The Raven
Digital Program
Composer
Jesse Preis is a tenor, pianist, and composer, originally from Emblem, Wyoming. Jesse graduated from the University of Montana in 2016 with a BM in Piano Performance & Pedagogy and a BA in Vocal Performance and studied voice abroad in Graz, Austria (The American Institute of Musical Studies) during the summers of 2016. In 2019, Jesse completed an M.M. Vocal Performance at West Virginia University. After relocating to Portland, Jesse has worked as a piano teacher at Hoffman Academy and Lydian Music Studios, the Director of Music Ministry at Prince of Life Lutheran Church and Spirit of Life Lutheran Church, and as a freelance accompanist. They have collaborated with Renegade Opera as a pianist on works such as La clemenza di Tito (2022) and She Loves You Back (2023), they performed with the Lutheran Chorale Association during their 2023 Summer Season, and have collaborated with other church and community choirs in Oregon, West Virginia, and Montana. As a tenor, Jesse has appeared as Perry in Orfeo in Underland (Renegade Opera), Parpignol in La boheme Warhola (Pittsburgh Festival Opera), the First Priest and Armored Guard in The Magic Flute (WVU), and roles in numerous opera scenes productions. In addition to their performing career, Jesse's compositions have been performed by the Northwest Civic Orchestra (Powell, WY), Portland Symphonic Choir, and Renegade Opera.
Stage Director
Melory Mirashrafi is a director, performer, and producer of new works living in Portland, Oregon. Melory is honored to be back with Renegade after directing the live premiere of ADAM’S RUN in 2024. A former Stage Directors & Choreographers Fellow (Pittsburgh Public Theater/Portland Center Stage, YOUNG AMERICANS), Melory’s work has been praised by the Boston Globe for drawing “fine-tuned performances that land with the impact of emotional truth,” and recognized by Opera America (Robert L.B. Tobin Director-Designer Prize, ORFEO), SpeakEasy Stage (Thomas Derrah Emerging Artist Award, ENGLISH), as well as Oregon ArtsWatch (SEVEN ARTISTS MAKING A DIFFERENCE, 35 AND UNDER FEATURED ARTIST). Recent collaborations include: Artists Repertory Theatre (SLAY, RACECAR RACECAR RACECAR, SAPIENCE), SpeakEasy Stage Company (ENGLISH), Portland Opera/POGO (LA CENERENTOLA), National Queer Theatre (LAYALINA), Gloucester Stage Company (WISH YOU WERE HERE), Third Rail Repertory Theatre (SANCTUARY CITY, A MIRROR, THE MUSIC MAN), and others. Currently, Melory serves as Artistic & Producing Associate at Artists Rep in Portland. @meloryjasmin
Conductor
Dedicated to sharing the sense of awe latent within music and committed to engaging listeners with its contemporary relevance, Brooklyn-based conductor Alison Norris recently completed their tenure as the Conducting Fellow for the Canton Symphony—a position they won in 2024 and that had since been renewed and expanded for the 2025/26 season.
Internationally, Norris has appeared with the London Symphony Orchestra as a finalist in the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition, conducted the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra as a candidate in the 6th Evgeny Svetlanov International Conducting Competition, and was selected to conduct the Orchestre Métropolitain for Domaine Forget de Charlevoix’s conducting masterclass with Yannick Nézet-Séguin. As a guest conductor, they were invited to conduct the China International Philharmonic Orchestra in Beijing, and to conduct the young composers prizewinners’ concerts for the MultiPhonics festival in Magdeburg, Germany.
In the spring of 2026, Norris guest conducted with the NYC Orchestra Project and with Renegade Opera; both organizations extended additional invitations for the following season. Recent festival engagements include Tanglewood’s Conducting Seminar, where they were invited to premiere a new work by Maya Miro Johnson, and the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music as a Conducting Associate.
Always seeking to foster musical fascination alongside human compassion, in 2024 Norris organized a multidisciplinary benefit concert project entitled “Divinity and the Cosmos: A Genderqueer Exploration of Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie”. They collaborated with five other transgender artists to create original films examining each movement of Messiaen’s preeminent work through a genderqueer lens: helping audiences navigate unfamiliar dissonances with the similarly enigmatic nature of trans joy.
Norris’s conducting mentors include George Manahan, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Jim Ross, Tito Muñoz, Cristian Măcelaru, and Oriol Sans. Alison holds a Professional Studies diploma from the Manhattan School of Music, a Masters of Music from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Bachelor of Arts in Music from Valparaiso University.
Co-Music Director/Pianist/Conductor (Oct 9th)
Claire Forstman is a music director, pianist, and vocal coach currently based in Portland, Oregon. Her upcoming engagements include shows with Seattle Opera (Pirates of Penzance) and Portland Opera (La bohème), where she has just finished two seasons as a member of their Resident Artists. A sought-after collaborator in the Pacific Northwest, this summer she rejoins many favorite regional companies: OperaBend for Il barbiere di Siviglia (La traviata, 2024); OrpheusPDX for Il sogno di Scipione (Aci, Galatea, e Polifemo, 2024); Renegade Opera for Waking the Witch (Orlofsky’s Party, 2024; American Patriots, 2023); Ping & Woof Opera for Così fan tutte (Amahl and the Night Visitors, 2025); and Vashon Opera for Cendrillon (Otello, 2024). She has also worked for the Oregon Bach Festival, Portland’s Opera on Tap, Portland State University’s Opera Department, New Wave Opera, the Portland Symphonic Choir, Portland’s Opera in the Park, and Resonance Ensemble.
In her residency with Portland Opera, Claire served as the principal pianist for the company’s productions of Falstaff, The Juliet Letters, and Puccini: In Concert. She assisted with productions of Joel Thompson’s The Snowy Day and Paul Moravec’s The Shining as offstage conductor and orchestral keyboardist respectively. She also worked on the company’s production of Le nozze di Figaro as second pianist, chorus pianist, and coach.
Before moving to Portland in 2023, Claire was a studio artist for two seasons at the Florentine Opera in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she worked on productions of Rigoletto, L’enfant et les sortilèges, Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Roméo et Juliette, among others. She has also worked for Opera Steamboat (2023) in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Chicago Summer Opera (2022, 2023), dell’Arte Opera in New York City, (2019, 2022), and Finger Lakes Opera (2021) in Rochester, New York.
A passionate recitalist, she presents a solo program this summer for the Salon Series at Ascension Episcopal Parish, giving her debut performance of Schumann’s Fantasie in C, Op. 17. Recently, she was a collaborator for acclaimed vocalist Katherine Goforth’s recital “Where Would We Be Without Defeat” at Stanford University. She also works as a dance accompanist and has played for the Oregon Ballet Theatre School, BodyVox dance company, the Portland Ballet Academy, and the Milwaukee Ballet School and Academy.
Claire is a proud transgender woman and is originally from Birmingham, Alabama; she received her Master’s in Contemporary Performance from the Manhattan School of Music and her Bachelor’s in Piano Performance from the Eastman School of Music.
Current Narrator (Lenore Cast)
Claire Robertson-Preis is a mezzo-soprano, arts administrator, educator, and writer in Portland, OR. In 2024, Claire’s “smooth alto intonement” (Oregon ArtsWatch) shone with Portland Symphonic Choir as the Alto Soloist for a world-premiere dance and choral performance of Rachmaninoff’s Vespers. In 2023, they also devised and performed in Renegade Opera’s She Loves You Back. Other recent onstage appearances in Portland include Norah/Alto Chorus in Renegade Opera's innovative outdoor production of Orfeo in Underland (2021) and Second Lady in Aquilon Music Festival’s production of The Magic Flute (2019). As a choral musician, Claire is on Portland Symphonic Choir’s roster since 2021 and has performed with Resonance Ensemble. Selected past credits from her time as a soprano include: Sam-I-Am in the WV Opera Outreach program of Green Eggs and Ham, and First Lady in the WVU Mainstage production of The Magic Flute (2019). In addition to performing, Claire has also stepped into directing, serving as music director for RHS Opening Act Theatre’s Addams Family (2024), Failure: A Love Story (2023), and Mamma Mia! (2022). Having grown up in Texas and Montana, Claire's connection to music, art, and the environment has been deeply influenced by rural landscapes. Her performances and writing examine the connections between people, our creativity and the places we shape with our actions. When not singing, Claire enjoys hiking, paddleboarding, and trying something new (most recently, stand-up comedy). www.clairerobertsonpreis.com
Current Narrator (Poe Cast)
Dicky Dutton (they/she)
Baritone and performance artist, Dicky Dutton, has performed with a wide variety of organizations as soloist, chorus member, and deviser. An avid lover of new music, Dicky has premiered new works with Beth Morrison Projects, Liberty City Arts, New York Festival of Song, Bearded Ladies Cabaret, Cincinnati Opera, the Why Collective, and in multiple recitals across the US.
Outside of conceptualizing and performing new works, Dicky remains active as a vocalist in the Opera Philadelphia Opera Chorus, the Bard Festival Chorale, and the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir. They have performed roles such as Der Vater in Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel, Third Jew in Strauss’ Salome, Papageno in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, among others. Dicky is entering their fourth season as Teaching Artist with Opera Philadelphia where they, alongside a team of teaching artists, lead 4th-5th graders through 20-week residencies to create their own operas! Shout out to their bunny, Ollie: you're 13 good boyyyy!
Past Narrator (Lenore Cast)
Abigail Krawson is dynamic performer, an engaging educator, and a passionate producer of innovative opera and vocal performances. In the 2023-24 season, Abby was a soloist at The JUDY with Renegade Opera, reprising her Mourning Dove portrayal in Bird Songs of Opera, a soloist at Lake Grove Presbyterian Church for Handel’s Messiah with members from the Oregon Symphony, and co-created a new collection of musical selections for Tapestry, a duo concert with LaRiche Lamar. Abby also curated 2 recitals called From the Vault for the Portland Symphonic Choir. She sang in the choruses of Le Nozze di Figaro and a Puccini concert with Portland Opera, a world premiere production of Rachmaninoff's Vespers, a holiday concert, and Beethoven's 9th Symphony with Portland Symphonic Choir. She also joined the Vancouver Master Chorale as the soprano soloist in Poulenc's Gloria. And to end the season, she wrote and directed a musical theater camp and performance for 4th-9th graders at Lake Grove. In the 2022-23 season, she portrayed the Mourning Dove in Renegade’s Bird Songs of Opera, sang a duo concert called Tapestry with friend and vocalist, LaRiche Lamar, and commissioned a new choral work by local composer, Cecille Elliott, for her youth choir. In the 2021-22 season she sang Vivaldi's Gloria and Mozart's Vespers Solennes de Confessore with Eugene Concert Choir, was the soprano Flower in Blythely Ever After, a rock/opera cabaret with Stephanie Blythe at Boston Lyric Opera, and performed with OrpheusPDX as Proserpina in Monteverdi's L'Orfeo. Prior to 2020, Abigail sang Adele in Die Fledermaus with Amarillo Opera, Suor Genovieffa in Suor Angelica with Opera West, joined both The Phoenix Theatre (Sound of Music) and Arizona Opera (La Bohème) as an ensemble member, and took First Prize at the Southwest Vocal Competition. Past season highlights include the saucy Musetta in La Bohème, the vocally punishing, but ever charming Zerbinetta in Richard Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos, the charming Marzelline in Fidelio, and Adamo’s heart-wrenching Beth in Little Women. And on the concert stage, she has performed the solos in Strauss’ Brentano Lieder, Mozart's Requiem,and Brahms' Requiem. abigailkrawson.com
Past Narrator (Poe Cast)
Brandon Michael is thrilled to making his debut at Renegade Opera. He recently sang the tenor solo in Beethovens 9th symphony of which Oregon Arts Watch said "Brandon Michael trumpeted his lines majestically..." Brandon had role debuts as Rodolfo in La Boheme with Cascadia Chamber Opera and The Crooner in The Shinning with Portland Opera. Brandon has been a regular chorus member with the Portland Opera since 2022, where he will be singing the role of Gastone in La Traviata this winter. Brandon has sung with Orpheus PDX and New Wave Opera where he recently directed the West Coast premiere of Melissa Dunpheys opera, Alice Tierney. Brandon performs regularly with local groups like Resonance Ensemble, Ping and Woof Opera, Portland Symphonic Choir, Bach cantata choir and has sung with Inland Northwest Opera, Opera Fairbanks and the Spokane Symphony. Brandon is also a teacher of voice at Clackamas Community College.
The Raven (Lenore Cast)
“Tiny powerful soprano”, Madeline Ross was most recently seen as The Girl/Luna in David Hertzberg's The Rose Elf with OrpheusPDX and was awarded the Anne Marie Gerts Prize at the National Finals of the NATS Artist Awards. Praised for her “brilliant coloratura voice,” “world class” stage presence, and thrilling versatility, Ms. Ross has performed all over the US, most often performing in the NW. In 2023 Ms. Ross made her Portland Opera debut as the First Woodsprite in Dvorak’s Rusalka, made her Music of Remembrance (Seattle, WA) Debut as the Daughter in the world premiere of Qaqnus by Sahba Aminikia, and gave “a supreme performance” of Ligeti’s Mysteries of the Macabre that was “simultaneously intense, dramatic, and humorous” with Cascadia Composers. Ms. Ross’s 2023 season also included role debuts as Tamiri in Il Re Pastore by Mozart and Lucinda in Dark Sisters by Nico Muhly with OrpheusPDX. She was hailed for “effortlessly nailing” her performance as Queen of the Night in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte and has performed with Portland Opera, The Oregon Symphony, Fear No Music, Resonance Ensemble, 45th Parallel, All Classical RadioOpera Theater Oregon, Shaking the Tree Theatre, and Music of Remembrance. She won first prize at the National Association of Teachers of Singing Classical Voice Competition in 2020 and was honored to take part in a performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. premiering Damian Geter’s An African American Requiem with Resonance Ensemble and NEWorks Philharmonic Orchestra. She made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2019 as a jazz soloist where she “scatt[ed] to beat the band” (NY Concert Review). Ms. Ross is a founder and Executive Director of Renegade Opera, Portland, Oregon’s unconventional and accessible opera company! www.madelinelross.com
The Raven (Poe Cast)
Jasmine Johnson was last seen on tour with the Oregon State University Wind Ensemble at the Municipal theatre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She made her professional role debut in 2022 with West Edge Opera as Nireno in Giulio Cesare. In 2023 she was seen on stage with Portland Opera as Third Wood-Sprite in Rusalka. Ms. Johnson has a passion for performing new operas and works. Driven by an insatiable thirst for growth, Ms. Johnson also aspires to deepen her impact on the opera world. After completing a year as a Portland Opera resident artist Ms. Johnson started a 2-year leadership fellowship at the Portland Opera. Where opera singers learn how to transition their artistic skill set into leadership skills. She is now the Campaign & Partnerships Manager for Portland Opera and President of the board at Renegade Opera. This pursuit stems from her desire to refine her leadership skills so that she can contribute to the artistic community in a positive and impactful way and foster the next generation.
Lenore (all performances)
Leiana Petlewski (they/them) is an actor, dancer, theatre maker, choreographer, musician, and intimacy director who is interested in creating work that explores universal experiences within particular circumstances. They hold BAs in Dance and Applied Theatre from Pacific University and a certification from the Portland Experimental Theatre Ensemble's Institute for Contemporary Performance. They’ve performed with various theatre companies, including Portland Playhouse, Corrib Theatre, Bedrock Theatre, Salt and Sage, ProLab Dance, and the Stage Fright Festival. Leiana has choreographed and/or Intimacy Directed for Salt and Sage, Ponderosa Players, SouthWest StageWorks, Many Hats’ The Hatchery, and a collection of other new works. They’ve been a resident artist with From the Ground UP and The Verdancy Project and a guest resident choreographer for the Pacific Dance Ensemble. Leiana strives to create art in a collaborative and ethical way and is truly honored to be working with Renegade Opera and the many talented people working on this show!
Stage Manager
Colin (he/they) is excited to be working with Renegade for the first time, as well as making their debut in operatic stage management. You may have seen their work previously as the former Line Producer and production manager at Profile Theatre, or as a stage manager in a multitude of theatrical and event organizations around Portland. Favorite stage management credits include Stilt, Spear (Corrib Theatre), Tiger Style! (Profile Theatre), and PQA's Queer Spectacular. In addition to stage and production management, Colin also works in event lighting, and enjoys more than anything facilitating the creative journey and container of his collaborators.
Producer
Danielle Jagelski is a composer, conductor, and creative producer. She is the Artistic Director and Co-founder of Renegade Opera and is sought after as a composer and conductor for boundary pushing and community-centered works.
Her work has been performed around the country including at Lincoln Center, Roulette Intermedium, The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, and Performance Space New York. Recent and upcoming commissions include works for Portland Opera, American Composers Forum- Recomposing America/PROTESTRA, Voices of Ascension, New Music Concerts- Relatives Ensemble, ChamberQUEER, New Native Theatre, North American Indigenous Songbook, CUNY-Seagal Center, MoreArt, Tapestry Choir, Sister Singers Network, Michigan State University, and American Patriots Project.
An enrolled citizen of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin and Red Cliff Band of Ojibwe, Danielle often collaborates and performs with other Indigenous and Native American artists. She is passionate about kinship building and decolonization through interdisciplinary projects. She is also an active consultant on equitable producing practices and decolonial frameworks, having worked with institutions such as New York University, University of Portland, Handel and Haydn Society, and First Nations Performing Arts.
As a conductor, Danielle is sought out for her execution of the music of now. Recent conducting engagements include Voiceless Mass by Raven Chacon with International Contemporary Ensemble in the historical concert of all contemporary North American Indigenous concert music titled Voices of Mannahatta with Voices of Ascension, which she was the guest Artistic Director, NextGen3 with Beth Morrison Projects, Amistad by Anthony Davis with Harlem Opera Theatre, Waking the Witch by Ashi Day, Ḵutulagaaw by Ed Littlefield, Missing by Brian Current at Anchorage Opera, Dark Sisters by Nico Muhly, associate conductor for The Witcher In Concert national tour. World premieres of Adam’s Run by Ruby Fulton and Garden of Alice by Elizabeth Raum, and guest conductor for the Manhattan School of Music Symphony, and National Music Global Culture Society at Lincoln Center. Upcoming projects include Music Director of Trials and Tears by Dawn Avery at Cooper Union and Music Director of the Ghostbusters in Concert- National Tour.
Danielle has been the recipient of multiple grants and awards including the 2026 Opera America Discovery Grant for Women Composers, New Music USA’s Creator Fund 2026, as well as the IDEA grant with playwright Rhiana Yazzie, for their new opera, Little Ones. She is a First People’s Fund 2026 Performing Arts Fellow, as well as part of the 2025 LIFT cohort at Native Arts and Cultures Foundation, and has also been awarded the Emerging Artist Commission from More Art. She has received grants from Opera America, The Plimpton Foundation, and Oregon Community Foundation, among others. She was a resident artist at the 2024 Berkeley Repertory Theatre- Groundfloor Residency, and has earned awards for her work in contemporary opera from the National Opera Association and Broadway World.
Assistant Producer
Lily Olcott
Costume Designer
Ivy Thompson
Set and Prop Designer
Award-winning busker, actor-musician, composer, arranger, and wearer of many hats based in Portland, OR. Broadway: Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club. Regional: SpongeBob (Portland Playhouse), The Music Man (Third Rail Repertory), Bird Songs of Opera (Renegade Opera), Tosca (Portland Opera).
Lighting Designer
Samantha "Sam" Kemp is a Portland-based creator, artist, and lighting designer for live performance. Born and raised in the tiny town of Lindenhurst, New York before moving to Las Vegas in her adolescence, Sam has always managed to weasel her way into artful spaces despite cultural pressures to stick to the status quo. Design credits include Waking the Witch with Renegade Opera, The Glass Menagerie at Shaking The Tree, 8-Track: Sounds of the 70s and Les Misérables at The Broadway Rose, Racecar Racecar Racecar at Artists Repertory Theatre, Tiger Style! with Profile Theatre, and Recent Tragic Events and An Iliad with Third Rail Repertory Theatre. She is elated to be returning to work with Renegade Opera for The Raven.
Portrait by Noyel Gallimore.