Mission Opera pairs two of Giacomo Puccini‘s most popular operas Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi for its next Mainstage production, with shows scheduled for Friday, Oct. 18, through Sunday, Oct. 20, at Los Angles Mission College (the 18th and 19th) and Santa Clarita United Methodist Church (the 20th). These two operas highlight Puccini’s mastery of emotional storytelling, each sharing two contrasting tales about moral hypocrisy and greed.

Dylan Thomas, of Valley Opera and Performing Arts (formerly Center Stage Opera) directs these two brilliant one-act shows, with Timothy León conducting. “Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi work well together because they are so different,” says Mission Opera’s Artistic Director, Dr. Joshua R. Wentz. “The former is truly governed by religious expectations and family reputation, while the latter completely upsets these social norms of the time. In Suor Angelica, God is the moral compass, but Gianni Schicchi is about humanly desire and material possession.”

Suor Angelica will last 1 hour and will be followed by a 15-minute intermission. Gianni Schicchi will last one hour.

Performance times and locations:
• 7:30 p.m. Friday, October 18 – Los Angeles Mission College
• 2:00 p.m. Saturday, October 19 – Los Angeles Mission College
• 7:30 p.m. Saturday, October 19 – Los Angeles Mission College
• 2:00 p.m. Sunday, October 20 – Santa Clarita United Methodist Church

Creative team:
• Dr. Joshua R. Wentz, artistic director
• Dylan Thomas, stage director
• Timothy León, conductor
• Alexa Constantine, musical preparation
• Shawn Taylor, scenic designer
• Issac Gonzalez, lighting designer
• Cynthia Starry, hair and make-up designer
• Akash Bajpai, props master
• Johnny Phung, multimedia technician
• Jenna Jacobsen, stage manager
• Citlali Estrada, assistant stage manager
• Brandon Coprich, costume designer

Cast list: Suor Angelica
• Shira Renee Thomas as Sister Angelica
• Erin Murphy as The Princess
• Danielle Adair as The Abbess
• Constanze Bonelli as The Monitress (Princess cover)
• Bonnie Snell Schindler as The Mistress of the Novices (Abbess cover)
• Natalie Buickians as Sister Genovieffa (Angelica cover)
• Holly McCormack as Sister Osmina
• Ji Yun Choe as Sister Dolcina
• Jessie Neuffer as The Nursing Sister (Monitress cover)
• Jiyoung Lee as Alms Sister 1 (Genovieffa cover)
• Jinghong Gu as Alms Sister 2
• Laura Barrows as Novice
• Kat Anderson as Lay Sister 1
• Arielle Hubbard as Lay Sister 2
• Britta Sterling as Mean Girl 1
• Jenna Jacobsen as Mean Girl 2

Gianni Schicchi:
• Joshua R. Wentz as Gianni Schicchi
• Madeline Stern as Lauretta
• Matthew Ellison as Rinuccio
• Tiffany Argumedo as Zita
• Shawn Taylor as Gherardo (Rinuccio cover)
• Jessie Massoudi as Nella
• Rana Ebrahimi as Gherardino
• Daniel Chamberlain as Betto di Signa (Schicchi cover)
• David Fetterman as Simone
• William Powell III as Marco
• Jessica Berns-Garner as La Ciesca (Lauretta cover)
• Edward Salm as Maestro Spinelloccio & Ser Amantio
• Akash Bajpai as Guccio

Purchasing tickets:
Tickets are $30 for general admission, $25 for seniors and $20 for students with a current, valid ID. Tickets can be purchased in person at the Box Office one hour prior to each performance, or online
at www.puccini.brownpapertickets.com (LAMC) or www.pucciniscumc.brownpapertickets.com (SCUMC)

Parking and directions:
Parking is free and available on Eldridge Avenue in Sylmar (LAMC show) and in the Faculty/Staff Parking Garage at LAMC (located at the corner of Eldridge Avenue and Pasha Street). Parking is free and abundant at Santa Clarita UMC for the Sunday show in Santa Clarita.

Donations:
Benefits available for individual or corporate sponsors. Donations are 100% tax-deductible and can be made online at www.missionopera.com.