Press
Robust bass-baritone Daniel Okulitch thundered appropriately, relishing every moments of Saul’s badness, and sopranos Sherezade Panthaki (Michal) and Yulia Van Doren (Merab) made vivid impressions as the daughters he uses as bargaining chips. Tenor Aaron Sheehan was eloquent as Saul’s unfortunate son, Jonathan. Tenor Jonathan Smucker and bass-baritone Christian Pursell made effective contributions in various supporting roles. GEORGIA ROWE
The Community Foundation for Southern Arizona is pleased to announce that bass-baritone Christian Pursell is the recipient of the Igor Gorin Memorial Award 2019 Award. Mr. Pursell is currently an Adler Fellow at San Francisco Opera. As the recipient of the 2019 Igor Gorin Memorial Award, Mr. Pursell received a $10,000 unrestricted award to help relieve some of the financial burden that often hinders young artists at the onset of their career.
Christian Pursell, bass-baritone, Adler Fellowship at San Francisco Opera
We are excited to welcome bass-baritone Christian Pursell to our roster. A versatile opera singer who has been hailed for "his intriguingly dark voice" by Opera News, Christian Pursell is quickly establishing himself as one of the rising stars of the next generation of singers.
Bass-baritone Christian Pursell, displaying one of the most dramatically compelling voices, was as exciting in Rossini as he was in a Bellini duet, with Manea, from I Puritani. STEVEN WINN
Bass-baritone Christian Pursell and baritone Andrew Manea brought vocal heft and rhetorical urgency, separately and together, to music by Rossini, Bellini and Verdi. JOSHUA KOSMAN
The 12 recipients this coming year include sopranos Mary Evelyn Hangley and Natalie Image; mezzo-sopranos Ashley Dixon and Simone McIntosh; countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen; tenors Zhengyi Bai, Christopher Colmenero, and Christopher Oglesby; baritone SeokJong Baek; and bass-baritone Christian Pursell. Hangley, McIntosh, Bai, Colmenero, Oglesby, and Baek are entering their first year as Adler fellows while Image, Ashley Dixon, Cohen, and Pursell are entering their second year. DAVID SALAZAR
The cast features tenor William Burden as George Bailey. soprano Golda Schultz in her San Francisco Opera debut as angel Clara, baritone Rod Gilfry, soprano Andriana Chuchman in company debut, and current San Francisco Opera Adler Fellows soprano Sarah Cambidge, mezzo-soprano Ashley Dixon, tenor Amitai Pati and bass-baritone Christian Pursell. Patrick Summers will conduct the San Francisco Opera Orchestra with Leonard Foglia directing the production. FRANCISCO SALAZAR
