cast

AESOP'S FABLES and ​SPIRITS​
Special ROK Commissions

Composed ​by Tony Plog​
Stage directed by Meaghan Dieter

amanda sesler

Amanda Sesler is a Soprano from Erie, Pennsylvania.  This is her fourth season with ROK.  Last year she performed the role of Rita in a ‘choose your own adventure opera’ called Rufus and Rita.  She sang with the Lafayette Bach Chorale as a featured soloist in their Brahms Liebeslieder Concert. Other performance credits include Kitty Hart in Dead Man Walking with IU Opera Theater, Cio Cio San in Madama Butterfly with La Musica Lirica in Novafeltria, Italy, Yvette in La Rondine with La Musica Lirica, and Creator/Eagle/Moon Chief in The Firebringers and Pamina/First Lady in The Magic Flute, both with ROK.  She toured China with the Windiana Concert Band as the vocal soloist on the Golden Age of Broadway Tour.  She was awarded the Robert and Sophia Marks First Prize Award by the Indianapolis Matinee Musicale in 2015.  After achieving her Bachelor in Music Education from Indiana University, Amanda taught choir, band, and piano at an Indianapolis high school for two years.  She then returned to Indiana University for her Master of Music in Voice, which she completed in December 2016.  When Amanda isn’t performing or teaching privately, she enjoys hiking, sewing, rock climbing, and baking.

amy williams

Amy Williams​ holds a BFA with a focus in Vocal Performance from the University of Central Arkansas, where she studied with Robert Holden, and an MM Vocal Performance from Winthrop University, where she studied with John Fowler.  She made her debut with Mosaic Arts, singing the role of Apollonia in Hardyn’s ​La Canterine in the Spring of 2015​.  

Amy has enjoyed singing the roles of the 2nd Lady in Mozart’s ​Die Zauberflöte at Winthrop University, Gertrude in Humperdink’s ​Hansel and Gretel at Central Piedmont, and Musetta in Puccini’s ​La Bohème with Opera Experience Southeast.  In the summer of 2013, Amy participated in Opera Experience Southeast’s Summer Emerging Artist Program where she worked with Arlene Shrut, sang in a recital, and sang the role of Lauretta in Puccini’s​ Gianni Schicchi.  Amy attended the Franco-American Vocal Academy’s summer program in Perigueux, France in 2011.  She participated in Master Classes with composer Isabella Aboulker and Prof. Frederick Burchinal, sang in recitals around France, and performed the role of Amelie in Offenbach’s ​Le Grande Duchess de Gerolstein.  

Amy has had the privilege of singing the soprano soloist in Rutter’s Requiem and ​Mass of the Children with Winthrop University’s University Chorus and Orchestra, and in Dubois’ ​Seven Last Words of Christ and Vivaldi’s ​Gloria with Quail Hollow Presbyterian Choir.  

Amy is a second year vocal performance doctoral student at the Jacobs School of Music, studying with Alice Hopper.  This is her second year with ROK.

haley paulin

Haley Paulin, a junior at Bloomington South, is thrilled to be performing in her third ROK production.  Other credits include: The Secret Garden (Rose) and Brundibar/But The Giraffe (Bird/Grandma) with Stages Bloomington; Cendrillon, Carmina Burana, La Bohème, and Hansel and Gretel (children’s chorus) with the IU Jacobs School of Music; Working (Kate Rushton) and The Outsiders (Cherry Valence) with Theatre South.  She’s currently serving as a Young Artist for Stages Bloomington 2017-18 season.  She has participated in summer vocal camps at Depauw University and the IU Jacobs School of Music.  Haley studies piano and voice.  Special thanks to Amanda Russo-Stante.

laura schneider

Laura is thrilled to be joining ROK this year!  A recent vocal performance graduate from The College of Wooster, Laura has portrayed various roles in her alma mater’s opera workshop, including Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro, Niklausse in The Tales of Hoffmann,
Grace in Roman Fever, and Nellie in Wuthering Heights.  In addition, she has performed and assistant stage managed with the Ohio Light Opera and Cardinal Stage Company.  When she is not singing, Laura serves bagels at the Bloomington Bagel Company, and is working towards her
master’s degree in Library Science at Indiana University.  She is a lover of music, books, planning, and baking.

lauren bernofsky

Lauren Bernofsky is a violinist, composer, and conductor.  In addition to having played in many ROK productions, she has written two shows for them, Mooch the Magnificent and Rufus and Rita.  Her music has been performed across the United States as well as internationally in major venues from Carnegie Hall in the U.S. to Grieg Hall in Bergen, Norway.  She is published by The FJH Music Company, Hal Leonard, Grand Mesa Music, Balquhidder Music, Fatrock Ink, Theodore Presser, Alfred Publishing, and Boosey & Hawkes.  She holds degrees from The Hartt School, New England Conservatory, and Boston University, where she earned a DMA in Composition.  She has taught at Boston University, University of Maryland Baltimore County, The Peabody Institute, and Interlochen. She conducts at regional festivals and serves as a clinician at schools, festivals and national conferences.

miles edwards

Miles Edwards is happy to begin his fifth season with ROK.  Miles is a cellist in the Muncie Symphony Orchestra, the Marion Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra.  He has also played with the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra, the Danville Symphony Orchestra, the Anderson Symphony Orchestra, and the Beloit Janesville Symphony Orchestra.  An avid performer of new music, he received the Mrs. Hong Pham Memorial Recognition Award for new music performance twice from Indiana University's composition department.  Miles received his bachelor's degree from Indiana University.  He has studied with Susan Moses, Benjamin Karp, and James Burch.

Nina yoshida nelson

Nina Yoshida Nelsen, mezzo soprano, is thrilled to be performing with ROK.

Nina has performed with many opera companies including New York City Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Seattle Opera, Utah Opera, Opera Santa Barbara, Sarasota Opera, Opera New Jersey, Orange County Opera, Opera Providence, Phoenicia International Festival and Utah Festival Opera in the United States and the Royal Albert Hall London and the Komischer Kammeroper in Munich performing roles such as Carmen, Suzuki in Madama Buttterfly, Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro, Rebecca in The Crucible, Stephano in Romeo et Juliette, the mother in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte, the Secretary in The Consul. Smeton in Anna Bolena, Erika in Vanessa Idamante in Idomeneo, Hermia in A Midsummernight’s Dream the Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors and well as the world premieres of Memory Stone by Marty Regan, Khanh in Bound by Huang Ruo and Mama in An American Dream by Jack Perla.

On the concert stage Ms. Nelsen has appeared at Avery Fischer Hall and Carnegie Hall, with the Santa Barbara Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Bakersfield Symphony, Peoria Symphony, and Santa Fe Concert Association in such works as The Messiah, the Verdi Requiem, Beethoven Symphony 9th, Mozart’s Coronation Mass.

Originally from Santa Barbara, California, Nina makes her home in Bloomington, Indiana with her husband, Canadian Hornist Jeff Nelsen and their two sons Rhys and Blair.

Paula Wilson

Paula Wilson is freshman flutist from San Antonio, Texas. She attends Indiana University in the Jacobs School of Music and is studying with Professor Kate Lukas.

rose stroup

​Rose Stroup is a freshman in the Jacobs School of Music, studying under Patricia Stiles.  She has participated in the St. Luke Passion by Penderecki, and she has played the roles of Belle in Beauty and the Beast and Lily St. Regis in Annie. 

tiffany xie

Tiffany Xie is an undergraduate at Indiana University studying biology and English.  Her best friend's mom was a piano teacher in elementary school, so she started taking piano lessons.  In middle school orchestra, she picked up the viola.  Now, she is a violist in the Bloomington Symphony.  Through ROK, she hopes that she can show others that anybody can be a musician!

yeajin kim

Yeajin Kim, 23-year-old violinist from Daegu, Korea, is a young professional artist who enjoys a career as both a performer and educator.  She started to study the violin at the age of six with Suzuki Method studies.

Kim has won a number of national and international competitions, including New York Artists International Competition and East Coast International Competition.  She was invited to perform at the Waltz & Dr. Mahn Young Artist Concert and also has played at the Seoul, Ansan, Goyang and Namyangju in Korea.  She has been present at Music festivals in Toronto, Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, and the Philippines.  She has played in several orchestras with Hun Joung Lim, Nanse Gum, and Han-na Chang as a professional violinist and chamber musician in Korea.

Kim is enthusiastic about music education.  She has a Secondary Teaching Certificate of Music, and she was a Siheung-si, or Music Mentoring Teacher, in Korea.  Both academically and musically high-achieving, she won a full-tuition grant from Seoul Arts High school and Seoul National University.

Kim received a Bachelors degree in violin performance from Seoul National University in February 2017, and she is currently pursuing a Master of Music degree at Indiana University under the tuition of Professor Jorja Fleezanis.

Yi-De Chen

Yi-De Chen is currently studying for his M.M. degree in Music Composition at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music under the instruction of Prof. P. Q. Phan and Prof. Don Freund. 

Chen’s music has been performed in many concerts, including "The Sound of Formosa," final concert of the composition competition held by the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra (2015), and the 32nd Asian Composers League Conference & Festival in Japan (2014).  He also works as a film music composer, songwriter, and audio engineer.  Chen is excited to share his music of profound creativity, inspiration, and happiness with audiences.