P I A N O

Josie DiPhilippo is a musician from South Portland, Maine and has been studying piano for 18 years. She received a bachelor’s degree in piano performance and is working toward a master’s degree with Dr. Laura Kargul at the University of Southern Maine.

Recently, Josie was offered a graduate assistantship and worked with the Osher School of Music vocal department as a collaborator and accompanist. She was the music director for USM’s production of Nine (2022) and the assistant music director for their production of Into the Woods (2023). Josie has been a choral accompanist at Scarborough High School since 2019 and was also the rehearsal accompanist for Opera Maine in 2019. Josie enjoys promoting classical music through community outreach and spent three years working as the community coordinator for the Portland Symphony Orchestra to present musical events for all ages. 

Honors include winner of the USM Concerto Competition (2018, 2020, and 2022), first prize in the Ocy Downs Competition (2016), first prize in the Pine Tree Piano Competition (2016), winner of the USM Youth Ensemble Scholarship Competition (2016), second prize in the Lucia A. Wright piano competition (2019), recipient of the Frank Glazer Award and recipient of the Kotzschmar Memorial Trust Scholarship (2016). She was also a featured performer in the USM Scholarship Gala (2017, 2019, and 2022) and the USM Honors Recital (2018-2020).

R O D O L F O

Described as a "powerfully voiced" tenor of "tonal richness", Robert Gerold is delighted to join Opera in the Pines this season for their production of Bar Crawl Bohéme! Most recently seen returning to Des Moines Metro Opera to cover the role of Larry in the world premiere of A Thousand Acres, Robert has performed across the country with Sarasota Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Utah Festival Opera, Pittsburgh Festival Opera, among others, as well as internationally in Italy (Ischia, Arezzo, and across Tuscany). Having recently moved to Portland, Robert has performed with the City Theater of Biddeford in their musical theatre productions of Miracle on 34th Street and Christmas My Way: A Sinatra Holiday Bash. Robert is an alumnus of Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music.

M U S E T T A

Dramatic coloratura soprano Mary Johnston Letellier (she/her) looks forward to a role premiere as the Queen of the Night in New England Conservatory's production of Die Zauberflöte. This past year, she had the honor of singing the soprano soloist at the Assabet Valley Mastersinger's concert of Ralph Vaughan Williams' Dona Nobis Pacem and made her debut as soprano soloist of Haydn's The Seasons. She appeared as Violetta in MassOpera’s unique production of La Traviata and covered the role of First Lady in Die Zauberflöte with Opera Maine. This summer, she will sing the role of Grace for Snowlion Repertory’s The Christmas Bride in Concert; she debuted the role of Conrad/Conradine for their production of The Secret Princess last year. In addition to performing, Ms. Letellier runs her MJL Voice Studio, is Artist Faculty at the University of Southern Maine, is a teaching assistant at 317 Main Community Music Center, serves as the President of Maine NATS and is completing her doctoral work at the New England Conservatory of Music. 

S C H A U N A R D

Daniel Laverriere, baritone, is a recent graduate from the University of Southern Maine’s Osher School of Music with dual degrees in Music Performance and Music Education. During his time at USM, Daniel sang the role of Papageno (Die Zauberflöte) and performed in scenes as Dancaïro (Carmen), Zurga (Les pêcheurs de perles), Sulpice (La fille du régiment), Guglielmo (Cosí fan tutte), and Maximillian (Candide) in USM’s Opera Workshop. In the summer of 2022, he performed the roles of Prince Dauntless (Once Upon A Mattress) and Interrogator/Estonian Frank/Senator McCarthy (Fellow Travelers) at the Seagle Festival in Schroon Lake, NY.

M A R C E L L O

Baritone Joshua Miller is a Maine native hailing from Southwest Harbor on Mount Desert Island. He is a graduate of the University of Southern Maine Osher School of Music, where he studied vocal performance with the late great Ellen Chickering. After graduation, Josh moved to New York City to participate in the many opportunities afforded to singers. Some of Joshua's favorite career performances include Harašta in Janáček's Prihody Lišky Bystroušky with Dell'arte Opera Ensemble, Pish-Tush in NYGASP's reimagined Gilbert and Sullivan classic The Mikado and Sam in Metro West Opera's staging of Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti. In recent years, Joshua has turned his attention to oratorio, performing as the baritone soloist in Mendelssohn's Elijah, Vaughan-Williams Five Mystical Songs, Handel's Messiah and Israel in Egypt. Along with his singing, Joshua is a keen outdoorsman, amateur naturalist and an ISA certified Arborist, all of which brought him back to Maine in early 2022 to live permanently. Joshua is looking forward to his return to the stage and is excited to be bringing this version of La Bohème to people around the state. Many thanks to Opera in the Pines for making this happen! 

M I M Ì

Kimberly Ouellette, (she/her) is a Boston-based soprano originally from Lewiston, Maine. Notable roles include Madame Lidoine (Dialogues of the Carmelites), Contessa Almaviva (Le Nozze di Figaro), Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), Die Mutter/Knuspehexe (Hansel and Gretel) Tatiana (Eugene Onegin), Mimi (La Bohème), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), Alice Ford (The Merry Wives of Windsor), and Rosalinda (Die Fledermaus). She has premiered several operatic roles with contemporary composers and enjoys bringing new music to life. She also has a strong background in choral solo repertoire, with favorites such as the Brahms Requiem, Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass, and Mendelssohn's Elijah. Kimberly earned her Bachelor of Music from the University of Southern Maine Osher School of Music, and a Master of Music from the University of Illinois. She is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Nonprofit Management at Northeastern University. Outside of music, Kimberly enjoys hiking, embroidery, and AKC agility with her 4 year old pup, Birdie. 

C O L L I N E

Possessing a voice described as “robust and resonant” by TheatreMania and deemed a “standout” by Opera Magazine, bass-baritone Tyler Putnam is in demand in a variety of repertoire. Recent performances include Oroveso in Norma with Opera Tampa, Leporello in Don Giovanni with Gulfshore Opera, and The Commentator in Scalia / Ginsburg with Opera in the Heights. This summer Tyler makes his European operatic debut as Sparafucile in Rigoletto with Opera på Skäret in Sweden.

An apprentice at The Santa Fe Opera for two seasons, he debuted the role of Kobun in a workshop performance of Mark Campbell and Mason Bates’ The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, sang Zweiter Soldat in Salome, and originated the role of Thomas in the world premiere of Jennifer Higdon’s Cold Mountain. Originally from Chebeague Island, Maine, Tyler Putnam is a graduate of Dartmouth College.