Heather Buck will be our Juliet in Romeo & Juliet in February.Praised as "the kind of performer who makes it all look easy," Heather Buck has established herself internationally as a consummate singing actress, "combining agile, liquid soprano, a bright, natural stage presence, and the timing of an expert comedienne," (Opera News).
In 2008-09 she joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera, sang Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte with Florentine Opera, Ännchen in Der Freischütz with Opera Boston, and Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance with Indianapolis Opera. Recent highlights include her English National Opera debut singing the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute, her returns to Opera Birmingham as Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia and to Arizona Opera as Queen of the Night, her first performances of Konstanze in Die Entführung aus dem Serail with Connecticut Opera, Valencienne in The Merry Widow with Florentine Opera, her debut with Central City Opera as La Fée in Cendrillon, and her appearance as Angel in Pascal Dusapin's Faustus, the Last Night with Spoleto Festival USA.
Heather Buck is a recipient of New York City Opera's Kolozsvar Award, recognizing artists who excel at new and unusual repertory. She made her New York City Opera debut creating the title role in Charles Wuorinen's Haroun and the Sea of Stories and returned the following season as the Comtesse de Folleville in Il viaggio a Reims. Other international credits include appearing with Barcelona's Gran Teatre del Liceu as both Echo in Ariadne auf Naxos and First Niece in Peter Grimes. She also performed at the Britten-Pears School (UK) in the role of Tytania in A Midsummer Night's Dream and at the Spoleto Festival.

Conductor Jerome Shannon has led orchestras around the country to wide acclaim in versatile repertoire including opera, operetta, musical theatre, ballet and symphonic programs. He served as the Mobile Opera’s General Director and Principal Conductor for over 10 years, and currently is the Music Director and Conductor of Pensacola Opera. Recent engagements include his Mobile Opera’s Gala Celebration with Denyce Graves, Marta Domingo production of Tales of Hoffman and Andrea Chenier (covering Maestro Placido Domingo) with the Washington National Opera. Jerry Shannon was the Associate Artistic Director and Associate Conductor for Virginia Opera from 1992-1996. He is an OnSite Evaluator for the National Endowment of the Arts and a Government Affairs Representative for OPERA America. Maestro Shannon is a frequent judge on panels for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, national opera competitions, and is an adjunct faculty member of the University of South Alabama.   

Founding director of Opera Naples, Steffanie Pearce has thrilled audiences from Paris, Madrid & Lisbon, to Cincinnati, Denver and Los Angeles, with over 200 performances in her signature role of Violetta in La Traviata.
Other distinctive portrayals of tragic heroines including: Tosca, Leonora, Marguerite, Donna Anna, Mimi, Konstanze and the Three Heroines of Tales of Hoffman. She has been a guest artist with many opera companies including; Opera de Marseille, Opera Lisboa, Opera Colorado, The Opera Co. of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh Opera Theater, San Diego Opera, The Buxton Festival in England, Baltimore Opera, Opera Delaware and New Jersey Opera Festival.
Equally at home on the concert stage, she has performed the Strauss 4 Last Songs and Carmina Burana with The Montreal Symphony. Her oratorio repertoire is extensive and she has appeared as a soloist at many famous theaters including: Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, The Hollywood Bowl and The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles.

Ashley Howard Wilkinson is an Opera Naples favorite after his great portrayals of King Balthezar in November 06’ Amahl and the Night Visitors and The Bonz in February 2007 Madama Butterfly. and Sparafucile in Rigoletto, March 2009. Wilkinson won a coveted position in the Metropolitan Opera’s Young Artist Program and made his Metropolitan Opera debut singing the role of Barnabotto in La Gioconda. He has performed leading roles with the opera companies of Washington, Virginia, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Minnesota, Pacific, Utah, Columbus, Nashville, Dayton, Boheme of New Jersey, Utah Festival, Toledo, Palm Beach, Buffalo and Deutsche Oper. Recent engagements include Crown in Porgy and Bess with Fresno Grand Opera, Osmin in The Abduction from the Seraglio with Connecticut Opera, Ramfis in Aida with Baltimore Opera, Osmin in The Abduction from the Seraglio with Hawaii Opera (February 2009) Crown in Porgy and Bess with Baltimore Opera (May 2009).

Opera Naples is happy to welcome Christopher Holloway back again after playing Schaunard in ON's La Boheme, this past January. He is a much sought-after energetic and vibrant performer and has taken the opera stage with distinguished companies including Houston Grand Opera, Orlando Opera, Utah Festival Opera and others.

He was the 2003-2005 baritone Resident Artist for Orlando Opera where he made his company debut as Marullo in Rigoletto. Other projects with Orlando Opera have included Nogales in Luisa Fernanda, 2nd Soldier/Nazarene in Salomé, Pish-Tush in The Mikado, Belcore in L’Elisir d’Amore, Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro, Sciarrone in Tosca, and Elder McLean in Susannah.
Mr. Holloway has appeared as a Juror in the world premiere of Tod Machover’s Resurrection with Houston Grand Opera, Vicar Gedge in Albert Herring, Ford in The Merry Wives of Windsor, Ben in The Telephone, Bob in The Old Maid and the Thief, L’Armonier in Les Dialogues des Carmelites, Tom/John in Mollicone’s Face on the Barroom Floor, and the Doctor in Douglas Moore’s Gallantry. Always a stand-out, Mr. Holloway has been proclaimed as a baritone who “[demonstrated] burnished tones with excellent diction,” and an “audience favorite, [who] stole the show…” Welcome back, Chris!

American lyric tenor James Charles Taylor’s accolades include “sings magnificently”, “great beauty as well as dramatic power”, “richly musical”, and “superb”. He has appeared with the New York City Opera National Company, Central City Opera, Hawaii Opera Theatre, and Connecticut Grand Opera. Mr. Taylor’s recent debuts include Berlioz’s Beatrice et Benedict in New York’s Alice Tully Hall, Opera Carolina’s Die Fledermaus, La Traviata with Asheville Lyric Opera, the Oratorio Society of Charlottesville-Albemarle, Ash Lawn-Highland Opera Festival, and La Boheme, in concert with the Huxford Symphony. Mr. Taylor was the winner of the Metropolitan Opera District Auditions for Connecticut and Alabama.