2013
Our goal is to bring the finest artists to the finest theaters world wide, with careful attention given to establishing and maintaining professional careers. The Laifer roster is divided among Americans, Europeans and Asians, stars and emerging talents.

I believe very strongly that it is of the utmost importance to find the "right manager" - someone who "guides and nurtures" careers, and helps the artist understand what is necessary in order to advance at the various stages that happen in the course of a lifetime career. This "marriage" between artist and manager is perhaps the most important professional decision that the artist will have to make alone - and this choice will shape what happens and when, in the natural evolution of a career. I maintain a very small and select group of singers and conductors, so that I can have the time and energy necessary to accomplish these goals.

The newest artists on the Laifer Roster are: the young Russian born tenor Viktor Antipenko, who made his impressive debut at the Bolshoi Opera as Don Jose on January 24 and 26, 2013 and was immediately re-engaged to return as Don Jose as well as Erik in Der Fliegende Hollander. A recent graduate of AVA in Philadelphia where he performed Riccardo in Oberto and Luigi in Tabarro in concert at the Kimmel Center, is on his way to an international career. The fall had him in Lyon’s Macbeth. Upcoming roles include Pinkerton and the title role in Sadko; Mexican born tenor Diego Silva, is a second-year resident artist at AVA in Philadelphia who recently performed Lensky in their Eugene Onegin. He recently made his New York City concert debut with Opera Hispanica with soprano Eglise Gutierrez. Upcoming performances include Rodolfo in La bohéme with The Yucatan Symphonic Orchestra in early summer; Russian born bass Roman Ialcic had a great success as Tomsky last summer in Grange Park’s Pique Dame. Last season he also performed Don Basilio in Barbiere for Scottish Opera and Dvorak’s Stabat Mater in Madrid. Upcoming will be his Seattle Opera debut covering Fafner and Hunding in their Ring Cycle and his Bolshoi Opera debut next season in their Tsar's Bride.

Acclaimed Russian born mezzosoprano Elena Bocharova recently made her debut with the Warsaw Philharmonic as Amneris in their Verdi Celebration Aida. She had opened the current season in Edmonton in a celebratory gala Aida. Last season she debuted as Santuzza in the Mumbai International Festival to begin 2012. She replaced Olga Borodina as Dalila with the Orchestre National du Capitole and at the Salle Pleyel in Paris in 2011 and had a great triumph. Just prior she had a great success as Dallas Opera’s Marina and as Trieste’s Dalila preceded by an acclaimed Verdi Requiem. Also recently, she received standing ovations as Azucena in Macau Opera’s Festival Trovatore. She made her Italian debut as the Principessa in Adriana in Firenze succeeding her Canadian debut in a New Years Eve Gala in Toronto to begin 2010. Important roles have come into her repertoire recently including her “sensational Azucena" for Southern Opera New Zealand; her first Amneris was “very vibrant, gutsy with steely resolve” in 2008. Her Dalila “stole the show” for Dayton Opera in 2007. She was a “gutsy and thrilling Carmen” in Kansas City and a Carmen “seething with sensuality with a voice of enveloping warmth” in Dayton. She appeared with NYCOpera in her debut as Carmen in 2003 and in a Richard Tucker Gala at Avery Fisher Hall. Her Opera de Paris debut took place in Boris in 2005. She was Carmen for her Semperoper debut in Dresden in 2006, Amneris at the Savonlinna Festival in 2008, sang the Verdi Requiem with the Bergen Philharmonic to great public and critical acclaim and also performed her "excellent and voluptuosly sung Amneris" with the Minnesota Orchestra. She is presently in Paris for Laura and returns there again next fall as Amneris in a new Aida. She will perform Santuzza in Toulouse the following spring followed by the Foreign Princess in a concert performance of Rusalka at the Concertgebouw. Exciting coloratura soprano Rachelle Durkin recently was the "star" of Orpheus in the Underworld for Opera Australia having opened the current season with Opera Hong Kong as Violetta. Just prior she had a “triumph” in her first Lucia with Chautauqua after performing her first Violetta for OpAus last spring having performed Donna Anna just prior. She had a great success in West Australia as the Hoffmann Ladies last season and performed Norina in her Met Opera broadcast debut. Other recent appearances: lead soprano in the MET’s Satyagraha, the title role in OpAus Alcina, Gilda in Bilbao, Angelica in OpAus’s Orlando and Konstanze in Hawaii, Amina in Sonnambula in Perth. At the MET she reprised her role in Satyagraha and covered Rosina and Fille. Next season she returns to OpAus as Norina and to the MET in Sonnambula. Jeffrey Halili is a leading character tenor having performed Nerone, Pong/Pang, DBasilio, Borsa, Goro, Incredible, Bardolfo, Pedrillo…throughout the U.S. He appeared with the Phil Orch as David in Meistersinger, performed Goro with NYCOP, San Antonio and Florida. ‘10-11 started with Nashville Opera as Incredibile in Chenier, the Lancaster Symphony in the Verdi Requiem and San Antonio for Basilio. The holidays had him performing at Avery Fisher Hall in Amahl. He returned for Amahl last season and returned to Nashville as Nick in Fanciulla last spring after appearing with NYCOP as Gaston. Upcoming is a return to Virginia Opera as Bardolfo.

Spanish mezzosoprano Nancy Fabiola Herrera has performed in Mexico City, Paris, Montpellier, Madrid, the Metropolitan, Covent Garden, Verona, Tokyo and Las Palmas in recent seasons. Recent highlights have included Dalila (Manaus Fest), Carmen w/LA Opera and her season-opening debut at the Arena di Verona as Carmen in 2009, Las Palmas for L’Italiana and Malaga for Carmen and the Musikverein in Vienna for her recital debut there. Last year had her back to LA Opera in a world-premiere, Il Postino to open ‘10-11. She was Carmen in Dresden, and in Berlin this last year and München this season. She had recitals in Las Palmas, Tenerife, Valencia and Madrid. In 2011 she was Giovanna Seymour in Barcelona, performed in joint concert with Placido Domingo in Santo Domingo, returned to Paris as Maddalena and Las Palmas as Carmen in early 2012, and performed her “Gitanas” in Madrid, and recitals throughout Spain. She appeared in Santiago’s Il Postino this past summer followed by her debut at the Hollywood Bowl and in Tanglewood’s La Vida Breve with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and with Toronto, LA and Philadelphia orchestras this fall. She was Charlotte in Oviedo’s season-opening Werther this fall. She debuted with the Bayerische Staatsoper as Carmen at the beginning of 2013 followed by her return to the Casals Festival in the Verdi Requiem. She is presently at the Metropolitan for their new production of Rigoletto. Highlights of the following season include Madrid's Teatro Real in Il Postino and her debut with Opera Australia as Carmen. Wagnerian soprano Deborah Mayer has just debuted at the MET in their Ring cycle in this spring - performed the Immolation scene from Götterdämmerung with the Toledo Symphony and has appeared at Bayreuth. She performs Isolde with the Pohang Symphony in South Korea next season and is presently working on Turandot; soprano Galina Shesterneva debuted last season at the new Bolshoi Theater as Turandot followed by performances of Manon Lescaut in Bonn and Macbeth in Mannheim as well as Turandot, Butterfly and Manon Lescaut in Mannheim, Wiesbaden and Bonn. The current season began with Leonora (Forza) in Essen, her first Fanciulla in a new production, and a new Don Carlo, both in Mannheim this season. She also performed Tosca, a Gala Verdi Concert with the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie at the Alter Oper in Frankfurt and returns to the Bolshoi for Nabucco in the spring. She brings her Turandot to North America as well as Madama Butterfly the following season. Tenor Dongwon Shin has sung Radames in Covent Garden and Vienna, Manrico in Dresden, Montreal and Ft. Worth, Samson and the Verdi Requiem in Trieste, and Tosca and Turandot in Seuol these past two years. He recently brought his Manrico to Arizona Opera. Next season will see his Luigi in Tabarro with Opera Carolina and concerts in Korea as well as a return to Montreal in a future season.

Tenor Carl Tanner's recently had another great success as Radames (Toulon) after his resounding success as Radames at the Metroplitan Opera. He had just prior opened the current season as Radames for Edmonton’s 50th anniversary celebration. He also had a great triumph as Gherman in Pique Dame for the Grange Park Festival this past summer. He returns to Grange Park to perform three different operas in the next several seasons, including two new productions. His first Otello in 2010 was also a great success. Summer 2010 witnessed his return to the Minnesota Orch in Tosca and a great success as Dick Johnson in Fanciulla in concert at the Edinburgh Festival. In 2009 he was Pinkerton at the Opera de Paris and in recent seasons appeared at the Bregenz Festival (Trovatore-recorded for DVD), Brussels as Canio, Hamburg in Cav/Pag, and Firenze as Calaf (Mehta). He was “a stunning and powerful” Samson in Washington and performed in the Tucker Gala at Avery Fisher Hall and Fanciulla in Carnegie Hall in NY. Fall 2008 had him as Manrico for Dresden’s new Trovatore, Calaf in Hamburg and Radames in Berlin. Spring/summer 2009: Des Grieux - Las Palmas, Radames and Calaf in Dresden and Barcelona and Radames with the Minnesota Orch--then Dresden as Manrico, Hamburg as Radames and the Met as Dick Johnson in Fanciulla. After Pagliacci and Aida in Hamburg, he repeated his Otello in Dresden last year and sang Luigi in Tabarro at the Colon, Buenos Aires followed by Pagliacci in Napoli. He debuted at the Mariinsky in Pagliacci to standing ovations and appeared in Washington for Christmas concerts. He was in Berlin and debuted at the Bolshoi as Calaf to begin 2012 and returned to Hamburg for Radames and Calaf. The summer had him in Athens in Tosca. In early 2013 after the Metropolitan, he performed Tosca in Berlin and a new Fanciulla for Liege. The summer takes him back to the Minnesota Orchestra for Butterfly. Next season features his return to the Washington Opera for Moby Dick and to Grange Park in a new Peter Grimes.

Manager’s Report
April 13, 2013