Stephanie Woodling is an American
mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...
opera singer and actress with
Deutsche Oper am Rhein in
North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
She debuted with the company in 2004 in the opera house's production of ''
Elektra''. She has since performed in ''
Das Rheingold'' in 2006, ''
The Magic Flute'' in 2006, ''
Tiefland'' in 2006, ''
La clemenza di Tito'' in 2007, ''
The Makropulos Affair
''Věc Makropulos'' is a Czech play written by Karel Čapek. Its title—literally ''The Makropulos Thing''—has been variously rendered in English as ''The Makropulos Affair'', ''The Makropulos Case'', or ''The Makropulos Secret'' (Čapek's o ...
'' in 2009, and ''
The Gondoliers''.
"Stephanie Woodling"
at Opera Base
Early life and education
Woodling was born and grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The city has a population of 125,845 as of the 2020 United ...
. She began her musical studies with the clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound.
Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...
at age 10 and continued with voice, tenor saxophone, and sousaphone
The sousaphone ( ) is a brass instrument in the tuba family. Created around 1893 by J. W. Pepper at the direction of American bandleader John Philip Sousa (after whom the instrument was then named), it was designed to be easier to play than ...
. She is a graduate of Allentown Central Catholic High School.
She holds both a bachelor's and a master's degree in music from the Manhattan School of Music
The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...
, where she studied with Hilda Harris and was a recipient of the President's Award.
Career
Woodling began her career at Santa Fe Opera in Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...
, where she was affiliated for two years. She debuted in Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...
's '' Die ägyptische Helena''. She made operatic debut was in George Frideric Handel
George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...
's ''Lotario
''Lotario'' ("Lothair", HWV 26) is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel. The Italian-language libretto was adapted from Antonio Salvi's ''Adelaide''.The opera was first given at the King's Theatre in London on 2 December 1729.
...
'' followed by Gioachino Rossini's '' Le comte Ory''. Her orchestral debut was in Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...
's ''Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen
''Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen'' (''Songs of a Wayfarer'') is a song cycle by Gustav Mahler on his own texts. The cycle of four ''lieder'' for medium voice (often performed by women as well as men) was written around 1884–85 in the wake of Ma ...
''.
Woodling has since debuted with the National Symphony Orchestra
The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. It also performs for the annual National Mem ...
at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...
in Washington, D.C., Pacific Symphony in Orange County, California, the Los Angeles Master Chorale in Los Angeles, and the Allentown Symphony Orchestra
The Allentown Symphony Orchestra is a major regional symphony orchestra based in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1951, the orchestra's current home is the historic, 1200-seat Miller Symphony Hall, located in downtown Allentown. The orches ...
in her native Allentown, where she appeared in Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...
's ''A Midsummer Night's Dream
''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...
'' and performed Solveig in Grieg's incidental music for ''Peer Gynt
''Peer Gynt'' (, ) is a five- act play in verse by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen published in 1876. Written in Norwegian, it is one of the most widely performed Norwegian plays. Ibsen believed ''Per Gynt'', the Norwegian fairy tale on wh ...
''. Woodling is featured on Sony's live recording of '' Final Fantasy: More Friends'', a concert for the video game series.
In 2008, she made her debut at the Baltimore Opera Company in Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...
in the role of Stephano in Charles Gounod's '' Romeo et Juliette''. With New York City Opera, Woodling has performed in ''A Little Night Music'', ''Rigoletto'', and ''La Traviata''. She appeared as Donna Elvira in ''Don Giovanni'', which a critic described as providing "an intellectual burst of animation into the proceedings, giving a charming, brash, and thorough reading."
Other Opera Pacific credits include Meg in ''Little Women'',Kansas City
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
as Stephano in ''Romeo and Juliet
''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...
'', the OK Mozart Festival
OK Mozart is an annual Classical music festival held each June in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, except 2020 when it was rescheduled for September. Considered Oklahoma's Premiere Music Festival, OK MOZART brings the highest quality professional musical an ...
as Ciesca in '' Gianni Schicchi'', and Mrs. Segstrom in Los Angeles Opera
The Los Angeles Opera is an American opera company in Los Angeles, California. It is the fourth-largest opera company in the United States. The company's home base is the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, part of the Los Angeles Music Center.
Leadersh ...
's production of ''A Little Night Music''.
References
External links
Biography
at Opera Base
Biography
at Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra
The Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra (german: Düsseldorfer Symphoniker) is Germany's second oldest municipal orchestra, based in Düsseldorf. Tonhalle, the hall of the orchestra, lies opposite the Rhine river.
Alongside the Duisburg Philharmonic, i ...
Biography
at Santa Fe Opera
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodling, Stephanie
Living people
21st-century American women
Allentown Central Catholic High School alumni
American mezzo-sopranos
Manhattan School of Music alumni
Musicians from Allentown, Pennsylvania
Year of birth missing (living people)