Hello! Katherine Goforth (True Voice Award winner), Danielle Wright (Opera MODO), Bryce McClendon (Beyond Travesti podcast) and Dorian Block (OPERA America & Sphinx Leader) have been working together to develop artistic projects and realized that we would benefit from an online directory of trans, non-binary and gender-diverse opera and classical voice artists, and perhaps you would, too. We felt we would personally benefit from a searchable, publicly available directory and believe such a resource could facilitate connections between trans, non-binary, and gender-diverse opera and classical music professionals. Opera MODO is the first sponsor of this directory.
Our hope is that, in the future, there will be a network of arts organizations supporting and using this resource. If you are a trans, non-binary and/or gender-diverse person working in classical music and would like to be included in a public directory of trans, non-binary and gender-diverse classical music professionals, please respond to this survey. We will collect the information you provide and publish it on the Opera MODO website. Please only include information in your response that you are willing to share publicly and to include in a publicly accessible online professional directory.
After you submit your answers, we will contact you to confirm that your information is now included in the directory. We will also reach out to you with any questions about the information you provide. If you have any additional questions, or if there are requests that you prefer not to answer, please let us know at admin@operamodo.com and we will work together to find the best way forward.
Submit your info HERE!
Professional Directory is LIVE below and is updated on a rolling basis!
Lead Directory Organizers
Katherine Goforth (she/her/hers) is a trans feminist performer and creative artist whose work has received praise from the New York Times and Opera News and whose performances have included Aix-en-Provence, Bregenzer Festspiele, Manchester International Festival, Oper Köln, and Brooklyn Academy of Music. She has spoken for the League of American Orchestras, Boston Conservatory, and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra's Women in Classical Music Symposium (where she received the Career Advancement Award), and written for Opera Canada. Other work has included the development of new operas, most recently the first workshop performance of Opera Theater Oregon's Nu Nah-Hup: Sacajawea’s Story, a collaboration with Sacajawea’s familial descendant, Rose Ann Abrahamson, Native American flutist Hovia Edwards, and composer Justin Ralls. She received Washington National Opera’s inaugural True Voice Award for trans and non-binary singers. https://katherinegoforth.com/about
Dorian Block (he/him/his) is a trans-masculine leader of Hispanic and Native American heritage from Santa Fe, NM. He grew up attending, performing in, and eventually marketing for The Santa Fe Opera, contributing to multiple publications including the '2017 Season Program Book' and the Grammy Award Winning 'The Revolution of Steve Jobs' CD booklet. Dorian defined the role of Digital Marketing and Social Media Manager at The Dallas Opera, serving two seasons and strategically planning content through 2023. Dorian is a member of the fifth SphinxLEAD cohort for Black and Latinx Arts Administrators and the 2022‒2023 OPERA America Mentorship Program for Opera Leaders of Color. He serves on the Opera Canada Board as Secretary and Digital Strategy Committee member. Dorian is passionate about strategic visions incorporating socially conscious audience development, revenue diversification, and digital advancement in the performing arts to increase representation of intersectional diversity on both sides of the operatic stage. https://www.dorianblock.com/
Danielle Wright (they/xe) is a powerhouse: vibrant performer, in-demand director/producer, advocate for the collaborative arts in Detroit. In their “spare time”, Danielle founded Opera MODO to fill the need for emerging artists who are currently enrolled or finished with school, seeking opportunities to develop artistically and gain stage experience. Mx. Wright has forged numerous institutional relationships for Opera MODO in and around Detroit, including the Detroit Institute of the Arts and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. They also have a private voice and dramatic coaching studio in Detroit. Mx. Wright made xer Main Stage operatic debut in 2010 with Des Moines Metro Opera and maintains active stage and directing careers throughout the world while performing the duties of Executive Director and Founder of Opera MODO.
Bryce McClendon (they/them/theirs) is a multi-disciplinary performing artist, writer, teacher, and creative consultant based in Manhattan. Their work encourages artists and audience members to forge deep connections, question normalized forms of harm, and engage in radical, liberatory thinking. In March 2023, their play with opera (or plopera, if you prefer) The Smallest Sound, in the Smallest Space premiered at Nancy Manocherian's the cell theatre. Their podcast Beyond Travesti, an interview series with transgender and gender-expansive opera and music theater professionals, is available for download on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other streaming platforms.
As a countertenor, Bryce was a Regional Finalist in the 2020 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and a 2019 Eva & Marc Stern Fellow at SongFest in Los Angeles. They hold an M.M. in Vocal Performance from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre, and Dance. Recently, they had the distinct honor of singing for the memorial service of legendary playwright and activist, Larry Kramer, with countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo. In Fall 2023, they will perform with the Mosaic Composer's Collective at National Sawdust, and as part of the New York City AIDS Memorial's annual observance of World AIDS Day.
As a voice teacher and creative consultant, Bryce works with artists across a number of performing arts disciplines to achieve their visions through strategy, reflection, dialogue, and practice. Primarily, they work with vocal and dramatic artists interested in the music of the Baroque and Rennaisance eras. Bryce has consulted for singers who have performed with prestigious organizations like Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, Glyndebourne, Chateau de Versailles, Opéra national de Montpellier, American Bach Soloists, Boston Baroque, Michigan Opera Theater, Florida Grand Opera, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Portland Baroque Orchestra, and the Handel Choir of Baltimore. Their collaborators have taken home prizes from the Handel Aria Competition, the Gerda Lissner Vocal Competion, and the Camille Coloratura Competition.
