Chorus

Widely regarded as one of the top opera ensembles in the country, the Atlanta Opera Chorus performs in the majority of mainstage and Discoveries series offerings produced by The Atlanta Opera each year. In 2017, Walter Huff stepped down from his Chorus Master position of over 25 years. After serving as Interim Chorus Master, Rolando Salazar took over the post in 2018. The Atlanta Opera chorus is always an integral part of every performance.

Members of The Atlanta Opera Chorus are highly touted for their technical abilities and compelling acting skills, and have been featured in more than 100 productions since Maestro Huff began his tenure. Conductors, stage directors, and principal singers from the world over have consistently praised the ensemble for its characteristic sound, range of color, and consistent precision.

In 1996, The Atlanta Opera Chorus was invited to perform in the Cultural Olympiad concert series, as part of the Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta. This invitation resulted in two memorable performances, seen by a distinguished international audience: Gershwin’s delightful musical comedy Of Thee I Sing and an Opera Gala Evening, featuring the Atlanta Opera Chorus and famed soprano Dame Gwyneth Jones. In 2008, the Opéra-Comique of Paris invited the Atlanta Opera Chorus to perform in their new production of Porgy and Bess. This 8-week engagement included 12 performances in Paris and additional shows in Spain, Normandy, and Luxembourg. Numerous alumni of the chorus have now sung at leading opera houses around the nation and the world – including the Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden, Los Angeles Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and many others.

Early production highlights through the years have included Turandot (the first opera ever performed at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre), Aida, Bizet’s Carmen and Wagner’s dark and stormy The Flying Dutchman – the first production for The Atlanta Opera directed by General & Artistic Director, Tomer Zvulun. Recent successes for the chorus include The Barber of Seville, Madama Butterfly, The Marriage of Figaro, La bohème, The Pirates of Penzance, Romeo & Juliet, The Abduction from the Seraglio, the Southeastern US premiere of Kevin Puts’ and Mark Campbell’s Silent Night, Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, and the Discoveries series’ Maria de Buenos Aires.