This February, Opera San José is set to open the famed double bill of “Cavalleria Rusticana” and Pagliacci.”

These highly dramatic verismo operas are notable as stories in which women’s fidelity and sexuality are called into question by the male-directed societies. Men have the upper hand in these operas and their machismo views of fidelity, as well as their lust for control and power, make their women suffer.

At the center of these complex works will be the work of two women. General Director Shawna Lucey, has been at the helm since 2022, is set to direct the works with composer and musician Alma Deutscher set to conduct.

The Director

Lucey’s journey to opera is a unique one. A lot of opera stories stem from early operatic exposure in childhood. But this was not the case for Lucey, whose journey began in the theater.

She completed degrees in Theater and Italian at the University of Texas in Austin and then made a big move to Russia where she completed a Master’s degree at the Boris Shchukin Theatre Institute of the Vakhtangov Theater in Moscow.

Working in Russian theater was a major turning point for Lucey. She worked in traditional theater learning all she could about physical stage action, fencing, rhythmics, directing, and dance. She learned first-hand not only how to blend multi-disciplinary traditions of dance, music and puppetry with narrative, but as the sole American in her program, how to collaborate. Among her notable projects was the Bread and Puppet Theater, when she directed and designed her first project in Moscow, creating a puppet version of Primo Levi’s “If This is a Man.” The production was performed in Moscow and then went on tour.

Her return to the U.S. marked her first entrance into the world of opera. She participated in an orchestral reading of Verdi’s “Falstaff,” and it was love at first note.

“Because of my strong interest in how to affect an audience as a performer, as a director I realized that with music, I could do even more,” Lucey told OperaWire in a recent interview.

Her return to the U.S. also saw her take another degree, this time a Masters of Science in non-profit before going on to work at Santa Fe Opera, Houston Opera, San Francisco Opera, among others.

In December of 2021, she was appointed to the head of Opera San José. Among her major initiatives was to amplify the historic organizations collaborative approach.

“It was/is very important to work with the performers above all, to listen to whatever they are trying to say,” she said. This makes the whole process and performance inclusive. Lucey stressed how much she benefited from her mentors and that one of her key goals is to provide the artists in her productions with the same gift. As she said, “my mission is to nurture new talent.” Directing in this way can smooth the way for this to happen.

Another major aim in her leadership has been to increase confidence in women’s performances, which underscores the energetic thrust of Lucey’s direction and willingness to shape the world they are part of to fit that. This underscores so much of her interpretation of the double bill.

“My approach to ‘Cavalleria rusticana’ and ‘Pagliacci’ is grounded in a feminist lens that examines how violence against women is embedded, normalized, and sustained within these communities,” she noted. “In ‘Cavalleria,’ violence is largely unseen—absorbed into a rigid patriarchal system governed by honor and tradition. It is spoken of rather than witnessed, which reveals how deeply it has been accepted as part of daily life. By the time we arrive at Pagliacci, after the rupture of war, that violence is no longer hidden. It unfolds publicly, almost theatrically, in a society that has learned not to intervene.”

She added that “Santuzza and Nedda are not simply tragic figures; they are women navigating systems designed to limit their agency. In ‘Pagliacci,’ Canio is understood as an abusive partner whose authority is enforced through fear and control, and Nedda’s desire for freedom becomes an act of survival rather than transgression. Her relationship with Silvio represents an attempt to reclaim autonomy in the face of oppression.”

She noted that the link between these works is strengthened by presenting them in the same community across time to better “trace how silence, spectacle, and trauma allow cycles of violence to persist.”

“My hope is that audiences experience the emotional power of this music while also engaging with the urgent social questions it raises—about gender, power, complicity, and the devastating ease with which brutality becomes normalized when it goes unchallenged,” she concluded.

Among the chief women collaborators during Lucey’s tenure is composer and conductor Alma Deutscher.

A Composer & Conductor

The older of two girl children to Janie Steen, Ph.D. in Old English poetry, and Guy Deutscher, Israeli linguist, Alma Deutscher seems to breathe music, as well as a belief in beauty. Deutscher  started playing the piano at age two and the violin at age three. She composed a short opera at age seven, a violin concerto at nine, and broke out at the age of 10 when her first full-length opera “Cinderella” had its European premiere in Vienna under the leadership of iconic conductor Zubin Mehta. A year later, the opera had its U.S. premiere. Since then, she’s flourished as a conductor, leading Opera San José’s “The Magic Flute” in 2024 and now the “Cav / Pag” double bill in 2026.

“Both operas center on lust and revenge. Violence,” Deutscher told OperaWire. “One seems to center on entertainment, but it turns out to be hardly that. We are moved to smile and laugh but the brutality it brings out is just the opposite. I am captivated by the richness of the score. It’s remarkable how small note combinations and harmonies convey so much of the story. They are a perfect illustration of what opera aims to be – each small detail revealing character motivation and action of the story. I love these two operas. In my conducting I want to bring out the feelings in every part of the music. The lush richness in the strings, the intensity. The orchestra has to juggle so much. It is wonderful for me to conduct.”

Regarding her collaboration with Deutscher, Lucey noted that “Alma is an incredible collaborator—generous, incisive, and deeply engaged with every layer of these scores. Her interpretations are not to be missed; she has an exceptional ability to illuminate both the musical architecture and the emotional truth of each moment. In rehearsal, she creates an environment of trust and rigor, where artists feel empowered to take risks and go deeper. She listens with rare attentiveness and responds in ways that continually elevate the work. It has been a privilege to shape this production alongside her.”

“Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci” opens on Feb. 15 and runs through March 1 for five performances. The cast includes Maria Natale, Christopher Oglesby, Jill Grove, Courtney Miller, Alex Delgado, Kidon Choi, Mikayla Sager, Ben Gulley, Luis Alejandro Orozco, and Micah Perry.