Join us for a special night of conversation, celebration, and music as we welcome Kathryn Frady, Opera in the Heights’ new Interim General Director. This is your chance to get to know Kathryn beyond the stage—learn about her journey, her vision for Opera in the Heights, and her passion for keeping opera alive and thriving in Houston.
As part of the evening, you’ll also enjoy a rare and intimate performance by Kathryn herself. Paired with a delicious dinner, wine, and great company.
Come celebrate with us, connect with fellow opera lovers, and help us toast to an exciting new chapter at Opera in the Heights.
Event Details:
Saturday, October 4 | 6pm-9pm
Collina's Italian Cafe
502 W 19th St, Houston, TX 77008
$75 per ticket. Your ticket is more than admission — it’s an evening of food, wine, and world-class music, with proceeds directly supporting our artists.
Click here to purchse your ticket online.
Or keep reading to explore sponsorship opportunities
(Call 713-861-5303 for assistance over the phone.)
Sponsors play a crucial role in underwriting artist fees and ensuring our productions thrive. We invite you to join us at one of the following levels:
Presenting Sponsor – $2,000 (6 complimentary tickets + premier recognition)
Supporting Sponsor – $1,000 (4 complimentary tickets + recognition)
Friend Sponsor – $500 (2 complimentary tickets + recognition)
Your sponsorship ensures the strength of our upcoming season and affirms your role as a champion for the arts in Houston.
About OH’s new Interim Director, Kathryn Frady
Kathryn Frady has a wealth of opera experience from performing, directing, producing, teaching, and consulting. Frady continues to be a sought out soprano and director performing nationally and internationally to critical acclaim most recently working at companies such as Tulsa Opera, Wichita Grand Opera, and Mobile Opera. She began her work as an arts administrator as the Founder of Marble City Opera where she has been the Executive Artistic Director for 12 years. During her tenure at Marble City Opera she built the company from the ground up using ground breaking innovative performances and community-centric fundraising practices while focusing on providing opportunities for emerging artists. Creating intimate and accessible opera productions by producing new American opera and relevant performances of traditional operas in unique venues, Frady has been making opera inclusive and accessible since 2013. Within a very short amount of time, Frady has garnered community and industry acclaim through her entrepreneurial spirit and artistic vision for Marble City Opera, with ten Marble City Opera productions named Most Memorable Opera or Music Performance of their year. In 2016, Frady was named one of Ten Women in Knoxville who Make a Difference by The Knoxville Mercury, and recognized as a Trailblazer in 2019 by A Step Ahead Foundation of East Tennessee.
Frady was also the General Director & CEO of Opéra Louisiane from 2022-2024. During her tenure with Opéra Louisiane, Frady made a positive impact on the organization, steering it through a period of growth and artistic innovation. Under Frady's leadership, Opéra Louisiane achieved important milestones, including the introduction of critically acclaimed productions such as the world premiere of The Christmas Spider by Clint Borzoni and John de los Santos, and bringing lesser-known operas such as Saint-Saëns’ Hell’s Bell to site-specific locations including the Old State Capitol. Frady expanded the Young People’s Opera Program into more elementary schools throughout the city bringing opera to more than 5,000 children. Her work with grant writing and donor engagement also helped her successfully guide the organization’s budget coming out of the COVID pandemic.
Kathryn has a Bachelor of Music and Master of Music in Opera Performance from the University of North Texas, Certificates in Executive Women in Leadership and Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University and a Fundraising Management Certificate from Boston University. Kathryn is an alumni of Opera America's prestigious Leadership Intensive.
About special guest tenor Jonny Kaufman
In their review of tenor Jonny Kaufman’s portrayal, BroadwayWorld noted, “Kaufman, as Pinkerton, has a voice so grand – even heroic – that there are many times when, lost in the glory of that voice, we quite forget what a cad the Lieutenant is. Superb!” This season, Mr. Kaufman sings the title role in Faust with Opera Western Reserve, Don Jose in Carmen at Charleston Opera Theater, and he makes his San Diego Opera debut as Don Jose in Carmen. He also joined the Fireland Symphony in concert. Last season, Kaufman made his role debut as Samson in Samson et Dalila with St. Petersburg Opera, which he also covered for New Orleans Opera, and he returned to Opera Carolina to sing Don Jose. He joined Fort Worth Symphony to sing the Steersman and cover Erik in Der fliegende Holländerand North Carolina Opera to cover the title role in Ernani. This past summer, he joined DC Choral Arts at the Kennedy Center for Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, and he sang Canio with Union Avenue Opera. Other recent engagements include Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana and Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly with Opera Carolina, Don Jose with Opera Western Reserve, Rodolfo in La bohème with Opera Grand Rapids, Cavaradossi in Tosca with Opera Wilmington, and his house debut at New Orleans Opera as Pinkerton.
About pianist Janice Fehlauer
Janice Fehlauer was the gold medalist of the Wideman International Piano Competition, and has appeared as a concerto soloist with many orchestras across the United States and Canada. She recently completed a solo recital tour of the UK, including a performance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Janice is also an opera coach who has been on the staff of the Franco-American Vocal Academy, American Institute of Musical Studies in Austria, The Dallas Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Taos Opera Institute, UNT Opera Theater, Moores Opera Center, and the Houston Symphony Chorus. Janice holds degrees in music from the University of British Columbia, the University of North Texas, and the University of Houston.