The Atlanta Opera announces the six artists selected for its 2026–27 Studio Artist program: singers Page Michels, Ashlyn Brown, Randy Ho and Harrison Hancock, and stage directors Ky Chassells and Madeleine Snow.
The early-career professionals join The Atlanta Opera with significant training, stage experience, and a strong body of work. Throughout the 2026–27 season, Studio Artists will receive extensive performance and directing opportunities while working alongside accomplished artists and creative teams on The Atlanta Opera’s productions.
Now in its 10th season, the Atlanta Opera Studio Artist program hallmark is the meaningful stage experience provided to participants. Singers take on performance assignments, prepare roles as covers and understudies, and participate in rehearsals and productions with established professionals. Stage directors receive opportunities to develop their craft in a professional opera environment while collaborating with artists, conductors, designers, and directors.
“We are thrilled to welcome these six exceptional artists to The Atlanta Opera,” said Tomer Zvulun, General and Artistic Director of The Atlanta Opera. “Our Studio Artist Program is about giving young professionals the opportunity to learn by doing—to step onto a major stage, work alongside world-class artists, and experience what it means to be part of a professional opera company. These artists bring extraordinary talent, energy, curiosity, and ambition to Atlanta, and we are excited to watch them grow throughout the season. As we enter the second decade of this program, we are especially proud of the remarkable alumni community it has created and the exciting careers they have gone on to build.”
Studio Artists also receive individualized training and support at a critical point in their professional development. Laura Brooks Rice, Master Vocal Teacher, has been part of the program since 2021. The experienced team of coaches and clinicians also includes David Okerlund, Principal Guest Voice Teacher; Walter Huff, Principal Guest Coach; Stefano Baldasseroni, Italian Diction Coach; Marianne Barrett, German Diction Coach; and Pierre Vallet, French Diction Coach. Widely known for her dedication to young artists and an advocate of rising talent, Meredith Wallace, Director of Artistic Administration, leads the program.
The 2026–27 Studio Artist program is made possible in significant part through support from the Donald and Marilyn Keough Foundation, John and Yee-Wan Stevens, and Jerry and Dulcy Rosenberg.
2026–27 Studio Artists
Page Michels, Soprano, completed her Artist Diploma in Opera Studies at The Juilliard School and joined Opera Theatre of Saint Louis as a Gerdine Young Artist in summer 2026, covering the role of Blanche DuBois (A Streetcar Named Desire). While at Juilliard, she performed Alice Ford (Falstaff) and Miss Jessel (The Turn of the Screw) with Juilliard Opera. She also performed Strauss’ Four Last Songs, Berg’s Sieben frühe Lieder (I-III, V, VII) on multiple occasions, and was a soprano soloist in Handel’s Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day in Alice Tully Hall under Lionel Meunier. She sang the Marschallin (Der Rosenkavalier) and made her Alice Tully Hall debut with Tom Cipullo’s Late Summer.
On the concert stage, Michels has performed as the soprano soloist in Dvořák’s Te Deum and J.S. Bach’s Mass in B Minor while at Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, as well as Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater in Fort Lauderdale under conductor Daniel Bates. Previous highlights include Lauretta in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, and Lucy in Fellow Travelers with Florida Grand Opera, as well as the title role in Floyd’s Susannah at Rice University.
Ashlyn Brown, Mezzo-soprano, is from Palm Springs, CA. Brown has apprenticed with Santa Fe Opera, Palm Beach Opera, and Sarasota Opera. In 2025, she made her Dorabella (Così fan tutte) debut as a Fleming Artist at Aspen Music Festival. Earlier that year, she also debuted Stéphano (Roméo et Juliette) and Flora Bevoix (La traviata) with Palm Beach Opera. In 2024, Brown debuted Zweite Adlige Weise (Der Rosenkavalier) and Woman 2 / Event Planner (The Righteous) with Santa Fe Opera. This summer, she sings Eunice Hubbell (A Streetcar Named Desire) and covers Margaret Johnson (The Light in the Piazza) and Stephano (Roméo and Juliet) as a Gerdine Artist at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
Brown has been recognized by many competitions and organizations, including the Laffont Competition (Rocky Mountain Region third place) and the Santa Fe Opera (Donald and Luke Grahm Memorial Award). Other competition highlights include Butler International Vocal Competition (semi-finalist), HGO Eleanor McCollom Competition for Young Singers (semi-finalist), and the Premiere Opera Foundation International Vocal Competition (semi-finalist). Recently, competition wins include the John Alexander National Vocal Competition (Audience Favorite, first place), Pasadena Vocal Competition (Audience Favorite, second place), and Saengerbund Awards German Singing Competition (second place). Brown has also sung as the soloist in many concert works including Handel’s Messiah, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Manuel de Falla’s El sombrero de tres picos, and Mozart’s Requiem.
Randy Ho, Tenor, a vibrant performer from Denver, Colorado, is quickly establishing himself on the operatic stage. During The Atlanta Opera’s 2026-27 season, he will be performing and covering in multiple shows throughout the season. In addition, Randy will return to Pensacola Opera, performing as Nemorino in L’elisir d’amore. Over the last year, Randy made his Glimmerglass Festival Debut as Goro in Madame Butterfly. Before Glimmerglass, Randy returned to Palm Beach Opera for his second year as a Laufer Young Artist. While there, he covered all the leading tenor roles during his time, and performed as Tybalt (Roméo et Juliette), Gastone (La traviata), Parpignol (La bohème), and Borsa (Rigoletto).
Harrison Hancock, Baritone, from Lexington, Kentucky, is a 2024 graduate of the University of Kentucky School of Music. While at the University of Kentucky, Harrison performed the role of Papageno (Die Zauberflöte), Elder McLean (Susannah), and the titular character in Don Giovanni. Harrison recently completed his Master of Music from the Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music. While at the Conservatory, he performed the roles of Sweeney Todd (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street), Pandolfe (Cendrillon, King in Dark Sisters), and was the baritone soloist in Johannes Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem. Outside of Cincinnati, Hancock has been a member of the Des Moines Metro Opera Apprentice Artist Program for the last two summers, recently covering Slim and performing Johnson in Carlisle Floyd’s Of Mice and Men. Harrison is a winner of the 2024 Kentucky District in the Metropolitan Opera competition, first place winner in the 2025 Dayton Performing Arts Vocal competition, and 2026 semifinalist in the George London Competition. Harrison is a student of Elliot Madore. In his free time, Harrison is an avid basketball player, pianist, and cook.
Ky Chassells, Stage Director, is also an intimacy director, stage manager, and collaborative artist from Conway, Arkansas. They are a theatre creative who works passionately to explore the compelling truths in operatic narratives and strives to shape new and reimagined stories for audiences around the globe. Their work spans such companies as LA Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Opera Philadelphia, The Atlanta Opera, Detroit Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Opera Orlando, and more. Some of their more recent credits include: Salome and Carmen (assistant director, Cincinnati Opera), Falstaff (assistant director, LA Opera), and The Handmaid’s Tale (assistant director, Detroit Opera). Chassells is excited to return to The Atlanta Opera after taking part in The Boheme Project in 2024, and now, as an Atlanta Opera Studio Artist Stage Director, they will assist on Bizet’s classic Carmen, the Wagner masterpiece The Flying Dutchman, and the inspirational story of Jubilee.
Madeleine Snow, Stage Director, is an adventurous stage director and creative collaborator. A 2024-2026 Studio Artist in the Marion Roose Pullin Studio at Arizona Opera, she directed La Cenerentola, following her immersive outdoor stagings of La finta giardiniera and her work directing and choreographing the Studio Cabaret. During the 2025-26 season, Snow also staged L’elisir d’amore with Boulder Opera, directed Opera Colorado’s touring production of Roméo et Juliette, and made her company debut with Opera Grand Rapids as associate director on Madama Butterfly. She served as a 2026 Directing Fellow at Wolf Trap Opera, where she assistant directed Eugene Onegin and Tosca. Her previous assistant directing credits include productions with Arizona Opera, Opera Colorado, Central City Opera, PAC NYC, and Palm Beach Opera. Snow earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology and Theater, Dance, and Media from Harvard University and holds a Master of Music degree in Opera Stage Directing from the Eastman School of Music.
Notable Studio Artist Alumni
Since its founding in 2016, The Atlanta Opera Studio Artist program has helped launch the careers of artists who have gone on to perform on some of the world’s most prestigious stages. Notable alumni include:
- Santiago Ballerini, tenor — An alumnus of The Atlanta Opera Studio, Ballerini has built an international career performing throughout North and South America and returned to Atlanta as Tamino in The Magic Flute.
- Gretchen Krupp, mezzo-soprano — A former Studio Artist, Krupp has gone on to make debuts at both Dallas Opera and Santa Fe Opera, among other leading companies.
- Susanne Burgess, soprano — An alumna of the program, Burgess has established a career that includes regular performances at The Metropolitan Opera.
- Kameron Lopreore, tenor — A former Studio Artist, Lopreore has performed leading roles with The Atlanta Opera and other major companies. His Atlanta Opera debut as Rodolfo in La bohème was particularly acclaimed.
- Brenna Corner, stage director — After leaving the program, Corner’s career led her to become Artistic Director of the Pacific Opera Victoria, and her work has been presented by Washington National Opera, Glimmerglass Festival, Vancouver Opera, and The Atlanta Opera. She returns to Atlanta this season to direct Carmen.
- Alexis Seminario, soprano — Seminario performed this past summer at the Santa Fe Opera in both The Turn of the Screw and Die Walküre. Her upcoming season sees her on the stage of the LA Opera as a Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist.
- Jason Zacher, baritone — Recently signed by the Quintana Artist Management company, Zacher will make his company debut at the Metropolitan Opera in this upcoming season as First Priest (The Magic Flute), the role he performed as a Studio Artist with TAO last season. The program’s alumni also include accomplished stage directors and singers performing with opera companies and festivals throughout the United States and internationally.
