Introducing 'Mikado' Young Artists

(Left to right): Ward, Harris, Reaper, Krawson, and Miller.

These five talented young artists are ready to roll for the Opera on Wheels program! They will help bring the fictional Japanese town of Titipu to Toledo, touring a production of "The Mikado" to area schools.

Pictured here are (from left to right): Nicholas Ward (baritone), Jordan Harris (tenor), Laura Reaper (mezzo-soprano), Abigail Krawson (soprano), and Spencer Miller (piano).

Soprano Abigail Krawson most recently appeared as a townsperson in "The Merry Wives of Windsor" with Boston Midsummer Opera. She was also a gypsy in Rachmoninoff's "Aleko" with Commonwealth Lyric Theater and Despina in "Così fan tutte" with NEMPAC Opera. In 2011 she was a young artist with Boston Early Music Festival and appeared in Harvard Early Music Society’s production of La Calisto. A native of Canton, Ohio, Krawson received her undergraduate degree at Bowling Green State University before
graduating from the New England Conservatory.

Mezzo-soprano Laura Reaper most recently sang the role of Ciesca in "Gianni Schicchi" with Opera Project Columbus. Credits include Dejanira in "Hercules," Marcellina in "Le nozze di Figaro" and 3rd Lady in "Die Zauberflöte." She also created the role of Tantie Marie for the world premiere of the opera "The Toll." She has been featured as a soloist in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and Copland’s In the Beginning. Reaper holds degrees from the Peabody Institute (BM) and Bowling Green State University (MM).

Tenor Jordan Harris is a recent graduate of the University of Michigan, where he studied with tenor Rico Serbo, was a recipient of the National Association of Teachers of Singing Merit Scholarship, and was Musical Director of the University of Michigan Educational Theater Company. In the fall of 2013 he performed an original composition for Stephen Sondheim at a gala dinner in his honor. Previous credits include Scaramuccio in "Ariadne Auf Naxos," Rinnucio in "Gianni Schicchi," Baker in "Into the Woods," and Mitch in "25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee."

Baritone Nicholas Ward most recently performed with the Cincinnati Opera’s outreach tour and the Central City Opera Studio Artist Program. Stage credits include the Backwoodsman in "Show Boat," Il Conte Almaviva in "Le nozze di Figaro," George Jones in "Street Scene," the Usher in "Trial By Jury," Don Alfonso in "Così fan tutte," and Major General Stanley in "The Pirates of Penzance." He also has participated in the training programs of Opera Saratoga and the Seagle Music Colony in upstate New York. He is an alumnus of the University of Michigan and the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music.

Pianist Spencer Miller grew up in the Twin Cities and attended Augsburg College in Minneapolis, graduating summa cum laude in 2013. He has performed solo recitals, frequently featuring his own compositions, as far afield as Vienna, Austria. Also a professional jazz pianist, Miller is a first-year graduate student at the University of Toledo, studying with Michael Boyd.