Verdi Requiem

Susannah Stewart, soprano, recently earned her MM degree from the Eastman School of Music (2021), after earning her bachelor’s degree at UNC Chapel Hill in Voice and Political Science (2019). In her years at Eastman, she performed the role of Aveline Mortimer in Elizabeth Cree (Kevin Puts) and The Lady with the Cake Box in Postcard from Morocco (Dominick Argento), both music directed by her primary coach, Professor Timothy Long. In 2020, Susannah was asked by Eastman’s Dean Marie Rolf to perform in her “Debussy Premieres” lecture recital, presented in Hatch Hall at Eastman, and at the J.P. Morgan Library in New York City, alongside Anthony Dean Griffey, tenor, and Randall Scarlata, baritone. This production featured a New York City premiere, a US premiere, and a world premiere.

Throughout high school and college, Susannah was an active competitor in the NATS competitions, often winning state-wide and regionally, and in 2018, she won first place for Junior/Senior College Women at the national competition. Other opera credits include Alcina (Alcina, UNC Opera), Dido (Dido and Aeneas, UNC Opera), and Zerlina (Don Giovanni, International Young Artists’ Project). Future performances will include Il primo amore by Marianna Martines and the role of Euridice from Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, both with the Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle.

Amanda Russo Stante is a lyric mezzo-soprano acclaimed for her “highly theatrical, vocally persuasive” performances that are “nothing short of stunning” (Herald Times, Bloomington, IN). Praised for her vocal warmth, expressive depth, and dramatic versatility, she has captivated audiences in both feminine and trouser operatic roles. Notable performances include the title roles in Handel’s Serse and Massenet’s Cendrillon, Hansel in Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, Octavian in Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, and Isabella in Rossini’s L’Italiana in Algeri.

Equally at home on the concert and recital stage, Amanda’s repertoire includes Elgar’s Sea Pictures, Mahler’s Rückert Lieder, Britten’s Canticle II, Corigliano’s Fern Hill, Ravel’s Shéhérazade, and Duruflé’s Requiem. She has appeared with The Glimmerglass Festival, Central City Opera, and Indiana University Opera Theater, and as a soloist with ensembles such as the Budapest Concert Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and the Akron Symphony Orchestra. Her performances have taken her to concert stages across the United States and Europe.

In addition to her performing career, Amanda is Assistant Professor of Music (Voice) at Susquehanna University, where she teaches applied voice and voice-related courses and directs opera scenes. She is president of the Allegheny Mountain Chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and a frequent presenter at conferences and auditions.

A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she holds degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Amanda lives in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Jon, and their two children.

Dramatic tenor, James Chamberlain, most recently completed performances as Siegfried in both Siegfried and Götterdämmerung in a complete cycle of Wagner’s Ring. James also got a chance to showcase his comedic skills by playing Il Divo in HOPera’s The Producer. Additional highlights from past years include Cavaradossi in Tosca for both Druid City Opera and Mobile Opera, and Siegmund in Die Walküre at the Wagner in Vermont festival for TUNDI Productions. He also returned to Mobile Opera for more for Puccini, with Ruggero in La Rondine.

James made his mark on the role of Canio in Pagliacci with Opera Ithaca, Opera in the Heights, and Kingwood Opera, where he also took on Turiddu in the double-bill with Cavalleria Rusticana. It was with Kingwood Opera that he made his debut as Don Jose in Carmen, another role he has returned to several times, including as a cover for Sarasota Opera, and more recently in HOPera’s production of CARMENcita. Other performance credits include Pollione in Norma and Bacchus (cover) in Ariadne auf Naxos for St Petersburg Opera, and Roberto in Le Villi for Bel Cantanti Opera.

On the concert stage, James performed recitals for the Wagner Society of Washington D.C., and for Cypress Creek Face’s Promenade Series. Orchestral concerts have included Opera on the Lake with Wichita Grand Opera, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with the Doctors Orchestra, and the role of Des Grieux in a concert performance of Manon Lescaut for the Soma International Foundation. He also sang Pilot in Bob Chilcott’s St John’s Passion.

After completing his training with Sarasota Opera as a Studio Artist, James spent two seasons as an Emerging Artist at St Petersburg Opera. James’s career has also been supported for several years with training at the Institute for Young Dramatic Voices, and in summer 2024 he participated as part of the American Wagner Project. In 2022, James became a grantee of the Olga Forrai Foundation.

Caleb Hopkins is a musician with diverse experiences in music education and performance.  He is currently an Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Bucknell University. There, he conducts the University Choir and teaches courses in conducting, voice and vocal pedagogy, theory, and more. He is also the Music Director at Rooke Chapel and the incoming Music Director of the Susquehanna Valley Chorale.

As a singer, Caleb has performed as a soloist in works such as Pärt’s Passio, Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem, Bach’s St. John Passion, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and more.  Caleb has also performed with numerous professional choirs including Kinnara Ensemble (Atlanta, GA), Voices (Rochester, NY), and the Herring Chamber Ensemble (Greenville, SC).

Caleb holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in music from Furman University and advanced degrees in conducting from the University of Georgia and the Eastman School of Music.  He is proud to claim today’s significantly more talented soprano soloist as his wife.