using music as a performer, teacher, and therapeutic musician. Born and raised in Bloomington, IN she was lucky to have been exposed to various art forms that shaped her career on the operatic, concert, musical theatre and dramatic theatre stages across our country. Heather holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.

In recent years, Heather has worked with the Indiana Summer Festival Theatre as Mrs. Paroo in their production of The Music Man, as Mama in Moses Man, and was seen with Cardinal Stage as Sue Bayliss in the play All My Sons. With the Bloomington Playwrights Project, Heather portrayed Ethel in the new musical production Tuning In. On the concert stage, Heather has appeared as soloist with the New Jersey Pops, Bloomington Pops, Evansville Philharmonic, and the Waterbury Symphony. Heather and her husband, Daniel can be heard on two recording projects they created together: Christmas Once More & Our Broadway Romance.

Heather is an active volunteer with groups here in Indiana and beyond. She is involved with the Miss America Opportunity and has judged on the national, state, and local levels. She represented the state of New Jersey in the Miss America Pageant in 1992 and was a double talent winner in Atlantic City for her operatic performance. Heather is proud to be part of the Singing Hoosiers Alumni Council and as a volunteer for the USA International Harp Competition.

Anne Fuchs

Soprano Anne Fuchs has enjoyed an international performance career of operatic, contemporary and musical theatre repertoire. She made her debut with the Indianapolis Opera last year singing First Lady in The Magic Flute and appears with the company in numerous outreach performances around the city. In Europe, Anne sang with the Oldenburgishes Staatstheater for two and a half years in roles such as Papagena in Die Zauberflote, and Ida and Adele (cover) in "Die Fledermaus" in Oldenburg, Germany. Other European highlights include a televised production of "Cosi fan tutte" as Fiordiligi with the Lyric Opera Studio of Weimar, Germany, a sound project entitled "Notte Splendida Notte" in Rome, Italy, for the International Year of Astronomy, and performances as featured artist with "Palazzo Ricci" opera studio in Tuscany. A Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Regional Finalist at the age of 20, Anne has performed many leading soprano roles including Lucia, Donna Elvira, Adina, Pamina, Santuzza, and Rosalinde with South Bend Lyric Opera, Opera Theatre of Pittsburgh, Queens Opera Association, Rising Star Singers, Lexington Opera Society, and others. She has also appeared as a soprano soloist with the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra, Delaware Valley Philharmonic Orchestra, Sinfonietta Nova, and the Grammy-award-winning contemporary choir, "The Crossing". Anne is proud to call Indianapolis home.

Victoria Korovljev

Victoria Korovljev is a rising young soprano with a warm lyrical timbre. She is the Resident Artist Soprano for Indianapolis Opera this Spring of 2023, where she is debuting as Zweite Dame and covering Pamina in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. Victoria celebrated her Caribbean heritage with a debut as Elsa in the world premiere of The Pirate’s Daughter, commissioned by Romanza Lyric Opera. In the Fall of 2022, she was featured as Siren in Minnesota Opera’s production of Rinaldo. Also in 2022, she made her debut with Opera Grand Rapids as Female Soloist 2 in the world premiere of Stinney: An American Execution, which was recorded for PBS. In addition, Victoria made her role debut of Countess Almaviva with Trentino Music Festival. At TMF, she placed as a Finalist in their Young Artist Competition. Most recently, Victoria qualified as an alternate finalist with the Opera Birmingham Voice Competition. Furthermore, with much acclaim from the judges, Victoria qualified as a Semi-Finalist in the Palm Springs Opera Guild Competition and Jacques Offenbach Grand Prix. In the upcoming 2022-2023 season, Thursday Musical of Minneapolis selected Victoria as a featured solo artist in their Artist Series. During the pandemic, Victoria recorded two episodes introducing children to opera for Minnesota Public Radio and Minnesota Opera. Shortly thereafter, she was a visiting artist with Northern Light Opera Company, where she sung the character Catherine in Pippin. Other recent engagements include singing the role of Frasquita, as well as being a Finalist in the American Prize Competition for Women in Opera. Before the shutdown, Victoria took part in the workshops and premiering ensemble for Minnesota Opera’s newest commission, Edward Tulane.

Liz Culpepper

Liz Culpepper, mezzo-soprano, is thrilled to be joining Indianapolis Opera as a Resident Artist this season. She was educated at the University of Texas (B.A. Music - Voice; 2015) and received her Master’s in Voice from Indiana University in 2017. While she was at IU, Liz sang the following roles: Suzuki (Madama Butterfly), Mrs. Sedley (Peter Grimes), Madame de Croissy (Dialogues des Carmélites), La Zia Principessa (Suor Angelica), and Serse (Serse). She has also appeared at a number of summer music festivals. Notable appearances include Brevard in 2018, where she reprised the role of Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, in 2019 at the Princeton Festival in Nixon in China as the First Secretary, and with Teatro Nuovo in the 2022 season. Most recently, Liz made her solo debut at Lincoln Center with Teatro Nuovo as La Comare in Crispino e la Comare and was an Apprentice Artist at Sarasota Opera for their 2023 Winter Season. Liz is based in New York City where she is a core singer with Teatro Nuovo and she studies with Will Crutchfield. Prior to her Master’s degree, Liz specialized as an Early Music soprano with a special emphasis on the works of Bach. Through her work with Will Crutchfield and Teatro Nuovo, Liz has shifted her focus to historically informed performances of the Bel Canto repertoire with a special interest in Rossini. One of her long-term career goals is to sing all of his heroines. Coming up, Liz will perform with Teatro Nuovo in their 2024 season.

Courtney Porter

Courtney Porter, mezzo-soprano from Uniondale, NY, is currently pursuing a Doctorate at the University of Kentucky under Dr. Everett McCorvey, where she recently portrayed Third Lady in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. In 2021, she appeared in Chandler Carter’s This Little Light of Mine as Young Fannie Lou Hammer with Kentucky Opera, and in 2020, Courtney worked with the Cincinnati Pops Conductor, John Morris Russell, on a recording of William Marion Cook's In Dahomey. Other notable opera and musical theater roles include Cherubino (Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro), Maffio Orsini (Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia), Jairus (Peace Together), Frau Eberfeld (The Sound of Music), and Angie (The Prom). She recently appeared with the Lexington Philharmonic concert entitled "Sorrow, Strength, and Love," performing Julia Perry's Stabat Mater. Other recent appearances as a concert soloist also include Camille Saint-Saëns’ Oratorio de Noël and Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 2. Other notable performances include representing the University of Delaware at the National Opera Association Convention as a soloist in the Sacred Music Initiative and representing Delaware State University in collaboration with the Philadelphia Orchestra to premier Hannibal Lokumbe’s “One Land, One River, One People.” These performances are pillars in the foundation of Courtney’s desire for this art form.

Gavin Hughes

Gavin Hughes is a native of Jackson, Mississippi where he sang in churches throughout the region from childhood through college. He began his classical journey in 2015. In 2017, Hughes debuted his first role as “Cephus” at the Thalia Mara Hall with the Mississippi Symphony orchestra in Scott Joplin’s Treemonisha. In 2021, Hughes graduated from Jackson State University with his Bachelor’s of Music Education and began the pursuit of his masters degree under Russell Thomas at IU Jacobs where he debuted his first lead opera role as Tamino in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte with the IU Jacobs Opera Theater. In February 2023, he sang his first flamenco role with the IU Jacobs Opera Theater as Ruiz Alonso in Ainadamar. That following May, Hughes made his professional title role debut in Charles Lloyd, Jr.’s Emmett Till with Opera Southern Company. In the following month, he was featured in a video and audio recording presenting Kenyan folk songs for Carnegie Hall’s “Musical Explorers” program. In October, Hughes will sing the role of the Count Belfiore in Mozart’s La finta giardiniera, in his final show with the IU Jacobs Opera Theater, and in the Spring of 2024, Hughes will serve as tenor resident artist with Indianapolis Opera for their 49th season.

Morgan Hunkele

Morgan Hunkele is an active collaborative pianist, vocal coach, and conductor in the United States and Europe. Currently the Resident Artist Pianist and Vocal Coach at Indianapolis Opera, Ms. Hunkele began working as a staff vocal pianist at Wake Forest University at the age of nineteen. Her engagements for the 2023-2024 season include Principal Pianist and Coach for Indianapolis Opera's productions of Carmen and A Little Night Music, Music Director and Pianist for Virginia Opera's production of Frida Kahlo and the Bravest Girl in the World, Musical Preparation of Indianapolis Opera's production of Charlie Parker's Yardbird, and Apprentice Assistant Conductor for Le nozze di Figaro at the Lyric Opera Studio of Weimar. In the summer of 2023, Ms. Hunkele was a Collaborative Piano Fellow at Musiktheater Bavaria and Conducting Fellow of Markand Thaker with the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra. As a pianist, Ms. Hunkele has appeared as a guest artist in the Music for a Great Space concert series (Greensboro, NC), as a soloist with the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra, as a returning guest artist of the North Carolina Bach Festival, and as a featured pianist alongside the Winston-Salem Festival Ballet for the performance of three Rakowski etudes. She has been a finalist and prize winner in several piano competitions, including the Ronald Sachs International Music Competition and the Charlotte Steinway Piano Competition. Ms. Hunkele holds degrees in piano performance as a full-scholarship student from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (MM) and as a recipient of the Chancellor's Excellence Award from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (BM and High-School Diploma). Additionally, she has studied and performed at Meadowmount School of Music, Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, Brevard Music Center, Rebecca Penneys Piano Festival, Baltimore International Piano Festival, Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Vivace International Music Festival.