Arizona Opera Cast Members & Creatives

Praised by the Washington Post as having a voice of "unearthly power," The Houston Press as being a "blow away singer," and the San Jose Mercury News as a "natural comic actor," American bass, Nathan Stark, has performed on operatic, concert and recital stages throughout the United States, Europe and China.

Hailing from Hughson, California, Mr. Stark has performed with opera houses throughout the United States, including the Metropolitan Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Dayton Opera, Atlanta Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Hawaii Opera Theatre, Virginia Opera and Arizona Opera, to name a few. Some of his noted operatic roles have included Mustafà in L'Italiana in Algeri, both Don Basilio and Don Bartolo in il Barbiere di Siviglia, both Leporello and il Commendatore in Don Giovanni, both Monterone and Sparafucile in Rigoletto, both Zuniga & Escamillo in Carmen, Colline in La Boheme, Banco in Macbeth and Bottom in A Midsummer's Night Dream. Equally comfortable on concert stage, he has performed concerts with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Philharmonic, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Long Beach Symphony, Canton Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Symphony Orchestra, Holland Symphony Orchestra and the Modesto Symphony Orchestra.

In the 2017-18 season, Mr. Stark makes company debuts as Banco in Verid's Macbeth with Opera San Antonio, Don Basilio in Rossini's il Barbiere di Siviglia with Opera Santa Barbara, The Judge in An American Solider with Opera Saint Louis, Colline in Puccini's La Boheme with Opera Orlando, Rocco in Beethoven's Fidelio with Boston Baroque, and returns to Opera San Jose for the United States premiere of Alma Deutscher's Cinderella. On the concert stage, he will also be performing the bass solos for the Verdi Requiem with the Dayton Philharmonic,Columbus Symphony Orchestra and the Greenville Symphony.

Mr. Stark has given recitals throughout the United States and Germany, concerts at the Great Wall of China, the U.S. Colombian Embassy, U.S. French Embassy, the U.S. Austrian Embassy and the Washington National Cathedral. In 2005 he was chosen to be the featured soloist forthe nationally televised opening ceremonies of the Air Force One exhibit at the Ronald Reagan Library for former First Ladies, Laura Bush and Nancy Reagan, members of the United States Senate and Congress, and for, then President of the United States, George W. Bush

Mr. Stark has been a recipient of several vocal awards including the 2010 Fort Worth Opera Marguerite McCammon Competition, the Opera Columbus Vocal Competition, the Brentwood Artist of Tomorrow Competition, the Sun Valley Opera Competition, the Westwood Vocal Competition, the Burbank Aria Competition, first place winner of Cincinnati Conservatory of Music Corbett Scholarship Opera Competition, the Palm Springs Opera Guild Vocal Competition, the Pasadena Opera Guild Competition, the Opera Buffs Competition, first place winner of the Classical Singers Association Vocal Competition in Los Angeles, and was the 2006 district winner of the Metropolitan Opera Vocal Competition, San Diego District.

He holds degrees in vocal & opera performance from California State University, Long Beach (B.M. & M.M.) and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (A.D.) His voice teachers have included Dr. Lewis Woodward, Dr. Cherrie Llewellyn, Ms. Shigemi Matsumoto, Ms. Marilyn Horne and Mr. Kenneth Shaw.