(Photo credit: Houston Grand Opera)

The Sarah and Ernest Butler Houston Grand Opera Studio is set to present its annual Butler Studio Showcase this September.

Scheduled for Sept. 13 at the Cullen Theater at the Wortham Theater Center, the showcase will feature members of the 2024-25 class in staged, costumed excerpts from a variety of operatic works. This year’s program includes selections from “La bohème,” “Simon Boccanegra,” “The Elixir of Love,” “Faust,” “The Consul,” “The Tales of Hoffmann,” and “Carmen.”

Performers include sopranos Alissa Goretsky (third place at 2024 Concert of Arias), Elizabeth “Hanje,”  (first place winner at 2024 Concert of Arias); mezzo-soprano Ani Kushyan; tenors Michael McDermott (third place at 2023 Concert of Arias), Shawn Roth, and Demetrious Sampson, Jr. (second place and Audience Choice winner at 2023 Concert of Arias); baritone Navasard Hakobyan (first place at 2022 Concert of Arias); and bass-baritones Sam Dhobhany  (winner of the Ana María Martínez Encouragement Award at 2024 Concert of Arias) and Ziniu Zhao (second place at 2024 Concert of Arias).

The artists are accompanied by pianist and coach Laura Bleakley and Jenny Choo.

Since 1977, the Sarah and Ernest Butler Houston Grand Opera Studio has provided comprehensive career development to emerging artists who have demonstrated potential to make major contributions to the field of opera. During a residency of up to three years, each performer receives customized training from an expert team while gaining invaluable performance experience at the highest level.