The Houston Grand Opera is primed for an exciting 2018-19 season after a tumultuous fall of 2017. Combining major classics with some unique modern works.

What makes these productions all the more exciting are the artists themselves. And the company did a tremendous casting job this season. Here are the five artists that will make some major headlines this season at Houston!

Andrzej Dobber – Der Fliegende Holländer

Dobber is kicking off the season as the titular Flying Dutchman. This will be the third production for the baritone of the early Wagner masterwork, as he has performed it previously in Marseille and will showcase his talents in the role in Dresden in early 2018.

Ana María Martinez – Florencia en las Amazonas

The 2018-19 season looks to be a banner year for the soprano. Not only is she cropping up at the biggest and best theaters around the US, but she is doing so in style. Not one to take easy path anywhere, she is lining up some unique repertoire everywhere she goes and in Houston, she takes on the increasingly popular “Florenzia en las Amazonas.” She’s an incredible singer and has a knack for Spanish-language repertory.

Lawrence Brownlee – Les Pêcheurs de Perles

The tenor, associated with Rossini for so long, is taking a step in an interesting direction with “The Pearl Fishers.” He has the lightness for the glorious passages Bizet gives Nadir and it should be interesting to see him perform this work alongside Mariusz Kwiecien. Moreover, hearing Brownlee take a step deeper into the French repertoire is undeniably exciting.

Thomas Hampson & Luca Pisaroni

So we cheated, but its hard to separate these two partners-in-crime. The father-in-law and son-in-law duo have been doing a tour together for some time so it is extremely exciting to see them pair together for a new opera “The Phoenix” in which one plays the young Da Ponte and the other plays the elder Da Ponte. Guess who plays which? Throw in the fact that Hampson will be on a roll premiering one opera after another this upcoming season and there is no doubt why this duo is among the top five artists to behold at Houston in 2018-19.