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The Westminster Choir College CoOPERAtive Program will present Donizetti’s comedic opera L’Elisir d’Amore (The Elixir of Love) on Thursday, January 15 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, January 16 at 7:30 p.m. in Bristol Chapel on the campus of Westminster Choir College in Princeton, N.J.

The opera, with a libretto by Felice Romani, is remembered for its memorable characters, whimsical wit, and Una furtive lagrima, one of the most hauntingly beautiful of all tenor arias. Led by Musical Director and Conductor Susan Shiplett Ashbaker and Stage Director Brandon Motz, this semi-staged production will be performed with piano accompaniment and sung in Italian with English supertitles.  The cast is composed of alumni of Westminster’s CoOPERAtive summer opera training program. Rexford Tester will sing the role of Nemorino, Erica Intilangelo will sing the role of Adina, Scott Purcell will sing the role of Belcore, Zachary Coates will sing the role of Dulcamara and Ashley Carver will sing the role of Giannetta. 

The CoOPERAtive Program is a three-week intensive program for aspiring opera singers that includes private coaching that focuses on operatic style, performance techniques, dramatic presentation, language and diction and body awareness, as well as résumé and application advice.  Directed by Westminster Voice faculty members Laura Brooks Rice and Christopher Arneson, the CoOPERAtive Program is presented in cooperation and consultation with professionals in the field of opera.

Susan Shiplett Ashbaker is active in the opera and vocal world as an independent artistic advisor/consultant, master class presenter, lecturer and opera/vocal coach.  She was affiliated with the Opera Company of Philadelphia for 16 years, where she served as director of artistic and music administration, leading the casting practices and reestablishing the company as a pioneer in identifying and offering opportunities to young singers before they achieved national or international recognition; giving new and unique opportunities to well established artists; as well as supervising all activities of the Artistic and Music Departments.  In addition, she has worked as assistant conductor and vocal coach with New York City Opera; European Center for Opera and Vocal Arts in Belgium; New Israeli Vocal Arts Institute; International Vocal Arts Institute in Montreal; Theater am Goetheplatz in Bremen, Germany; the Academy of Vocal Arts, and she was on the faculty of The Curtis Institute of Music from 1993 to 2010.  

Ms. Ashbaker has been artistic advisor for the CoOPERAtive Program at Westminster Choir College, since its inception in 2005.  In addition to that role, she is one of the master vocal coaches and master class presenters for the program. She is an adjunct professor at Westminster Choir College and is the new general director for Tri-Cities Opera.

Rexford Tester was most recently seen at The Dallas Opera performing on its “Mozart and Co.” family concert. Last summer he was an apprentice singer with the Santa Fe Opera where he covered Ernesto in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale and sang the role of Il Contino Belfiore in a scene from Mozart’s La finta giardiniera. His other recent credits include Tonio in Donizetti’s La fille du Régiment with the CoOPERAtive Program at Westminster Choir College, Rinuccio in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi and Hoffmann in Offenbach’s Les contes d’Hoffmann with Westminster Opera Theatre. Mr. Tester was a grand finalist in the 2014 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. In 2015, he will sing Lindoro in Rossini’s L’italiana in Algeri with Tri-Cities Opera. Mr. Tester will also join the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program at Washington National Opera in March.

Tickets are $25 general admission. They can be purchased at the door, through the box office at 609-921-2663, or online at . For more information, visit . Proceeds from these performances will benefit the Westminster CoOPERAtive Program.