Arizona Opera Cast Members & Creatives

Hailed for her “masterful and show-stopping performance” (Opera News), 25-year-old Ashley Milanese returns as an Emerging Artist of Opera Philadelphia for the 2017-18 season where she will sing Erste Dame in the East Coast premiere of Kosky’s production of The Magic Flute, and will cover Lola in the premiere of David Herzberg’s The Wake World.

The New Orleans, Louisiana native made her Opera Philadelphia debut last season as Barbarina in The Marriage of Figaro. She also covered Bess McNeil in the company’s premiere of Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves. Milanese later covered the role again at the Prototype Festival with the Beth Morrison Project.

Ms. Milanese has participated in summer festivals and programs including Wolf Trap Opera Studio (’17) and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (’15) where she made her company debut as Yvette in La Rondine.

Passionate about contemporary music, Ashley Milanese has collaborated with many composers including Kevin Puts (Elizabeth Cree), Missy Mazzoli (Breaking the Waves), Rene Orth (Mothers of Moses), David Herzberg (The Wake World), Tobias Picker (Emmeline), David T Little (Dog Days), Daniel Schnyder (Charlie Parker’s Yardbird), as well as Nico Muhly (Far Away Songs).

Recent symphonic performances include operatic selections with the National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic, Faure’s Requiem with Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with Allentown Symphony Orchestra, and operatic selections with the Mainline Symphony Orchestra.

Ms. Milanese’s previously performed roles include Susanna (The Marriage of Figaro), Eine italienische Sängerin (Capriccio), Manon (Manon), Zerbinetta (Ariadne auf Naxos), Giulia (La scala di seta), Nella (Gianni Schicchi), and Yvette (La Rondine) for her debut with the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis in 2015. Other credits include Constance (Dialogues des Carmelites), Sophie (Werther), Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Bubikopf (Der Kaiser von Atlantis), Lead Hen (The Cunning Little Vixen), and Gianetta (Elexir of Love), among others.

Ashley Milanese received both her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from the Curtis Institute of Music where she studied under renowned instructors Mikael Eliasen and Marlena Malas.