The San Francisco Opera has announced that Romanian-American baritone Andrew G. Manea will make a major role debut.

The baritone will replace Artur Ruciński in the role of the Duke of Nottingham. The company announced that Ruciński withdrew due to lung injuries sustained in a serious bicycling accident involving a car in his native Poland. He is expected to make a full recovery and noted that “Ruciński deeply regrets having to withdraw but looks forward to returning to San Francisco Opera in the future.”

Manea made his Company debut in 2017 as Marullo in Verdi’s “Rigoletto” and performed Marquis d’Obigny in Verdi’s “La Traviata” last season. Currently in his second year as a San Francisco Opera Adler Fellow, Manea was a participant of the 2016 Merola Opera Program, appearing as Iron Hans/Wolf in the program’s production of Conrad Susa’s “Transformations.” Manea has also won awards in competitions such as the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (semifinalist), Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition (finalist), Opera Columbus Cooper-Bing International Voice Competition, Francisco Viñas International Singing Competition and Giulio Gari Foundation (career grant recipient).

Manea joins an all-star cast that includes Sondra Radvanovsky, Russell Thomas, and Jamie Barton. Italian maestro Riccardo Frizza conducts the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus.