Jessica Pratt
Soprano
Hailed by the New York Times as a soprano of "gleaming sound, free and easy high notes, agile coloratura runs and lyrical grace," Jessica Pratt is considered one of today's foremost interpreters of some of bel canto's most challenging repertoire. Since her European debut in 2007 as Lucia di Lammermoor Miss Pratt's schedule has included performances at opera theatres and festivals such as the Vienna State Opera, the Teatro alla Scala of Milan, Zurich Opera, and the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, working with conductors such as Daniel Oren, Nello Santi, Kent Nagano, Sir Colin Davis, Christian Thielemann, Donato Renzetti, Pier Giorgio Morandi, Carlo Rizzi, Antonino Fogliani, Wayne Marshall and David Parry. In a busy 2011/12 season Miss Pratt sang performances of Lucia di Lammermoor with THE Israeli Opera and at the Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, Amina in LaSonnambula as well as her solo vocal recital La prima donna at Teatro La Fenice, Cunegonde in Candide with Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Elvira in I puritani at the theatres of Cremona, Brescia, Pavia, and Como, as well as performances of Amira in Ciro in Babilonia at the Caramoor Festival and the Rossini Opera Festival, Pesaro. During the 2012/13 season Jessica Pratt gave her acclaimed debuts at the Verdi Festival in Parma as Gilda alongside Leo Nucci's Rigoletto, at the Deutsche Oper Berlin as Lucia di Lammermoor, at the Vlaamse Opera in its gala New Year's Concert, as Matilde in Guillaume Tell in Lima with Juan Diego Florez as Arnold, as Giulietta in I Capuleti e i Montecchi in Reims, as Lisinga in Rossini's Demetrio ePolibio in Naples, as Gilda in Sevilla, again with Leo Nucci in the title role, and in the title role of Verdi's Giovanna d'Arco at the Martina Franca Festival.
In 2013/14 she was heard as Amina in La Sonnambula in Bari, Gilda in Padova, in the season opening of La Fenice as Inès in Meyerbeer's L'Africaine, as Musetta in La Bohème in Salerno, in new productions of Lucia di Lammermoor at La Scala and in Amsterdam, in her debut role as Violetta in La Traviata in Melbourne, as Zenobia in Aureliano in Palmira at the Pesaro Rossini Opera Festival as well as in recitals in Tokyo and Florence with Vincenzo Scalera. Engagements in 2014/15 include her role debuts as Cleopatra in Händel's GiulioCesare at the Teatro Regio di Torino and as Amenaide in Rossini's Tancredi at the Opéra de Lausanne, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni and Giulietta in I Capuleti e i Montecchi at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Elvira in I Puritani in Florence and in Melbourne, Lucia di Lammermoor at the Festival Granda in Lima, Messa diGloria alongside Juan Diego Florez and La Morte di Didone at the Rossini Opera Festival as well as concerts in Milan, Bonn, and London. In the 2015/16 season Miss Pratt will return to the Teatro Regio di Torino as the protagonist of Lucia diLammermoor under the musical direction of Maestro Gianandrea Noseda. Her discography includes CD recordings of Rossini's Otello and Vaccai's La sposa diMessina, DVD/Blu-Ray recordings of Rossini's Ciro in Babilonia and Adelaide diBorgogna from the Rossini Opera Festival, the 2012 New Year's Gala from Teatro La Fenice, Donizetti's Viva la mamma from Teatro alla Scala Milan as well as Bellini's La Sonnambula from La Fenice.
IMG Artists
She debuts at the Arena di Verona for the 2015 Opera Festival as Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia and to take part in Carmina Burana.
RAFFAELE PE
Countertenor
Presented by the critics as “a rising star among a new generation of top-ranking countertenors” (Opera Now 2015) Raffaele Pe is today the emerging Italian interpreter for the repertoire that spans from the early Recitar Cantando to the late operatic works of the XVIII Century.
He performs regularly with conductors of the likes of Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Nicholas McGegan, René Jacobs and Paul McCreesh. Highlights include his operatic debut in the USA as the lead male role of the world première of Francesco Cavalli’s Veremonda, the role of Ottone in Monteverdi’s L’Incoronazione di Poppea at Tokyo Opera City Hall, Leone in Francesco Gasparini’s Bajazet at the Barga Opera Festival, and a recent very successful debut recital at the Berlin Philharmonie.
Increasingly in demand on opera stages, among his future engagements are the role of Arsace in Handel’s Berenice at Göttingen International Handel Festival, Roberto in Vivaldi’s Griselda conducted by David Bates, and a Monteverdi’s trilogy in Schwetzingen.
Upcoming recording projects will see him interpret the evangelist in Gaetano Veneziano’s St.John’s Passion for I Turchini di Antonio Florio and a set of recently rediscovered cantatas by Alessandro Stradella directed by René Jacobs.
In 2014 he debuted at the Arena di Verona taking part in Carmina Burana and returns in 2015 for the same title in the 93rd edition of the Opera Festival.
MARIO CASSI
Baritone
Mario Cassi made his operatic debut in 2001 within "Voci inMusica", a workshop organized by Musica per Roma, performing as Guglielmo (Così Fan Tutte) and Signor Lupo (Henze’s Pollicino) conducted by Claire Gibault and directed by Daniele Abbado. He won several prestigious international competitions: "Toti Dal Monte" in 2002; "Viotti" in 2002 ("Cesare Bardelli" Special Prize); Placido Domingo’s Operalia in 2003 (Zarzuela Prize); and Spiros Argiris in 2004 (2nd Prize). He specialized under the guidance of Bruno De Simone and Alessandra Rossi De Simone. He also graduated in Economics from the University of Florence. He has collaborated with such conductors as Riccardo Muti, Corrado Rovaris, Bruno Campanella, Patrick Fournillier, Donato Renzetti, Christophe Rousset and Paolo Olmi and directors as Pier Luigi Pizzi, Stefano Vizioli, Stefano Mazzoni di Palafrera, Micha van Hoecke, Irina Brook, Daniele Abbado, Antonio Calenda, David McVicar, Carlos Saura and Micha Makeieff.
His operatic repertoire spans from Handel, Porpora and Mozart to contemporary music, with special attention to the Italian belcanto works.
He participated in several premières, including: Luca Lombardi’s Palermo e Corona at the Accademia Filarmonica in Rome in 2001; Veiano (music by Matteo D'Amico and text by Sandro Cappelletto) at the Todi Arte Festival, broadcast live by Italy’s public radio RAI-Radio3; Marchetti's Romeo e Giulietta at the Festival della Valle d'Itria in Martina Franca; L'Ape Musicale produced by Attilio Cremonesi in Jesi; and La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein (Barone Grog) at the Teatro La Fenice di Venezia. Mr. Cassi is a returning guest at many of Europe’s most prestigious theaters and festivals. Among his successful collaborations: La Scala di seta (Germano), recorded for Bongiovanni (2001); Hansel und Gretel (Father) at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma; Ravel’s L'Enfant et les sortilèges (Horloge Comtoise and Le Chat) at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, Don Pasquale (Dottor Malatesta) in Ravenna, a production that will be soon released on DVD and was toured in Moscow, Liège, Cologne and Paris under the baton of Riccardo Muti; La Cenerentola (Dandini) in Treviso, Pisa, Lucca and Livorno; a Gala concert with Placido Domingo and the other winners of the Operalia 2003 in Mainau Island (broadcast by Germany’s public television); Così fan tutte in Trieste, Lucca, at the Piccolo Teatro di Milano and at the Opéra de Lausanne; Il SignorBruschino (Bruschino Padre) and La Cambiale di Matrimonio at the Galuppo Festival in Venice; Gianni Schicchi (title role) in S. Giovanni Valdarno; Salieri's La Grotta di Trofonio (Plistene) conducted by Christophe Rousset in Lausanne, a production recorded with Les Talens Lyriques for the label Ambroisie (2005); Faust (Valentin) at the Ravenna Festival under the baton of Patrick Fournillier and at the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in Valencia; Il Turco in Italia (Prosdocimo) at the Teatro Regio in Turin and in Rome; Giulio Cesare (Achilla) staged by Irina Brook at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris; Falstaff (Ford) opposite Renato Bruson in Chieti and Salerno; L'Italiana in Algeri (Haly) in Bologna; Il Califfo di Bagdad (Cadi) with Les Talens Lyriques and Chrtistophe Rousset in Granada, Madrid and Barcelona; Maria Stuarda (Lord Guglielmo Cecil) in Macerata; Un Ballo in Maschera (Silvano) in Florence; Il Matrimonio Segreto (Conte Robinson), Maria Stuarda (Roberto Conte di Leicester) and Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Figaro) at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie in Liège; La Favorita in Bergamo; Il Matrimonio Inaspettato in Ravenna and Piacenza; and Iphigenie en Aulide in Rome.
Stage Door
He debuted at the Teatro Filarmonico di Verona as Dr. Malatesta in Don Pasquale, the inaugural opera of the 2013-2014 Opera and Ballet Season.
At the Arena di Verona he sang in the Gala della lirica 2013 presented by Antonella Clerici.
He returns to the Arena in 2015 for the 93rd edition of the Festival to participate in the televised Gala Lo spettacolo sta per iniziare presented by Paolo Bonolis, to play Figaro in Barbiere di Siviglia and take part in Orff’s Carmina Burana.