Coffee Cantata - The Immersive Experience |
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Director: Andrea Hart Music Director: Daniel Goldsmith "Open Mic" Opera Cabaret Director and MC: Sarah Michael
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Dear Friends,
Welcome to Santa Cruz Opera Project’s immersive production of The Coffee Cantata—a delightful, comedic gem by J.S. Bach, reimagined for today and steeped in local flavor.
Bach’s Coffee Cantata was likely first performed in a Leipzig coffeehouse, making Mariposa Coffee Bar the perfect setting to bring it to life today. This light-hearted tale of a young woman’s love for coffee and her father’s attempts to intervene is surprisingly relatable—and staging it among the aroma of fresh brews and community chatter feels just right. It’s the kind of intimate, immersive experience we dreamed of when we started Santa Cruz Opera Project.
Our version is based on an English adaptation by conductor and composer Geoffrey McDonald, first performed by On Site Opera in a cozy coffee shop in SoHo, New York. That production included coffee tastings tailored to their venue, which inspired us to do the same—this time, with a Santa Cruz twist. We’ve added newly composed recitatives written in the style of Bach by Daniel Goldsmith, with lyrics created collaboratively by Daniel, Andrea Hart, and myself. These moments introduce two curated coffee tastings from Mariposa Coffee Bar, deepening the connection between story, setting, and flavor.
To round out the evening, we’re pairing the cantata with a curated “open mic night”—a nod to the kind of creative gathering you might find in a coffee shop today
Thank you to the cast, musicians, and creative team who poured their talent and energy into this production—and to Chelsea and Tram at Mariposa Coffee for embracing the idea and making this collaboration possible. Whether it’s your first opera or your fiftieth, we hope tonight brings a smile, a surprise, and a fresh take on Bach.
Enjoy the show, and thank you for supporting local, independent opera.
With gratitude,
Lori Schulman and Jordan Best
Co-Artistic Directors
Song List
Act 1
J.S. Bach's Coffee Cantata
Intermission
Act 2
"Open Mic" Style Opera Cabaret
Total Running time 1.5 hours
Who's Who
Cast
Meet the Company
Andrea Hart
Andrea L. Hart is a multi-hyphenate theatre-maker whose work includes devising large, site-specific performances, writing opera librettos and off-beat plays, directing classic musicals and new plays, and designing and building masks and shadow puppets. Recent credits include directing SPONGEBOB THE MUSICAL and MARIE ANTOINETTE for Cabrillo College, directing Santa Cruz Opera Project’s immersive DIE FLEDERMAUS, and several musicals at York School in Monterey. She holds an MFA in Directing from UT Austin and currently serves as the Artistic Director of Cabrillo Stage where she will direct SWEENEY TODD this summer. More at: www.andrealhart.org
Daniel Goldsmith
Daniel Goldsmith is a Santa Cruz-based educator, conductor, and music director. As a versatile musician with decades of experience, Daniel is equally comfortable performing in symphony halls and jazz clubs, whether behind a keyboard and with a baton in his hands. Formerly based in California, Daniel has enjoyed a vibrant career as a freelance pianist and has served as music director for Cabrillo Stage and the Santa Cruz Actors’ Theatre in numerous productions including Company, Into the Woods, The Producers, and the upcoming 2025 summer show Sweeney Todd. Daniel is extremely pleased to once again collaborate with The Santa Cruz Opera Project, with whom he previously music directed their presentations of Le Nozze di Figaro and Die Fledermaus.
Daniel holds a BM in Piano Performance from the University of the Pacific, and an MM in Collaborative Piano from Boston Conservatory.
Sarah Michael
Sarah K. Michael is excited to perform again with Santa Cruz Opera Project, having had a blast in last season’s immersive Die Fledermaus. She is also currently performing in a 4-actor adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s “Shakes on the Move” touring company. Recent local credits include Under Ben Bulben, Over the River and Through the Woods (both with Jewel Theatre Company); Tomfoolery (Cabrillo Stage); The Humans, Evil Dead The Musical (both with MCT); The Thin Place, Company (both with SC Actors’ Theatre). www.SarahKMichael.com
Sheila Willey
Sheila Willey appears frequently with New Music Works, Santa Cruz Chamber Players, and the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival. A versatile soprano, she has sung leading roles in both opera and musical theater throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. She has appeared as a soloist with Espressivo Orchestra (Mahler IV) and the Sequoia Symphony (Messiah); and has recorded with New World Records (Polanski/Seeger “Sacco, Vanzetti,” 2020). Willey is a Lecturer in Voice and Opera at UC Santa Cruz. As Artistic Director of the UCSC Opera Program, she has directed various productions ranging from Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte to recent works by UCSC faculty. Originally from Iowa, Sheila holds degrees from the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Edward Tavalin
Edward Tavalin is a baritone from the Santa Cruz Mountains, currently based in Portland, Oregon. He was most recently seen with the Santa Cruz Opera Project in "Opera Uncorked" in February and November, and last summer as Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus. Recent roles include Various Men in the premier of Shizue: an American Story with Portland Opera, the Father in Hansel and Gretel & Angelotti/a Jailor in Tosca with Opera Modesto, and Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor with Independent Opera.
Lori Schulman
Lori Schulman, a lyric-coloratura soprano, performs opera, musical theater, and concert works throughout the Bay Area and Monterey Peninsula. Favorite roles include Adele (Die Fledermaus), Cunegonde (Candide), Andrea (Jerry Springer: The Opera), Mabel (The Pirates of Penzance), and Musetta (La Bohème), among others. She has worked with Cabrillo Stage, San Jose Playhouse, Ensemble Monterey, Santa Cruz Chamber Players, and Santa Cruz Opera Project, which she co-founded in 2022. Lori also sings with the string and voice quintet Marea, teaches voice lessons, and is the mother of Hayden (10) and Eli (7). Upcoming performances include The Juliet Letters with Marea and the role of Stepmother in Into the Woods with Santa Cruz Shakespeare. www.lorischulmansoprano.com
Jordan Best
Jordan Best is a regular performer and teacher around the Bay Area. Recent performances include Helen (Fun Home), Suor Angelica (Suor Angelica), Mother (Ragtime), Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi), Mimi (La Bohème- SCOP), and Countess (Le Nozze di Figaro- SCOP). Jordan is member of the voice faculty at Cabrillo College where she teaches voice and musical theater and holds degrees in Voice Performance from DePaul University (BM) and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music/CCM (MM) and has been teaching voice, music, and theater in the Bay Area for almost 20 years. A proud co-founding member and artistic director of Santa Cruz Opera Project and also a founding member of Tomorrow Youth Repertory in Alameda, CA, she is committed to accessible, fresh, and approachable music and theater experiences. Jordan resides in the Felton where she attempts to balance performing, teaching, directing, resting and being a (homeschooling) mom to her amazing kids Lennon, Elliot and Lincoln alongside a menagerie of animals and her patient husband Josh.
Diane Syrcle
Diane Syrcle is a seasoned zwischenfach whose rich, expressive voice has been featured with Santa Cruz Opera Project, Ensemble Monterey, the Cabrillo Symphonic Choir, Portland Opera, Dallas Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and the Oregon Symphony, among others. A passionate performer and arts advocate, when she's not singing, you may find her in the garden, on the porch picking on her banjo, or enjoying birdsong with her sweetheart.
Conor Warshawsky
Baritone Conor Warshawsky is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Santa Cruz Opera Project. His recent highlights include Rapunzel's Prince in Into the Woods, Act 1, Strephon in Iolanthe, Melchior in Amahl and the Night Visitors, and the Pilot in The Little Prince, all with UCSC Opera. Currently he prepares for Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro (UCSC Opera) and Anthony in Sweeney Todd (Cabrillo Stage). He graduated in 2024 from UC Santa Cruz with a Bachelor of Music, and looks forward to attending Carnegie Mellon University in fall 2025, pursuing a Master in Voice Performance.
Shannon D'Antonio
Shannon Delaney D’Antonio, violin, began her musical studies in Northern Virginia at the age of 5. She moved to California to attend Stanford University, where she received a B.A. degree in Violin Performance. Shannon is an active chamber musician in the Santa Cruz and Monterey areas. She is the concertmaster of Espressivo Orchestra, and
performs regularly with Ensemble Monterey Chamber Orchestra, Santa Cruz New Music Works, the Santa Cruz Chorale, the Santa Cruz Symphony, Musical Soulmates, and thevSanta Cruz Opera Project.
Kristin Garbeff
Kristin Garbeff is an active freelance musician. She performs throughout the San
Francisco and Monterey Bay areas with the Santa Cruz Symphony, Monterey Symphony, West Bay Opera, New Music Works, Espressivo, and the Hidden Valley String Orchestra. Kristin is also active in the popular music scene. She has collaborated with various groups in the San Francisco Bay Area including indie band Blue Rabbit, Kenny Shick, Jenn Grinels, and the Thriving Artists organization. Kristin received her Master of Music degree from the Longy
School of Music in Cambridge, MA where she studied with Dr. Terry King. She studied chamber music with Kathleen Lenski, Victor Rosenbaum, and Roger Tapping, and jazz improvisation with pianist Peter Cassino. In addition to performing, Kristin maintains a teaching studio at her home in Scotts Valley, Ca.
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