HARROWER SUMMER OPERA WORKSHOP
About the Workshop
JJ Hudson
Rolando Salazar
Talise Trevigne
Claire Choquette
William Lumpkin
Each summer, the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop (HSOW) produces two fully staged main stage opera productions with its Young Artist participants, with principal roles double cast to present four performances before live audiences.
While at the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop, members of the program will learn alongside the Artist-In-Residence – a renowned operatic guest performer and teacher who presents recitals, conducts master classes and instructs participants on success in the opera art and industry.
As members of the workshop, Young Artists engage in daily Stage-Movement and Stage-Skills sessions, led by acclaimed artist-faculty. Each year, HSOW highlights a new Special-Topic Seminar – introducing a performance skill such as Stage Combat or Make-up for the Stage.
Summer 2024 marks an exciting return of the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop with Artistic Director and Principal Stage Director, Dr. JJ Hudson, Professor of Opera at the Cleveland Institute of Music, and Music Director Maestro Rolando Salazar of The Atlanta Opera and Georgia State University Opera Theater.
2024 Season
Susannah
Carlisle Floyd
Little Women
Mark Adamo
PAST SEASONS
2015
Falstaff
Der Rosenkavalier
“Highlights from The Marriage of Figaro” - Scenes
2016
L'incoronazione di Poppea
The Consul
“A Celebration of Shakespeare” - Scenes
2017
Dialouges des Carmélites
Carmen
“Scenesational Scenes”
2018
Ballad of Baby Doe
Little Women
“…endings…” Scenes featuring opera’s greatest finales!
2019
Cosi Fan Tutte
Le Nozze di Figaro
“Seasonal Scenes” - A scene for all seasons!
2023
Die Zauberflöte
Albert Herring
2018 Production of Ballad of Baby Doe
2023 Productions of Albert Herring and Die Zauberflöte
TUITION & HOUSING
Tuition & Fees
Application Fee: $50
Due at the time of applying. Application deadline is January 26, 2024.
Program Tuition: $1725
On Campus Housing
On campus housing will be available to participants. Pricing and housing information will be released in the spring.
Applicants acknowledge that, should they be accepted into the program, all tuition and fees must be paid in full by April 12, 2024. Participants who are not paid in full by April 12, will have their slot and housing canceled. For participant cancellations made after April 12, 2024, the full tuition and housing fee is incurred.
All fees are non-refundable.
On Campus Housing
Accepted participants will have the option to stay on campus for the duration of the program. Participants in the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop who choose on-campus housing will be housed in Georgia State University's dorms.
Check-in: Sunday, May 23
Check-out: Monday, June 17
Housing prices will be announced Spring 2024. Housing must be paid in full at the time of registering.
Housing for the 3 week program includes:
APPLICATION & AUDITION REQUIREMENTS
Application Requirements
Professional Headshot
Performance Experience Resume
Links to Recordings of Repertoire, based on your selected track of study
See below Recording & Repertoire Selections for requirements
PantherCard ID Compliant Photo
$50 Non-refundable Application Fee
Applicants should be prepared to fill out the application in its entirety once the application is started. The above list of requirements will be uploaded during the application.
All auditions will be heard through the online application. There will be no live auditions.
All participants must be 18 or older on or before the start of the program.
Applications are Open!
IMPORTANT DATES
Deadline to Apply is January 26
Acceptance Offer Sent by February 26
Participant Acceptance and $250 Deposit due March 8
Housing Request and Payment due April 12
Tuition Final Balance due April 12
Recording & Repertoire Selections
Vocal Participant Repertoire
Participants should have recordings of 3 performances. The recordings should be available online (YouTube, Dropbox, etc). Links to the recordings will be entered on the application.
Performance recordings are the participant's choice. Arias or art songs are preferred. Aria selections do not need to be from the repertoire of the current year, although they can be.
Collaborative Pianist Intern Repertoire
Participants interested in a Collaborative Pianist internship should have an interest and experience in collaborative piano performance. Participants selected as a collaborative pianist will have their tuition waived, but will be responsible for their own housing.
Collaborative Pianist applicants will be asked to submit the following repertoire selections for the video audition:
- A short, solo piano piece
- "Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen" from Die Zauberflöte without a singer
- "Si, mi chiamano Mimi" from La Boheme without a singer
- Act 2 finale from Nozze di Figaro without singer
PantherCard ID Photo Requirements
All accepted participants will be issued a Georgia State University Panther ID Card upon arrival, printed with your identification photo. The PantherCard issued is your key to most buildings on campus during your time at Georgia State. The photo should be "drivers license" style and must adhere to the following Georgia State University PantherCard photo requirements:
Solid Background
Photo must be taken in front of a solid white or light blue background.
Centered, Full-Face View
The photo must be centered with a full-face view, directly facing the camera. Photo should be from the shoulders up. The top of the head should not be cut off.
No Headphones
Headphones, wireless hands-free devices, or similar items are not acceptable in your photo.
No Head Coverings
There should be no hat or head covering unless worn daily for a religious purpose or for medical reasons supported by medical certification. Your full face must be visible with no shadows over the face.
No Masks
There should be no masks obscuring the face, even if worn daily or for medical purposes. Your full face must be visible.
No Obscuring Jewelry
Any jewelry worn should not obscure the face.
Unaccepted: Current Drivers License or College IDs
Photos of a current drivers license or college ID will not be accepted. A clean photo must be submitted.
Glasses & Hearing Devices
If you normally wear prescription glasses, a hearing device, or similar articles, they may be worn for your photo (make sure to avoid glare if wearing prescription glasses).
Dark glasses or non-prescription glasses with tinted lenses are not acceptable unless you need them for medical reasons (a medical certificate may be required).
Photos that do not meet the above criteria will not be accepted. Participants will be asked to resubmit photos until an acceptable photo is received, which may result in delays receiving your Panther ID Card.
APPLICATION SUBMISSIONS
Please read the Application & Audition Requirements tab carefully before submitting your application.
There is a non-refundable application fee of $50.00 due at the time of submitting applications. Be prepared to fill out the application in its entirety; applications cannot be saved in progress. You will be asked to upload the following documents during the application:
- Professional Headshot
- Performance Experience Resume
- PantherCard ID Compliant ID Photo (Non-Georgia State University Students only)
- Links to Video Recordings
- Artist Biography
All participants must be 18 or older on or before the start of the program.
PETER AND IRENE HARROWER
Founded in 1980, the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop (HSOW) brings young singers, directors, and faculty from across the United States to Georgia State University to learn and practice their craft. Beginning as a series of seminars and workshops, the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop has grown into a nationally competitive program for aspiring singers and directors. Peter and Irene Harrower, two internationally acclaimed opera singers, began the program underscoring the need for highly qualified, professional staff to instruct young singers specifically in the art of performing opera. They noted a lack of opportunity for opera in the southeast. In the words of Mr. Harrower, “there is no chance for young people to participate in opera, only to hear it. The stage is the greatest teacher.” They combined their private voice studios with the Georgia State University curriculum and facilities in order to create a program that taught operatic singing, acting for the lyric stage, characterization, body movement, preparation of roles, stagecraft, and diction.
In 1991 W. Dwight Coleman was named the Executive/Artistic Director of the HSOW. As Executive/Artistic Director he began a tradition of presenting one-act American operas with a composer-in-residence that continued throughout the next sixteen years. Mr. Coleman and Irene Harrower worked closely together to build the program after Peter Harrower’s death in 1988. In 2009, Carroll Freeman was named Artistic Director and served as the stage director. The following year Mr. Freeman was named Classical Singer magazine’s “Stage Director of the Year, 2010.” Over the next decade, with Mr. Coleman as E.D. and Mr. Freeman as A.D., Harrower began producing two fully staged operas with a renowned operatic performer as an artist-in-residence. In 2022, after Mr. Coleman and Mr. Freeman retired, Harrower named Dr. Jonathan Hudson Artistic Director and Amy Reid Executive Director, committing to continue the Harrower legacy.
Thirty-eight seasons later the program has taught thousands of young musicians and continues to grow. HSOW has received two invitations to perform at the National Opera Association Convention (1993 and 2008) for its productions of Test Tube and Bluebeard’s Waiting Room, both by Milton Granger. Artists-in-Residence have included world-renowned faculty such as Sherrill Milnes, Frederica von Stade, Angela Brown, George Shirley, and Ron Raines. Participants have gone on to sing with the Metropolitan Opera, San Fransisco Opera, Atlanta Opera, Tanglewood Musical Festival, Minnesota Opera, Brevard Music Festival, and Sarasota Opera, among others.
Since the Workshop’s inception, individual contributions and grants from the Atlanta Music Festival Association, Fulton County Arts Council, Lanie & Ethel Foundation, Atlanta Opera Guild, and Atlanta Music Club have totaled more than $500,000. Additionally, the Goldovsky Foundation has endorsed the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop by funding internships in stage directing, one of only two programs in the U.S. to receive this honor.
Peter and Irene’s vision for a comprehensive and professional quality young artist training program was remarkable for its time, leading to one of the longest running summer opera programs in the country. The Workshop is an Atlanta music staple and a testament to the quality of opera training being taught at Georgia State University’s School of Music. The Harrower Summer Opera Workshop continues to uphold its history of providing the highest caliber of training to young artists on their way to becoming opera professionals.
Irene Harrower
Irene Callaway Harrower was recognized throughout the world as a musician of the highest caliber. Born in Murfreesboro, Arkansas on January 10, 1929 to Cora Ada and Wallis Callaway, she was one of four siblings. Irene’s passion for singing grew out of her commitment to the Methodist church. Always a quick learner and advanced student, Irene entered college at the age of sixteen where she attended both Lon Morris Jr. College and then Henderson State University studying music. In support of her career, church members raised money to send her to summers at the Berkshire Music Center (now the Tanglewood Institute) in Lenox, MA and subsequently on to New York City.
After living in NYC for a few years auditioning and working as a typist, Irene won the distinguished Fulbright Scholar award. In 1954 she traveled to Rome, Italy where she performed with the Teatro dell’Opera, the Orchestra of Santa Cecilia of Rome, the Orchestras of Radio-Television Italy, the Vienna Volksoper, the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, France, and many other companies across Europe. It was in Rome that she met the love of her life bass-baritone Peter Harrower, fellow Fulbright Scholar. They married in Rome, Italy in 1957 and returned to Peter’s hometown of Atlanta several years later. Irene continued to have a vibrant career in America singing with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Atlanta Symphony, and other major opera companies.
After years of traveling and touring, Irene decided to dedicate the rest of her career to teaching. She began by building a vibrant vocal studio for professional singers in the Atlanta area. Throughout her career Irene was not only devoted to music, but also an avid lover of languages. She was fluent in Italian and French and studied German and Spanish voraciously. This love led her to create an internationally touring master class on diction for singing titled “Distinctly Diction.” She was adamant about telling students if you cannot speak the language you cannot sing it. She loved listening to young singers and adjudicated for local and national competitions such as Merola Opera Program and the Metropolitan Opera Competition. A dedicated Christian in the Episcopal church, she often volunteered her time and her talents to further the efforts of the church. She spent her free time gardening, volunteering, and giving back to the community in as many ways as she could.
In order to further expand her and her husband’s students’ knowledge of stagecraft, they decided to create the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop at Georgia State University. When her husband passed away, she took on his vocal studio at Georgia State University and also stepped into the position of General Director/Artistic Administrator for the School of Music. She enjoyed teaching students at this program until her retirement in 2007.
Peter Harrower
Atlanta native Peter Harrower was a highly respected operatic bass-baritone. Born on July 6, 1923 to Margaret and Pierce Harrower, he was surrounded by music from the time he was born. His father was a professional singer who often performed at Radio City Music Hall, and his mother was a fine pianist and accompanist. His grandfather made and played violins. Despite having a talent for singing he decided to attend Georgia Institute of Technology to obtain a degree in civil engineering. When WWII began he served in the Air Force as a bombardier, and subsequently served in the Korean War.
He won a Fulbright Scholar award in 1956 and had three triumphant years singing with the Teatro dell'Opera in Rome, the Vienna Volksoper, the Orchestra of Santa Cecilia, and the orchestras of Radio-Television Italy. It was there that he met and married Irene Calaway, American lyric soprano also in Europe on a Fulbright scholarship. They returned to the States and continued to have phenomenal careers. Peter performed regularly with the Lyric Opera of Chicago and traveled all over the States to sing with professional companies. In 1960 he became a professor of music at Georgia State University and taught there for 28 years. He taught Italian, opera history, concert repertoire, private lessons, and directed the operas. Additionally, he created the graduate vocal performance tract for the GSU School of Music. He loved gardening, hunting, fishing, sailing, and watercoloring. He was dedicated to the Episcopal church, designed logos for music events, built the opera sets, volunteered at the soup kitchen, and even sang the national anthem for the Atlanta Falcon games. He spent every second of his free time helping and mentoring others.
Towards the end of his life, he and his wife created the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop. They designed it specifically for their students in order to give them more opportunities to sing and perform opera at a high level. After his passing in 1988, his wife continued to develop the HSOW into the nationally competitive program that it is today.
Harrower Summer Opera Alumna
Contact Us
Office/Delivery Address
35 Broad Street, Suite 410
Atlanta, GA 30303
Mailing Address
P.O. Box 3984
Atlanta, GA 30302
Office Hours
8:30 a.m. - 5:15 p.m.
Director of Educational Outreach
Amy Reid