Haolun Zhang is a Chinese countertenor gaining recognition in the Dallas–Fort Worth area for his captivating showmanship and singular vocalism. In addition to making his Opera Arlington debut, he will also perform Ruggiero in Handel’s Alcina with UNT Opera this season. His most recent roles include Ottone in Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea and Prince Orlofsky in Strauss’ Die Fledermaus. Other stage credits include Dorothée in Massenet’s Cendrillon, Oberon in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Goffredo in Handel’s Rinaldo with CS Opera, Pâtre in Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges, and Oreste in Francesca Caccini’s La liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina. As a concert soloist, he has appeared in Carmina Burana with the Xinghai Symphony Orchestra and in Honegger’s King David with the UNT Symphony Orchestra.

Haolun is a prizewinner of several international competitions, including the Encouragement Award at the 2025 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition, Second Place in the Voice of the Yellow River International Vocal Competition, Third Place in the Bologna International Vocal Competition, and First Prize at the Hong Kong International Music Festival Competition.

Haolun is currently pursuing his Doctor of Musical Arts in Performance at the University of North Texas College of Music, studying with Dr. Daniel Bubeck. He earned his Master of Music from the Manhattan School of Music under the guidance of Joan Patenaude Yarnell.

Kelsey Korman, mezzo-soprano, is a versatile artist who has performed in operas, musicals, and  jazz ensembles throughout her career. Praised by Dallas Theatre Journal for her comedic timing, Kelsey brings her unique and humorous perspective to each and every  character she portrays. Her operatic roles include Armelinde (Cendrillon) and Turnspit (Rusalka) with Opera Arlington, Prince Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus) and the title role of Amahl and the Night Visitors with Music On Site, Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro) and the title role of The Little Prince with Red River Lyric Opera, Papagena (Die Zaberflöte) with Music Ministry Conservatory, and Zita (Gianni Schicchi) and Kate Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly) with UNT Opera. On the musical theatre stage, her recent performances include Mary McDonnell (National Pastime) with McKinney Repertory Theatre, Irene Molloy (Hello, Dolly!) with Sherman Community Players, Jack’s Mother (Into The Woods) with North Texas Performing Arts, and Milly Pontipee (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers) with Love Your City Theater. Kelsey had the pleasure of making her choreographer debut this year, choreographing the dances for the new musical National Pastime, which premiered in North Texas at McKinney Repertory Theatre this October. She is also the music director for Love Your City Theater, a local community theater located in Cedar Hill, Texas. Kelsey holds a Master of Music and a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of North Texas.

Shuyi Li, a rising soprano from Beijing, China, is praised by audiences for her shimmering upper register and charming stage presence. She has recently performed the roles of Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte) and Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel) with UNT Opera; Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi), Suor Genovieffa / Una conversa (Suor Angelica) with Bay View Music Festival; Kate (The Pirates of Penzance) with Cedar Rapids Opera; and Cupid (Orpheus in the Underworld) with Hawaii Performing Arts Festival. Her other credits include A Voice (La Rondine) with Indiana University Opera Theater, Lizzie (Goblin Market) with Eastman Opera Theater, Papagena (Die Zauberflöte) with Beijing Concert Hall. Shuyi has also performed scenes as the roles of Susanna (Le nozze di Figaro), Flaminia (Il mondo della luna), Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Musetta (La bohème), Despina (Così fan tutte).

In 2025, Shuyi was featured as the soprano soloist in Arthur Honegger’s King David, presented by the UNT Grand Chorus and Symphony Orchestra. In January 2026, she has been invited to join the Cascade Song Festival in Seattle as a performer-scholar, presenting her research on performer-created visual art as an analytical and expressive tool in art song interpretation. In the 2025–2026 season, she will perform the roles of Fox/Rose/Water (The Little Prince) with The Dallas Opera and will join The Dallas Opera Chorus. Other upcoming engagements include Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) with Opera Arlington and Mary Ellen (That Hellbound Train) with UNT Opera.

Shuyi is a third-year DMA student and Teaching Fellow at the University of North Texas under the tutelage of Dr. Carol Wilson. She earned her master’s degree in vocal performance from Indiana University and her bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from Eastman School of Music and Central Conservatory of Music, Beijing.

Beatrice Kim is a Korean-American soprano and Eastman alumna based in the Dallas–Fort Worth area. She previously appeared with Opera Arlington as Zerlina (Don Giovanni). Her other recent performances include Littler Daughter (Proving Up), Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel), and Noémie (Cendrillon), and as a Young Artist for Cedar Rapids Opera, she covered the role of Despina (Così fan tutte). 

Beatrice’s concert highlights span Snider’s Mass for the Endangered, Mozart’s Coronation Mass, Haydn’s Heiligmesse, Einhorn’s Voices of Light, and several performances in Germany. A passionate advocate for opera outreach, Beatrice has worked for the non-profit organizations What is Opera, Anyway? and Reimagining Opera for Kids.

Beatrice holds degrees from Indiana University, Eastman School of Music, and the University of Oklahoma, and is currently a doctoral student and Teaching Fellow at the University of North Texas.

Brianna Clancy debuted with Opera Arlington as Dorabella in Così fan tutte and appeared with the company last season as Armelinde in Pauline Viardot’s Cendrillon. She was recently praised for her moving portrayal of the title role in Suor Angelica with Atchley Opera, a career highlight that showcased both her dramatic intensity and soaring vocalism. Based in DFW, Clancy is a versatile and frequently featured artist on North Texas stages, known for her magnetic stage presence and powerful voice.

In 2023, Brianna sang the role of Mercédès with Diversità Opera Arts, where she also covered the title role in Carmen. Other notable credits include Musette in Leoncavallo’s La Bohème for The Puccini Society of Dallas, and Susanna in scenes from The Marriage of Figaro with HanOpera.

An active advocate for regional opera, Clancy serves as co-manager of Opera on Tap DFW and is a founder of OperaOn75, a new company in McKinney, Texas, dedicated to bringing accessible opera performances to North Texas communities. As a concert soloist, she has appeared with Christ the King Singers, the Allen Symphony Orchestra, and Southwestern Oklahoma State University, where she also taught master classes and performed Vivaldi’s Introit & Gloria.

Beyond performing, Clancy runs a thriving private voice studio in Princeton, Texas, and holds degrees from the University of Oklahoma (MM, Opera) and Luther College (BA, Voice).

Sarah Harvey, a mezzo-soprano from Texarkana, Texas, is a multifaceted vocalist, performer, and music educator. She has appeared in a range of operatic roles, including The Witch (Hänsel und Gretel, 2024), Mercédès (Carmen, 2023), and The Sorceress (Dido and Aeneas, 2022), among others.

Sarah is also engaged with The Dallas Opera, joining the chorus for their upcoming 2026 production of Don Carlo. An accomplished ensemble artist across the Dallas–Fort Worth area, Sarah performs with professional choral groups such as The Orpheus Chamber Singers and Verdigris, and serves as a staff singer at St. Rita Catholic Church where she recently appeared as mezzo-soprano soloist in Duruflé’s Requiem.

Holding degrees in both Music Education (B.M.E., Texas A&M–Commerce) and Performance (M.M. and Graduate Artist Certificate, University of North Texas), Sarah’s pedagogical style combines classical bel canto training with a focus on artistry, confidence-building, and comprehensive music literacy. 

Baritone Brandon Gibson is known for his resonant tone and commanding vocal presence. He is delighted to return to Opera Arlington after his debut as Leporello in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, in which he was praised for his “impeccable comedic timing and effortless delivery,” and hailed as “the true scene-stealer.”

In 2026, he will perform the roles of Karl Marx, Mr. Lister, and others in Elizabeth Cree with Opera Today! in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Brandon has appeared as a soloist with the Dallas Bach Society, Irving Symphony, Voces Intimae, and Amarillo Opera, performing major works such as Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Requiem, Fauré’s Requiem, and numerous Bach cantatas. His operatic repertoire includes Ein Musiklehrer (Ariadne auf Naxos), Mr. Gedge (Albert Herring), Achilla (Giulio Cesare), Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte), Apollon/Pluton (La descente d’Orphée aux enfers), Baron Douphol (La traviata), Melchior (Amahl and the Night Visitors), and Peter (Hansel and Gretel). With The Dallas Opera, he has performed the roles of Un commissionario in La traviata and Sergente dei doganieri in La Bohème.

Brandon holds degrees in Vocal Performance from Rice University and Southern Methodist University.

Isaac Carlin is an exciting young baritone from Omaha, Nebraska. He recently returned from southern France, where he performed as Papageno (Die Zauberflöte), singing the role in the medieval French dialect of Occitan. In 2023, with UNT Opera, Isaac performed as Escamillo (Carmen) in the original French, after which he toured the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex with performances in both English and Spanish.

Recent roles include Schaunard (La bohème) in concert with the Sherman Symphony Orchestra and Sacristan (Tosca) with the UNT Symphony Orchestra, as well as the title role in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte), Falke (Die Fledermaus), and Pa Zegner (Proving Up) with UNT Opera.

Isaac is a third-year doctoral student at the University of North Texas under the tutelage of Dr. Stephen Morscheck.

Mezzo-soprano Kaswanna Kanyinda has been praised for her dramatic presence, vocal warmth, and as a “talent to keep a sharp lookout for.” She is making her mainstage debut with Opera Arlington. This past season, she finished her second year as a Resident artist at Fort Worth Opera and had success as a finalist and semi-finalist in competitions by Austin Music Club, Opera Ebony, Young Texas Artists, Shreveport Opera, Lorne Zachary, MIOpera, and Annapolis Opera. Kaswanna has worked with companies such as Chicago Opera Theatre, Opera Theatre Saint Louis, Finger Lakes Opera, Toledo Opera, Detroit Opera Theatre, Opera Grand Rapids, Spoleto Festival, and Long Leaf Opera. As more contemporary operas have blossomed in the industry, she has been cast in modern operas such as Blue, Omar, and Stinney: The American Tragedy with Opera Toledo, Spoleto Opera Festival, and Opera Grand Rapids, respectively. During the 2020 pandemic, she played the role of Flosshilde in Detroit Opera Theatre’s Twilight: Gods after winning a Wilde Award for her performance as the Mother in Opera MODO’s production of The Consul the previous year.

Kaswanna’s participation in summer programs such as Pittsburgh Festival Opera, FAVA, CoOperative, and Amalfi Coast Festival furthered the education and experience she received from University of Michigan and UNC Chapel Hill. Under the tutelage of Professor George Shirley and Dr. Louise Toppin, respectively at these institutions, Kaswanna experienced unforgettable moments in her career such as performing at the Kennedy Center and performing the national anthem for President Barack Obama. A North Carolina native, she now resides in the Dallas–Fort Worth area as a free-lance performer after working with Chicago Opera Theatre in their production of She Who Dared.

Soprano and Dallas native Kyrie Laybourn is making her Opera Arlington debut, and is delighted to return to the stage in her home community. Kyrie recently completed two seasons as the soprano Resident Artist at Tri-Cities Opera (2022–24), where she performed Countess Almaviva (Le nozze di Figaro), Mrs. Gobineau (The Medium), Berta (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Bessie Mae in an LGBTQ+ adaptation of The Fantasticks, and multiple characters in Jorge Sosa's I Am A Dreamer Who No Longer Dreams, presented at both Tri-Cities Opera and Syracuse Opera. Additional credits include appearances with Boulder Opera as Countess Almaviva, Lucia (Cavalleria rusticana), and Rosine (Signor Deluso); Joanne (Company, Opera Steamboat); and with CU's Eklund Opera as Lady with Cakebox (Postcard from Morocco), Joan of the Ground (Joan of the City), Gertrude (Hänsel und Gretel), and Annina (La traviata). 

Named the 2020 NATS West Central Region Classical Singer of the Year, Kyrie has also been recognized as a Semi-Finalist in the 2019 Elizabeth Connell Prize (Joan Sutherland & Richard Bonynge Foundation) and as a Finalist in the 2024 Art Song Colorado Competition. She holds a Bachelor of Music Education from Oklahoma City University and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Colorado Boulder. 

Originally from Brookings, South Dakota, Taylor Fenner is a soprano based in the Dallas–Fort Worth Area with experience in a variety of styles and repertoires. She recently appeared as the Fairy in Cinderella with Opera Arlington, as well as Yvette/Georgette (La Rondine), Sherry (That Hell-bound Train), the titular role in Alcina in Poland, Micaëla (Carmen), Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), and Ida (Die Fledermaus) in Berlin.

A passionate concert soloist and choral performer, Taylor has had the pleasure of performing with many choral and orchestral ensembles including the Dallas Bach Society, Orpheus Chamber Ensemble, Compline Choir, Osanna Chamber Ensemble, Heri et Hodie, Bach Ensemble of Saint Thomas, and the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra in performances of Mozart’s Requiem; Bach’s Magnificat, Oster-Oratorium, Mass in B Minor, and Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme; Handel’s Dixit Dominus and Messiah; and Vivaldi’s Gloria. This season, Taylor will perform Bach’s Non sa che sia dolore and Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen with the Dallas Bach Society.

Taylor received her Master of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of North Texas and received her Bachelor of Arts in Music Education and Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from Augustana University.

Carelle Flores is an experienced performer on the opera stage, praised for her magnetic portrayals of a diverse range of soprano roles. She has performed as a soloist with The Dallas Opera, Opera Southwest, Palm Beach Opera, Ashlawn Opera Festival, Sarasota Opera, The Cambridge Symphony, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Music in the Mountains Festival, and Opera Carolina.

Carelle debuted the role of Maria in Opera Southwest’s world premiere of Bless Me, Ultima, and was the soprano soloist for the premiere of Blake Hensen’s Magnificat. She was also a Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Semi-Finalist, and is a graduate of Indiana University School of Music, where she performed the roles of Constanze in Abduction from the Seraglio, Mimì in La Bohème, and Maria in West Side Story.

Yu-Hsuan Lu is an active collaborative pianist with a passion for opera and vocal repertoire. Based in North Texas, she enjoys a diverse career as a performer, coach, and educator, maintaining an active freelance schedule with singers, instrumentalists, and opera companies. Yu-Hsuan recently made her debut with Atchley Opera as pianist for Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi. In 2022, she served as pianist-coach with Music On Site for its production of Carmen. She has also worked extensively with UNT Opera as a graduate assistant, supporting productions and coaching singers in preparation for staged performances.

Currently a doctoral candidate in Collaborative Piano at the University of North Texas, Yu-Hsuan holds two Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, one in Collaborative Piano and the other in Piano Performance. Prior to her doctoral studies, she was appointed Associate Professor of Piano at Huaiyin Normal University in China, where she taught piano and chamber music.

Dedicated to both performance and teaching, Yu-Hsuan is passionate about fostering musical collaboration and artistry across genres. She currently serves as an adjunct collaborative pianist at Southern Methodist University, while continuing to appear regularly in recital and opera productions throughout North Texas.

Pianist Molly Smith, an avid performer whose passion lies in collaborative work, is originally from South Jordan, Utah. Her awards include selection as a Signature Artist at the Oracle Chamber Music Festival, first place in the Young Collaborative Pianists Competition, and winner of the Brigham Young University concerto competition.

Molly has served as the Collaborative Piano Teacher’s Assistant at the Brevard Music Center, performing in orchestras and chamber groups as well as working alongside individual young artists to present concerts across Brevard campus and beyond. Her recent work as a rehearsal pianist, coach, and orchestral keyboardist has included The Medium, Così fan tutte, Aleko, and Gianni Schicchi.

Molly is currently a master’s student at the University of North Texas, where she studies collaborative piano with Dr. Elvia Puccinelli, and Dr. Steven Harlos.