Opera
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • 2023 Season
        • Sweeney Todd
        • La Tragédie de Carmen
        • 2023 Young Artists
        • 2023 Festival & Guest Artists
        • 2023 Directors & Designers
        • 2023 Opera Conservatory
  • About
        • Mission & History
        • Past Productions
        • Leadership
        • Performance Venues & Accessibility
  • Young Artists
        • Young Artist Program
        • Audition FAQs
  • Alumni
  • Opera Conservatory
  • Opera Guild
  • Media
        • Press Releases
        • Chautauquan Daily Articles
        • Opera Virtual Porch Events
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets
Theater
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • About
        • Leadership
        • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Accessibility
        • New Play Development
        • Young Playwrights Project
        • Past Productions
        • Our History
  • Conservatory
        • Acting Conservatory
        • Design & Directing Fellowships
        • Alumni in the News
  • Your Visit
  • Get Involved
        • Conservatory Application
        • Administrative & Production Positions
        • Friends of CTC
  • Press
        • Press Releases
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets
Give
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Make a Donation
  • Ways to Give
        • Appreciated Securities
        • Capital Support
        • Chautauqua Fund
        • Endowment/Naming
        • Gift Planning
        • Honor Your Host
        • Honorary/Memorial
        • Matching Gifts
        • Monthly Giving
        • Program Sponsor
        • Scholarships
  • Membership Opportunities
        • 1874 Society
        • Bell Tower Society
        • Bestor Society
        • Daugherty Society
        • Lewis Miller Circle
        • NOW Generation
        • Foundation Membership
  • Foundation
        • History & Mission
        • Board of Directors
        • Foundation Staff
        • Foundation Membership
        • Foundation Publications
        • Contact
  • Advancement
        • Institution Board of Trustees
        • Advancement Staff
        • Advancement Publications
        • Contact
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets
Foundation
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Mission
  • Board of Directors
  • Staff
  • Publications
  • Membership
  • Endowment/Naming
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets

Summer

  • Fall / Winter / Spring
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Discover
        • About The Summer Season
        • Plan Your Experience
          • Experience Planner
          • 2023 Season
          • Ticket Information
          • Vacation Safely at Chautauqua
          • Visit Must-Dos
        • About Chautauqua
          • 150 Forward Strategic Plan
          • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) at Chautauqua
        • Places To Stay
          • Athenaeum Hotel
          • Private Accommodations
          • Denominations and Religious Organizations
          • Nearby Accommodations
        • Explore the Grounds and Gardens
          • Maps and Directions
          • Bus and Tram Tracker
          • Accessibility at Chautauqua
          • Plaza Cam
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
        • Eat, Drink & Shop
          • Dining
          • Heirloom Restaurant
          • Shopping & Services
          • Food Festival at Chautauqua
        • Experience Community
          • African American Heritage House
          • Chautauqua Women’s Club
          • Bird, Tree & Garden Club
          • LGBTQ and Friends
          • “Friends of” Groups
          • CPOA (Property Owners)
          • Denominations and Religious Organizations
          • Chautauqua Cinema
          • Chautauqua Trail
          • CHQ Dialogues
        • Resources
          • The Smith Memorial Library
          • Post Office
          • Chautauqua Bookstore
          • Services & Amenities
          • Business Center
          • Property Owner Resources
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
          • Program Archive
          • Chautauqua Institution Archives
          • FAQs
          • The Chautauquan Daily
          • CHQ&A Podcast
          • Chautauqua Magazine
          • Grounds Policies
  • Schedule
        • Discover Chautauqua
        • Events
          • All Events
          • Weekly Themes
          • Event Calendar
          • Experience Planner
        • Lectures
          • Chautauqua Lecture Series
          • Interfaith Lecture Series
          • Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle
          • Other Lectures
        • Performing & Visual Arts
          • Entertainment and Concerts
          • Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra and Classical Concerts
          • Galleries
          • Chautauqua Chamber Music
          • Dance
        • Resident Programs
          • Chautauqua Literary Arts
          • Chautauqua Opera Company & Conservatory
          • Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
          • Chautauqua Theater Company
          • Chautauqua Visual Arts
          • Chautauqua Climate Change Initiative
        • Classes
        • Religion
          • Daily Worship
          • Sacred Music
          • Abrahamic Program for Young Adults
          • Mystic Heart Interspiritual Meditation Program
          • Denominations and Religious Organizations
          • CHQ Dialogues
        • Recreation
          • Chautauqua Health & Fitness Center
          • Sports Club
          • Golf Club
          • Swimming
          • Tennis Center
          • Sailing
          • Youth Recreation
          • CHQ Trail
        • Youth & Family
          • Day Camps
          • Educational Experiences
          • Youth Activities Center (YAC)
          • Youth Recreation
          • Babysitting
          • Family Scholarship Program
  • Groups
        • Book a Group Experience
        • Road Scholar
        • Chautauqua on a Budget
        • Tour Chautauqua County
        • Chautauqua Travels
  • Festival Schools
        • School of Music
          • Conducting Fellowship
          • Instrumental Program
          • Opera Conservatory
          • Piano Program
        • Dance
        • Art
        • Theater
        • Chautauqua Music Camps
        • Alumni
  • Giving
        • Make a Donation
        • Membership Opportunities
        • Ways to Give
        • Chautauqua Foundation
        • Advancement
  • Buy Tickets
  • Give
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets

Fall / Winter / Spring

  • Summer
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Discover
        • About Year-Round at Chautauqua
        • Plan Your Experience
          • Experience Planner
          • Vacation Safely at Chautauqua
          • Grounds Access and Operations
          • Visit Must-Dos
        • About
          • 150 Forward Strategic Plan
          • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) at Chautauqua
        • Arts Education
        • Classes
        • Resident Programs
          • Literary Arts
          • Chautauqua Opera Company & Conservatory
          • Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
          • Chautauqua Theater Company
          • Chautauqua Visual Arts
          • Chautauqua Climate Change Initiative
        • Explore the Grounds and Gardens
          • Maps and Directions
          • Accessibility at Chautauqua
          • Plaza Cam
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
        • Eat, Drink & Shop
          • Dining
          • Shopping & Services
        • Resources
          • The Smith Memorial Library
          • Post Office
          • Chautauqua Bookstore
          • Services & Amenities
          • Business Center
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
          • Property Owner Resources
          • Program Archive
          • Chautauqua Institution Archives
          • FAQs
          • The Chautauquan Daily
          • CHQ&A Podcast
          • Chautauqua Magazine
          • Grounds Policies
  • Accommodations
        • Weddings & Conferences
        • Athenaeum Hotel
        • Other Places To Stay
        • Private Rentals
        • Check Athenaeum Hotel Room Availability

  • Recreation
        • Chautauqua Health & Fitness Center
        • CHQ Trail
        • Golf Club
          • Golf Course
            • Membership Rates
            • Pro Shop
            • Scorecards
          • Events & Banquets
        • Golf Instruction
          • Adult Golf Clinics
          • Jr. Golf Clinics & Camps
          • Learning Center
          • Private Lessons
        • Golf Tournaments
          • Upcoming Events & Tournaments
          • Group Outings
          • NJCAA Golf Championship
  • Groups
        • Road Scholar
        • Book a Group Experience
        • Tour Chautauqua County
        • Chautauqua Travels
  • Festival Schools
        • School of Music
          • Conducting Fellowship
          • Instrumental Program
          • Piano Program
          • Opera Conservatory
        • Dance
        • Art
        • Theater
        • Chautauqua Music Camps
        • Alumni
  • Giving
        • Make a Donation
        • Membership Opportunities
        • Ways to Give
        • Foundation
        • Advancement
  • Buy Tickets
  • Give
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets

looking for something?

  • Chautauqua Opera Company
  • 2023 Season
    • Sweeney Todd
    • La Tragédie de Carmen
    • 2023 Young Artists
    • 2023 Festival & Guest Artists
    • 2023 Directors & Designers
    • 2023 Opera Conservatory
  • About
    • Mission & History
    • Leadership
    • Opera Performance Venues & Accessibility
    • Past Productions
  • Young Artist Program
    • Young Artist Program
    • Alumni
    • Auditions FAQ
  • Opera Conservatory
  • Opera Guild
  • Media
    • Press Releases
    • Chautauquan Daily Articles
    • Opera Virtual Porch Events
    • Opera Chats Podcast
  • Contact
  • Merchandise

2023 Directors & Designers

John Giampietro

Associate Director, Opera Conservatory  
Stage Director, Gianni Schicchi / Suor Angelica and Lady in the Dark 

For the Opera Conservatory, John Giampietro has directed numerous operas including The Cunning Little Vixen, Hänsel und Gretel, Le nozze di Figaro, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. John is a Vocal Arts Acting Faculty member and Stage Director at The Juilliard School where he teaches across all degree programs. He is also a faculty member of The Curtis Institute of Music where he teaches acting in the Vocal Studies and Opera Theater Department.  

John’s opera and theatre productions have been seen at Actors Theatre of Louisville, Urban Stages, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Vermont Shakespeare Festival, Curtis Institute of Music, The Flea Theater, Yale School of Music, and Shenandoah Conservatory among others.  

John is an artist-member of Ensemble Studio Theatre in NYC where he is a frequent director with the Obie award winning playwriting group, Youngblood. At EST, John directed the NY Times acclaimed production of Year of the Rooster.  

John’s writing includes new English dialogue versions of Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor by Otto Nicolai, Mozart’s The Impresario and Die Zauberflöte. He has written three plays; The Immolation of Kathy Chang(e), M. of Versailles, and Strength of God and other grotesques, based on Sherwood Anderson’s novel “Winesburg, Ohio”. 

John Giampietro
Chía Patiño's headshot

Chía Patiño

Stage Director, La Tragédie de Carmen

Chía Patiño recently directed Don Giovanni for the Aspen Music Festival, Florencia en el Amazonas for Opera Tenerife, Orpheus & Eurydice for Seattle Opera, Suite Española: Exploring Iberia and Exploring the Caribbean for Houston Grand Opera, La Cenerentola and Tosca for Northern Lights Music Festival, Don Giovanni for Butler Opera Center, and her adaptation of the Magic Flute using the Andean cosmovision: La Flauta Mágica de Los Andes. Other works include Faust, La Traviata, Hansel and Gretel, Rusalka, Dido and Aeneas, Carmen, Così fan tutte, Transformations, Luisa Fernanda, Sweeney Todd, West Side Story, Spring Awakening, and Los Miserables.  

She conducted the Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitán in the opera mariachi Cruzar la Cara de la Luna, commissioned by HGO in 2009 at the Chatelêt Theater in Paris, Arizona, Phoenix, San Diego, Fort Worth, Chicago, and El Paso and the choral world premiere at the Teatro Nacional Sucre in Ecuador.  

Brian Ruggaber

Set Designer, Sweeney Todd

Brian Ruggaber is an award-winning scenic designer who is delighted to be returning to Chautauqua. Currently in his ninth year with the University of Memphis, he heads The Department of Theatre & Dance’s scenic design program and has designed scenery for over 180 productions including opera, drama, musical theatre, and dance. He has a strong interest in developing work with diversity, equity, and inclusion as core themes. His work has been seen in regional theatres, international festivals, and Off Broadway. Prior to joining UM’s faculty, he was a Resident Designer for The University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music and an Associate Professor of Design at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. His students have successful careers in theatre, film, television, and themed entertainment. Brian is a proud member of United Scenic Artists Local 829, IATSE 492, and an active member of the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT).   

Brian Ruggaber's headshot
Marcus Shields

Marcus Shields

Stage Director, L’enfant et les sortilèges

Marcus Shields is a visual artist, filmmaker, and stage director based in New York City. As a stage director, his professional affiliations include The Metropolitan Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Merola Opera, The Curtis Institute, The Juilliard School, The Atlanta Opera, the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Opera, Opera Theatre St. Louis, the Santa Fe Opera, and Opera National de Lyon.  

 He is the co-founder of OSSIA, a company exploring cultural communication of classical music, and the Up Until Now Collective, an experimental performance collective. With UUN, Shields has created multiple films and music videos including Up Until Now, Georgia, and Bad Choices. Georgia was featured as the July 2021 installation in Times Square as part of the Times Square Midnight Moment. Up Until Now, a live performance film, has been featured in NewFest and, in September of 2022, was presented as a performance installation at the Center for Performance Research in Brooklyn. Shields is a winner of the Opera America Tobin Director / Designer competition, a graduate of the Merola Opera program, and a 2017 Drama League Director Fellow. Shields is currently a full-time member of the Stage Directing Staff at the Metropolitan Opera and creates work throughout the United States.   

Upcoming projects include: La Voix Humaine (Curtis Opera Theatre), Our Goode Friend Byrde (Guildhall), and Drawing from the Endowment (A/Jane Performance Space). 

Dennis Whitehead Darling

Stage Director, Sweeney Todd

Dennis Whitehead Darling is an award-winning Stage Director working in opera, theatre, musical theatre and film. His recent directing credits include: World Premieres of Marian’s Song (Houston Grand Opera), Sanctuary Road (North Carolina Opera), “Why I Live at the PO” (UrbanArias), Buried Deep (End Station Theatre) and The Secret River (Opera Orlando). Other works include Jelly’s Last Jam – A Concert Reading (Long Wharf Theatre), The Falling and the Rising (Arizona Opera), La bohème (Opera Columbus), Lost in the Stars (Annapolis Opera), The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess (Red Mountain Theatre), Independence Eve (Opera Birmingham), Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill (Hattiloo Theatre/Spazio Teatro No’hma – Milan), Jelly’s Last Jam (Hattiloo Theatre), The Parchman Hour (Hattiloo Theatre), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Spazio Teatro No’hma – Milan), Intimate Apparel (University of Memphis), Movin’ Up in the World (Opera Memphis), Sunset Baby (Hattiloo Theatre), James and the Giant Peach (Circuit Playhouse), and Blue Viola (Opera Memphis).  

Dennis Whitehead Darling's headshot

Save Your Trip

Fill out the form below to save your trip. You will receive a link to your saved list via email.

  • Hidden
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Save Your Favorites

Fill out the form below to save your favorites. You will receive a link to your favorites list via email.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
Hidden

Notice!

You have now entered the season. Some website content may differ depending on the current season we are in: Summer or Fall/Winter/Spring. You can toggle between the two season options at any time.

Okay

Subscribe to Chautauqua Institution’s email newsletter

  • About
  • Resources
  • Sustainability
  • Contact
  • Whistleblower Policy
  • Careers
  • Ethics Point
  • Privacy Policy
  • ADA Compliance
Chautauqua Institution
P.O. Box 28
One Ames Ave.
Chautauqua, N.Y. 14722

1.800.836.ARTS
  • Privacy Policy
  • ADA Compliance

© 2022 Chautauqua Institution. Chautauqua Institution is a non-profit organization, dependent upon your gifts to fulfill its mission. Gate tickets and other revenue cover only a portion of the cost of your Chautauqua experience.