BRIAN J. ALVARADO

Singing with "a liquid baritone of great charm," "a highly attractive legato," and "precise patter elocution" (Parterre Box), Brian J. Alvarado is an emerging interpreter of known, unknown, and new music. 

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This season, he makes role debuts as Cesare Angelotti in Tosca with Opera Vermont and Silvio in Pagliacci with New Rochelle Opera, reprises Leporello in Don Giovanni with Amore Opera and an abridged version with Off-Brand Opera, returns to Killer Queen Opera as Caronte in L'Orfeo, and to Bronx Opera as Filiberto and Simone in their double-bill of Il Signor Bruschino and Gianni Schicchi, and as The Earl of Mountararat in Iolanthe. Additionally, he covers in La Vestale with Teatro Grattacielo and appears in concert with the Philadelphia Chorale and Riverside Choral Society, as a vocal mentor with National Children's Choir, and in film as Thésée in Hippolyte et Aricie with Brooklyn Telemann Chamber Society.

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In 2023, he made debuts as Eugene Johnson in the Colorado premiere of Scott Davenport Richards' Blind Injustice at Opera Theatre of the Rockies, Tom in Un ballo in maschera with Opera Project Columbus, Betto in Gianni Schicchi with SAS Concert Opera, Frosch and Frank in Ridgewood G&S Opera Company and New Rochelle Opera's respective productions of Die Fledermaus, covered Leporello in Don Giovanni with Light Opera of New Jersey, reprised Sciarrone in Tosca with Garden State Opera, and joined the inaugural roster of the New York Philharmonic Chorus.

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In recent seasons, he has performed traditional roles such as Leporello in Don Giovanni with Bronx Opera, Long Island Lyric Opera, and Lighthouse Opera, both The Magic Flute’s Papageno with Opera Theatre of Montclair and the Speaker with Barn Opera, Schaunard in La bohéme with Amore Opera and Regina Opera, Dandini in La Cenerentola with Bay View Music Festival and Opera Theatre of Montclair, and Sciarrone in Tosca with New Rochelle Opera, Long Island Lyric Opera, and Amore Opera. 

 

His early music and baroque roles include Nettuno in La liberazione di Ruggiero with dell’Arte Opera Ensemble (for which Oberon’s Grove praised his "voice of power and warmth"), Melisso in Alcina with OperaRox Productions, Seneca in Killer Queen Opera's filmed production of L'incoronazione di Poppea, the Adonis cover in Venus and Adonis with New Camerata Opera, and Caronte in L'Orfeo with the New York City Guitar Orchestra.

 

Roles within the realm of Operetta and Musical Theatre include the title role in The Sorcerer and Ludwig in The Grand Duke with Utopia Opera, Pish-Tush in The Mikado with Bronx Opera, a "sonorous" Baron de Pictordu in Cendrillon with dell’Arte Opera Ensemble (Limelight Magazine), Cascada in The Merry Widow at the Minuetto Music Festival, Lopez in El Barbero de Sevilla with New Camerata Opera, Magaldi in Evita at the Bay View Music Festival, Lieutenant Barri in Passion and Bob the Saw in Threepenny Opera at Susquehanna University, and the title role in Sweeney Todd with City Island Theatre. 

 

Additional roles include a "vulnerable" Farář/Jezevec in Příhody lišky Bystroušky with dell'Arte Opera Ensemble (Opera News), Mercutio in Roméo et Juliette with West Side Opera, Kuno and the Ottokar cover in Der Freischütz, and Corporal Nym and the George Page Cover in Sir John in Love with Bronx Opera, Fiorello in Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Silvano in Un Ballo in Maschera with Amore Opera, Truffaldin in Ariadne auf Naxos, the Sheriff in Martha, Jacob in The Ballad of Baby Doe, and the Captain and Zaretzky in Eugene Onegin with Utopia Opera, Vergil’s Ghost in Rachmaninoff’s Francesca da Rimini with Garden State Opera, the Tsarevich Afron cover in Zolotoy Petushok with New Opera NYC, the Alcade/Chirurgo cover in La forza del destino with New Amsterdam Opera, Simone in Gianni Schicchi at Susquehanna University, and all of the bass clef comprimarios in Empire Opera's Macbeth concert. 

 

He has premiered the soloist role in the virtual premiere of Steven Sérpa's American Prize finalist micro-opera these wings are meant to fly with Thompson Street Opera Company, Le Grand Ecuyer/Secretary of Commerce in Whitney George's opera film Julie with Camerataworks, Billy Eckstine in Richard Thompson’s Jazz opera Sassy with Trilogy Opera Company at the NJPAC, Donald Wilkinson in Francine Trester’s chamber opera Keepers of the Light at the Nahant Music Festival, Mark Greene in Transportation Transformation during WNYC/WQXR's 10th anniversary celebration at Greene Space, Rey 3 in the American premiere of Jose Luis Gonzalez Moya’s nativity opera El Rey Nacio, and the Murdered Man in Kris McCormick’s chamber opera In a Grove with the Susquehanna New Music Ensemble. He appeared chorally in Center for Contemporary Opera's workshop of Niloufar Nourbakhsh's We, the Innumerable at National Sawdust. He has additionally workshopped multiple roles in Cecil Price Walden’s The Contract Player, Nick Scarim’s Sick!, and Alicia Lieu’s Unwrapping Fortune, and covered the 90th birthday premiere of Thea Musgrave’s baritone monodrama La Vida es Sueño.

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In concert, he has sung bass solos in Handel’s Messiah (Susquehanna University Symphony Orchestra; Brooklyn Contemporary Chorus), Bach’s BWV 147 (St. Peter’s Bach Collegium), Keiser’s Markuspassion (Nahant Music Festival), Haydn’s Nicolaimesse (Musikapiphany), Mozart’s Vesperae solennes de confessore (Continuo Arts Symphonic Choir), Gounod’s St. Cecilia Mass (Collegiate Singers), and Schubert's Messe in G (Susquehanna University Choir).

 

Chorally, he has sung with Teatro Nuovo, Teatro Grattacielo, Juilliard Opera, New Amsterdam Opera, Orchestra of the Bronx, Civic Chorale of NJ, Continuo Arts Symphonic Choir, Collegiate Singers, St. Peter’s Bach Collegium, Lyrica Classic, MuSE Chorus, Sonaré, Susquehanna University’s Choir, Chorale, and Chamber Singers, and the Philadelphia Chorale.

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Straight theatre credits include an “excellent” Davey Battle in Take Me Out (OnstageBlog), and Aide Turkle/Technician in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest at the Bijou Theatre, a Venticelli in Amadeus, Bill in Sure Thing, and Mark in The Chalky White Substance at the Degenstein Theatre, and Feste in Twelfth Night.

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Brian has been an Apprentice Artist at Teatro Nuovo, a Young Artist with dell'Arte Opera Ensemble, a Vocal Apprentice at the Nahant Music Festival, a Student Artist at the Bay View Music Festival, an Emerging Artist at the Minuetto Music Festival, and has participated in outreach performances for children with Bronx Opera, Opera Theatre of Montclair, and Prelude Opera. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing at Susquehanna University, and currently resides in his native New York City.