FOUNDER, CEO, CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Anne Wieben, a Minnesota native and accomplished soprano based in Vienna, Austria, has performed to critical acclaim across Europe’s most prestigious stages. Upcoming highlights include her debut with the Vienna State Opera in a new adaptation of Wagner’s Die Götterdämmerung in December 2024 as well as the role of Anastasia Knapp in Fürstin Ninetta with Vienna’s Johann Strauss Festival 2025. She will also once again take the stage as Sylva Varescu in Die Csardasfürstin, this time with the Vienna Volksoper Orchestra in April 2025. Anne is the founder and creative director of Opera on the Lake, bringing world-class operetta performances to Minnesota sincee 2019. She is also the co-director of Really Spicy Opera’s “Aria Institute” workshop which brings composers and librettists together to create new opera. Visit www.annewieben.com for more information.

MUSIC DIRECTOR

Award-winning conductor Marco Real-d’Arbelles is equally at home in symphonic and operatic styles ranging from early baroque to newly commissioned works. Marco serves as Music Director of Opera on the Lake where he led performances of Die Fledermaus, The Merry Widow, and Die Csardasfürstin. He was appointed Associate Artistic Director of the Bach Society of Minnesota in 2018 where his work has been featured in the Star Tribune, WCCO Morning Show, and MPR. He leads BSM’s “Bach with Friends” workshops and launched BSM’s “Outside the Box” series, creating new collaborations with baroque music. Marco recently conducted sold out performances of Marc Blitzstein’s The Cradle Will Rock (1937) with Minneapolis-based An Opera Theatre (AOT) and currently serves as Music Director for AOT’s school residency program Opera Immersion. He is also Music Director of Bold North Baroque Opera where he conducted the company debut at the 2019 Twin Cities Early Music Festival.

MARKETING & STRATEGY DIRECTOR

Ariana Strahl is an internationally acclaimed soprano renowned for her versatile performances in opera, lieder, and oratorio. As an ensemble member of the Komische Oper Berlin, they brought over twenty roles to life, including standout portrayals in “‘der Freischütz” and "Carmen." She also led the cast of Opera San Jose’s "A Streetcar Named Desire" as Blanche Dubois, and was seen last summer as Sylvia Varescu in OTL’s “Die Czardasfürstin.”

An advocate for new music, Ariana has co-commissioned works like Eric Malmquist's song cycle “Let Me Sing”, setting three American activist women’s texts, in collaboration with the Chicago Composers’ Orchestra.