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Our Mission
Opera San José is dedicated to maintaining a company of Resident Artists with whom we present compelling, professional opera performances, while creating and providing cultural and educational programs that both enrich the opera-going experience and encourage future generations of artists and audiences.
To achieve this mission, Opera San José will maintain a professional, fiscally responsible opera company of artistic excellence for San José; discover, retain, and develop outstanding, emerging professional singers; provide these singers with repeated performance opportunities; and develop, entertain, and educate audiences from the extended community.
Leadership
Khori Dastoor, General Director
In the spring of 2019, the Opera San José Board of Directors announced the appointment of Khori Dastoor as the company’s third general director, to succeed retiring general director Larry Hancock. She assumed the position in the fall of 2019, overseeing all aspects of artistic planning and business operations, and in January 2020 announced her first season, to be staged beginning in the Spring of 2021. Among her missions are renewing Opera San José’s commitment to developing and curating emerging talent and elevating the company as a vibrant artistic incubator in the heart of Silicon Valley.
Ms. Dastoor has been affiliated with Opera San José since joining its resident ensemble of principal artists in 2007. After enjoying a vibrant opera career as a lyric soprano on stages throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, California native Ms. Dastoor returned home in 2012 to pursue a life in artistic administration. She joined the artistic staff of Opera San José in 2013 as Artistic Advisor to the General Director under founder Irene Dalis, and then as the Director of Artistic Planning under Larry Hancock. During Ms. Dastoor’s tenure with the company, she has prioritized role debuts, granting San José audiences the opportunity to hear exciting new artists, and has produced some of the biggest successes in the company’s history, including the American premiere of Alma Deutcher’s Cinderella, and the critically-acclaimed new production of Jake Heggie’s Moby-Dick.
Ms. Dastoor previously served as Associate Director of the Packard Humanities Institute, responsible for initiatives encompassing arts, music, and archaeology, and as Director of the San Francisco District of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
Ms. Dastoor received her Bachelor of Music from New England Conservatory and completed doctoral studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she was the recipient of the Dean’s Award for the School of Arts and Architecture. Ms. Dastoor lives in the Bay Area with her husband and two young daughters.
Khori Dastoor, General Director
Khori Dastoor,
General Director
In the spring of 2019, the Opera San José Board of Directors announced the appointment of Khori Dastoor as the company’s third general director, to succeed retiring general director Larry Hancock. She assumed the position in the fall of 2019, overseeing all aspects of artistic planning and business operations, and in January 2020 announced her first season, to be staged beginning in the Spring of 2021. Among her missions are renewing Opera San José’s commitment to developing and curating emerging talent and elevating the company as a vibrant artistic incubator in the heart of Silicon Valley.
Ms. Dastoor has been affiliated with Opera San José since joining its resident ensemble of principal artists in 2007. After enjoying a vibrant opera career as a lyric soprano on stages throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, California native Ms. Dastoor returned home in 2012 to pursue a life in artistic administration. She joined the artistic staff of Opera San José in 2013 as Artistic Advisor to the General Director under founder Irene Dalis, and then as the Director of Artistic Planning under Larry Hancock. During Ms. Dastoor’s tenure with the company, she has prioritized role debuts, granting San José audiences the opportunity to hear exciting new artists, and has produced some of the biggest successes in the company’s history, including the American premiere of Alma Deutcher’s Cinderella, and the critically-acclaimed new production of Jake Heggie’s Moby-Dick.
Ms. Dastoor previously served as Associate Director of the Packard Humanities Institute, responsible for initiatives encompassing arts, music, and archaeology, and as Director of the San Francisco District of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
Ms. Dastoor received her Bachelor of Music from New England Conservatory and completed doctoral studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she was the recipient of the Dean’s Award for the School of Arts and Architecture. Ms. Dastoor lives in the Bay Area with her husband and two young daughters.
Joseph Marcheso, Music Director
Joseph Marcheso is the Music Director and Principal Conductor of Opera San José. For the 2019-20 season, he served as principal conductor for Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel and Verdi’s Il trovatore. Last season, he conducted the company premiere of Heggie and Scheer’s Moby-Dick and Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. Mr. Marcheso has conducted 22 productions for OSJ, including recently The Flying Dutchman, the West Coast premiere of Puts and Campbell’s Silent Night, the world premiere of Mark Weiser’s Where Angels Fear to Tread, Tosca, La bohème, The Magic Flute, Carmen, Rigoletto and La traviata.
As staff conductor and cover at the San Francisco Opera, Mr. Marcheso has served on many productions including Les Troyens, Jenufa, Show Boat, Die Meistersinger, Partenope, the San Francisco premiere of John Adams’ Nixon in China, and the world premieres of Mark Adamo’s The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Tobias Picker’s Dolores Claiborne, Bright Sheng’s The Dream of the Red Chamber and John Adams’ The Girls of the Golden West. Last season he covered works as diverse as Wagner’s Die Walküre and Götterdammerung for the Ring, Roberto Devereux and Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s It’s a Wonderful Life. Upcoming productions include Handel’s Orlando and Britten’s Billy Budd.
He was on the conducting staff for Washington National Opera’s Manon Lescaut. He has conducted Hailstork’s Joshua’s Boots for the young artists of Opera Theatre St. Louis and Turandot and Il trovatore for Festival Opera. Previously Mr. Marcheso was the Music Director for the Amato Opera in New York City.
Board of Trustees
Member
Phyllis Bismanovsky
Member
Mimi Carlson
Member
George Crow
General Director
Khori Dastoor
Earned Income Committee Chair
Jane Decker
Member
Julie Edgcomb
Treasurer, Finance Committee Chair
Charles F. Hanes
Member
Peggy Heiman
Member
John Heineke
Secretary
Jennifer A.R. Hsu
Member
N. Eric Jorgensen
Contributed Income Committee Chair
Michael H. Kalkstein
Member
Larry Kern
Member
Cathy R. Lazarus
Member
Jeanne McCann
Member
Pravesh Mehra
President
Gillian Moran
Member
Dr. H. Andrea Neves
Member
Vijay Vaidyanathan
Audit Chair
Dr. Brian Ward
Interested in serving on Opera San José’s board? Email development@operasj.org to learn more.
Joseph Marcheso, Music Director
Joseph Marcheso,
Music Director
Joseph Marcheso is the Music Director and Principal Conductor of Opera San José. For the 2019-20 season, he served as principal conductor for Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel and Verdi’s Il trovatore. Last season, he conducted the company premiere of Heggie and Scheer’s Moby-Dick and Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. Mr. Marcheso has conducted 22 productions for OSJ, including recently The Flying Dutchman, the West Coast premiere of Puts and Campbell’s Silent Night, the world premiere of Mark Weiser’s Where Angels Fear to Tread, Tosca, La bohème, The Magic Flute, Carmen, Rigoletto and La traviata.
As staff conductor and cover at the San Francisco Opera, Mr. Marcheso has served on many productions including Les Troyens, Jenufa, Show Boat, Die Meistersinger, Partenope, the San Francisco premiere of John Adams’ Nixon in China, and the world premieres of Mark Adamo’s The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Tobias Picker’s Dolores Claiborne, Bright Sheng’s The Dream of the Red Chamber and John Adams’ The Girls of the Golden West. Last season he covered works as diverse as Wagner’s Die Walküre and Götterdammerung for the Ring, Roberto Devereux and Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s It’s a Wonderful Life. Upcoming productions include Handel’s Orlando and Britten’s Billy Budd.
He was on the conducting staff for Washington National Opera’s Manon Lescaut. He has conducted Hailstork’s Joshua’s Boots for the young artists of Opera Theatre St. Louis and Turandot and Il trovatore for Festival Opera. Previously Mr. Marcheso was the Music Director for the Amato Opera in New York City.
OSJ Team
Staff
Head of Music Staff
Veronika Agranov-Dafoe
Technical Director
John Draginoff
Director of Patron Experience
Ian Fullmer
Orchestra Manager
Evan Kahn
Scene Shop Supervisor
Chris Kesel
Patron Services Specialist
Robin Lacey
Costume Director
Alyssa Oania
Individual Giving Manager
Noritaka Okada
IT Administrator
Bill Orrach
Managing Director of Institutional Advancement
Claire Padien-Havens
Resident Conductor
Christopher James Ray
Properties Master
Lori Scheper-Kesel
Director of Artistic & Music Administration
Monica Thakkar
Lead Electrician
Matthew Vandercook
Managing Director, Finance & Administration
James Williams
Orchestra Members
First Violin
Concertmaster
Cynthia Baehr-Williams
Assistant Concertmaster
Rochelle Nguyen
Matthew Szemela
Valerie Tisdel
Chính Lê
Virginia Smedberg
Second Violin
Principal
Bloom Claudia
Assistant Principal
Ellen Flanagan
Susan Stein
Shin Sue-mi
Elizabeth Corner
Sergi Goldman-Hull
Viola
Principal
Chad Kaltinger
Assistant Principal
Janet Doughty
Melinda Rayne
Ivo Bokulic
Cello
Principal
Evan Kahn
Assistant Principal
Isaac Pastor-Chermak
Paul Hale
Bass
Principal
Andy Butler
Assistant Principal
William Everett
Flute
James Blanchard
Mary Hargrove
Piccolo
Mary Hargrove
Oboe
Principal
Patricia Emerson Mitchell
Pamela Hakl Economos
Clarinet
Principal
Mark Brandenburg
James Pytko
Bassoon
Principal
Debbie Kramer
Carolyn Lockhart
French Horn
Principal
Meredith Brown
Eric Achen
Caitlyn Smith Franklin
Trumpet
Principal
Bill Harvey
John Freeman
Trombone
Principal
Katie Curran
Bruce Chrisp
Bass Trombone
CL Behrens
Harp
Karen Thielen
Timpani/Percussion
VACANT
Friends of OSJ
Secretary
Barbara Brosh
Treasurer
Sheryl Kelly
Recruitment and Development
Jeanne Lyons
Newsletter Editor
Meera Prahlad
Events
Linda Riebel
Membership
Suzanne Sarro
Volunteers
Joyce Scott
Cultural Outings
Jim Stauffer
Vice President
Janice Toyoshima
Communications
Nancy Valencia
Opera at your Doorstep
Brad Wade
President
Bonnie Williams
Interested in volunteering with the Friends of Opera San José? Email friends@operasj.org.
Emeritus Council
Member
Richard Dorsay
Member
Frank Fiscalini
Secretary
Rita Horiguchi
Member
Don Schmidek
Member
Jerry Seelig
Member
Jan Telesky
Member
Melody Walsh
President
Laurie Warner