Three Questions with Four Choristers

Three Questions With...
Megan Gloss, soprano
Rick Henslin, baritone
Matthew Lea, tenor
Laura Muller, mezzo
Madison Opera Chorus, Sweeney Todd


1.  What is your day job?
Megan: Feature writer and reporter at TH Media, in Dubuque, Iowa, as well as editor for a women's magazine, Her.  Additionally, I am a regular contributor to Classical Singer Magazine, as well as VoiceCouncil Magazine in London.  Somehow I also find time to act as a lead vocalist of a jazz band, frequently perform as a guest soloist with orchestras and ensembles throughout the region, produce/direct/music direct shows regionally and maintain a private voice studio.

Rick: I work for GE Healthcare as a Remote Technical Engineer supporting the equipment used to measure bone density (osteoporosis) and body composition.

Matthew: Project Manager at an IT solution provider.

Laura: I work full time as a laboratory manager and research specialist at UW Madison in the bacteriology department. I am also going to school part-time so I can apply this fall for a doctor of physical therapy program. I volunteer as a crisis counselor for the Trevor Project, the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth.  When I'm not doing any of those things, I'm training for the 2015 Wisconsin Ironman Triathlon which happens this September.

2.  What are you most excited about for Madison Opera's Sweeney Todd? 
Megan: Digging into this intense and beautifully complicated music with such a talented and committed group of people!

Rick: Working with Maestro DeMain to revive his interpretation of this production from many years ago.

Matthew: This is my first experience with the show and the music is fun to learn. I am also looking forward to seeing the set and costumes that are being created especially for this production.

Laura: I love things that are very dark and macabre, and this show is nothing if not that. I'm looking forward to doing everything I possibly can to totally freak out the audience and help them find the joy in the grisly gruesomeness of it all!


3.  What is your favorite show that you've been in?
Megan: Last season's Madison Opera production of Dead Man Walking is hard to top, but if I had to pick others that have been significant for me are playing Aldonza in Man of La Mancha, Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance, and Alma in The Christmas Schooner (a show in which I met my husband).

Rick: I was fortunate to play the role of Sweeney Todd in the 2006 staging by Four Seasons Theater in the Wisconsin Union Theater. The experience of the opening scene of the show, hearing the shrill whistle, then coming up through the trap of the stage surrounded by the ensemble and fog was unforgettable.

Matthew: Dead Man Walking. The music was spectacular and it is such a moving story.

Laura: So far, my favorite show to be a part of with Madison Opera was absolutely Dead Man Walking. Nothing has ever touched me in such a profound and meaningful way, and I will be forever grateful for having had the opportunity to be a part of it.


Don't miss the chance to see these four amazing singers in Sweeney Todd, a thrilling American masterpiece!  Performances are February 6, 7, and 8 in the Capitol Theater.  Tickets start at $25; visit madisonopera.org for more information.