Soprano Melissa Heath enjoys a varied career of opera, concert and recital work. Hailed as a “soaring, sparkling soprano” with “vivacious stage presence,” recent opera roles include Countess in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro and Micaëla in Bizet’s Carmen. Recent concert work includes Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem and both Mozart’s Requiem and Mass in c minor with the Temple Square Chorale and Orchestra at Temple Square, Handel’s Messiah with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and both Mozart’s Exsultate, jubilate and Barber’s Knoxville, Summer of 1915 with Sinfonia Salt Lake. With Utah Symphony, Ms. Heath has performed both Nielsen’s Symphony no. 3 and Handel’s Messiah. In November 2017 she was the soprano soloist with Ballet West in choreographer Nicolo Fonte’s world premiere of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, a role she will reprise with the company in April, 2021. In 2018 Ms. Heath had the pleasure of singing songs of Messiaen and Schubert on NOVA Chamber Music Series’ season finale concert, and performed recitals in Seattle and New York. In 2019 she sang the role of The Water in Utah Opera's Production of The Little Prince, Mahler’s Symphony no. 2 with Salt Lake Symphony, and headlined a performance with Utah Symphony in their Deer Valley Concert Series. Ms. Heath was a district winner in the Metropolitan Opera’s National Council Auditions, and was a two-time regional finalist in the National Association of Teachers of Singing’s biennial art song competition. Ms. Heath is an Assistant Professor of music and the Vocal Area Coordinator in the Department of Music at Utah Valley University. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in voice from Brigham Young University, and her Master of Music and Doctorate of Musical Arts degrees in voice from the University of Utah.

Baritone Christopher Clayton is quickly establishing himself as a rising talent on the operatic stage. He has appeared with companies such as Utah Opera, Portland Opera, Opera Birmingham, Chautauqua Opera, Sarasota Opera, and Opera Idaho. Recent Engagements have included Alvaro in Florencia en el Amazonas, and Fredirich Bhaer in Adamo’s Little Women with Utah Opera Tonio in Pagliacci with Opera Birmingham and Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre Conte di Luna in Il Trovatore with St. Petersburg Opera Germont in La Traviata, Danilo in The Merry Widow and Falke in Die Fledermaus with the Imperial Symphony Marcello in La bohème with Opera Idaho and The Grandfather Clock and the Black Cat in Ravel’s L’Enfant et les sortilege with the Utah Symphony. Upcoming engagements include a role debuts as Frank in Die Fledermaus and as Rigoletto, completing his portrayals of Verdi’s pivotal three operas. An early love of classical music and a fascination with German Lieder led to Christopher’s desire to become a professional singer. That interest continues, and he enjoys being an active recitalist and concert singer. Recently he has appeared as a soloist in The Child and the Enchantments, Händel’s Messiah, Bernstein’s Mass, and Berlioz’s L’enfance du Christ with the Utah Symphony, as the Baritone Soloist in Carmina Burana, and Bloch’s Sacred Service with Utah Voices and the Soloist in Cimarosa’s Il maestro di cappella with the Walla Walla Symphony. Mr. Clayton was a Portland Opera Studio Artist and returned to Portland Opera in 2010 for Trouble in Tahiti. He was a young artist with Chautauqua Opera in both the apprentice and studio programs as well as a studio artist with Sarasota Opera. He received a Professional Studies Certificate and master’s degree from Manhattan School of Music. At Manhattan School he studied with Maitland Peters and worked closely with Warren Jones and Dona Vaughn. Prior to his studies in New York, he received bachelor’s degrees in vocal performance and mechanical engineering form the University of Utah. He has received prizes and grants from the Gerda Lissner Foundation, the Violetta Pollara DuPont Vocal Competition the Marian Anderson Vocal Competition, the Irene Dalis Vocal Competition, the Chautauqua Opera Guild and the Oratorio Society of New York.

Matt August is a theatre and film director whose productions have broken box-office records on Broadway (Grinch), in London and the UK, played Off-Broadway, major Regional theatres, festivals, National Tours, the Grand Ol’ Opry, and three holiday seasons at Madison Square Garden.   They’ve been featured on television, NPR and performed at the White House.  He has directed World Premieres, American Premieres and Regional Premieres that have been recognized with nominations and awards from LA’s Ovation, Washington DC’s Helen Hayes, Arizona’s Mac, San Francisco’s Bay Area Critics, Broadway World, Utah’s Audience Choice and Australia’s Helpmann Awards. His work has appeared on Year End Top-Ten lists for the LA Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Huffington Post, Arizona Republic, Oakland Tribune, Tucson Sun, San Jose Mercury News and NPR/KQED.  He has been awarded fellowships and residencies from the Old Globe Theatre, Drama League, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Acting Company, Robert Wilson’s Watermill Center, the Juilliard School, and San Francisco’s Zen Center.  In addition to theatre, he was awarded the Panavision New Filmmakers Grant and directed the award winning short family film How to Get to Candybar.  Locally, his productions have been seen at the Capitol Theatre, Pioneer Theatre and at UVU.  Regional Premiers include King Charles III and In the Heights;  World Premieres of Discord - The Gospel According to Jefferson, Dickens and Tolstoy; The Fourth messenger; Two Dollar Bill, Sixteen WoundedS, Time Flies, Meet John Doe, Liberty Smith and many more, and the UK premier of How the Grinch....  Shakespeare productions include Much Ado About Nothing, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Tempest, Romeo and Juliet, Merry Wives of Windsor.  He was the Associate Director to multi-Tony winning director Jack O’Brien on four Broadway productions, including being the Resident Director on Tom Stoppard’s The Invention of Love when both lead actors received Tony Awards, and on the Tony winning Henry IV (Best Director and Best Revival.)  He is a scholar on the work of Howard Barker and Robert Wilson, and currently teaches directing at UVU.  More info at MattAugust.com

Nicolas Giusti is an acclaimed Italian composer and opera conductor. He has had great success with many operatic productions, such as Die Zauberflote by Mozart, Colyseum Opera House of Oporto (Portugal), Gianni Schicchi (Orbetello Festival with protagonist Giuseppe Taddei); Tosca (with Silvano Carroli, transmitted on RAI radio3); and La Bohème by Puccini at the State Opera House of Izmir (Turkey), the first production of the century in that country. Recently, he has directed and performed in highly competitive opera tournaments.

Emily Beatse is excited to be working at the Noorda Center as the Stage Manager for their production of La Bohème. She is a recent graduate from the University of Utah with a BFA in Stage Management. Her professional credits include: The Comedy of Terrors (2nd ASM, Utah Shakespeare Festival), Pirates of Penzance (PA, Utah Shakespeare Festival), Mary Stuart, the Lifespan of a Fact, and The Lion in Winter (2nd ASM, Pioneer Theatre Company). Her previous educational credits include: Tartuffe (SM, Studio 115), Songs for a New World (Livestream Director, Babcock Theatre), Henry V (APM, Zoom), Amahl and the Night Visitors Opera (ASM, The Grand Theatre), A Christmas Carol Opera (ASM, The Grand Theatre), Men on Boats (1st ASM, Studio 115), and Our Country’s Good (ASM, Babcock Theatre).

Peter D. Leonard has designed over 300 productions for theaters and dance companies nationwide. Multiple tours lighting the Dance Theatre of Harlem include:
Lincoln Center, Joyce Theater, Jacob’s Pillow, Kennedy Center, Sadler's Wells (London). Perry Award nomination: Children of Eden MOC Musicals. Lighting designs for original musicals: Singin’ Wid A Sword in Ma Han (Audience Favorite award NYC Fringe 2009), The Deciders and Saddamn: The Musical for Smoke That Thunders, pre-Broadway workshop of In My Life for Joe Brooks, Nucleo Eclettico at LaMama, Etc; Dorian Gray: The Musical at NY Musical Theater Festival, Clark Gesner’s Animal
Fair NY premiere. 

Cee-Cee Swalling is thrilled to make her Noorda Center mainstage debut with La Bohème. Past design credits include: Ragtime, Peter Pan Jr, & Midsummer Night's Dream (Live Arts).  She Kills Monsters, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and  Urinetown (University of Virginia), Rent, Merrily We Roll Along, Parade, Urinetown, Snapshot, Secret Garden, Working (Sidwell Friends School). She was the Assistant Designer to Wade Laboissonierre at Ford's Theatre for Into The Woods and 1776. Her work can be found atcostumesbyceecee.com.

Janice Chan is a scenic designer based in Utah Valley and holds a B.F.A. in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Scenic Design from Utah Valley University. She was awarded the 2020 School of the Arts Outstanding Student Award in Theatrical Design. Some of her UVU and NCPA credits include James and the Giant Peach (2021), Urinetown: The Musical (2019 - featured at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2019), and The Laramie Project (2019). Janice has collaborated with local organizations, such as Sundance Summer Theatre and Plan-B Theatre Company. She currently serves as the Director of Scenic & Props at non-profit, An Other Theater Company. See her work at janicechan.design.