Robert Balonek, baritone, makes his West Bay Opera debut singing the title role in Der fliegende Holländer. A native of Rochester NY, Mr. Balonek recently sang Angelotti (Tosca) with Opera San Jose while covering Scarpia. Mr. Balonek has also covered the roles of Ford (Falstaff) and Count (Le nozze di Figaro) for Opera San Jose, as well as performing the role of Marcello (La bohème) for Opera Modesto. Recent appearances include productions of Rigoletto (Boheme Opera of NJ), Il barbiere di Siviglia (Opera on the James & Boston Midsummer Opera), Owen Wingrave (Little Opera Theater of NY), Handel’s Saul (Canterbury Choral Society), Le nozze di Figaro (Opera on the James & Chelsea Opera), and Gianni Schicchi (PAC at Purchase). World premieres include Ernesto (Ricky Ian Gordon’s Garden of the Finzi Contini) with NYC Opera, Jaap (Gerald Cohen’s Steal a Pencil for me), and Father Francis (Raphaël Lucas’ Confession). Recordings include Prospero (Lee Hoiby’s Tempest) and Father Francis (Raphaël Lucas’ Confession) for Albany Records.

Meredith Bloomfield, soprano, returns to West Bay Opera to sing Senta in Der fliegende Holländer. She is a native of Hershey, PA. She moved to Germany in 2018, and has made a name for herself in the dramatic repertoire in Europe as well as in the United States. Most recently, she performed a Wagner-Gala Konzert with Opera Classica Europa at the Markgräfliches Opernhaus in Bayreuth and Helmwige/Dritte Norn/Brünnhilde in The Ring in One Evening with the Berlin Wagner Group at the Sawyer Theater in New Hampshire. In 2021, she sang Gerhilde (Die Walküre) at the Stadttheater Klagenfurt, where she also stepped in to sing Brünnhilde to replace an ailing colleague with less than 24 -hours' notice. Further engagements in Europe were Freia (Das Rheingold) with Dramatic Voices Berlin and the soprano solos in Johan de Meij’s Symphony No. 5 - Return to Middle Earth with the Bläserphilharmonie Rhein-Main. Recent career highlights in the US include covering the title role in Cilea’s Gloria at the Teatro Grattacielo in New York City, singing Tosca with Amore Opera, and Leonore (Fidelio) at West Bay Opera, as well as her Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium debut as the soprano soloist in John Rutter’s Requiem. Ms. Bloomfield is an Olga Forrai Foundation grant recipient, and is the 2018 winner of The American Prize for women in opera.

Joshua Hughes,  bass-baritone,  returns to West Bay Opera to sing Daland in Der fliegende Holländer. He made WBO debut singing Dottore Grenvil in La traviata earlier this season and was later seen as Masetto and the Commendatore in Don Giovanni. Adept at a wide variety of repertoire, he has performed locally with Lamplighters Music Theatre as Lord Chancellor (Iolanthe) and Man 1 (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder), Opera San José as Baby John (West Side Story) and the Wolf (Barab, Little Red Riding Hood), and as soloist with Soli Deo Gloria (Saint John Passion; CPE Bach, Magnificat). Previously based in Dallas, TX, he has appeared with American Baroque Opera Company as Uberto (La serva padrona) and Melisso (Alcina), Orchestra of New Spain as Licomede (Courcelle, Achille in Sciro), Opera in Concert as Der Fischer (Blach, Die Flut), and as a frequent soloist with Dallas Bach Society (The Fairy Queen, Saint Matthew Passion, Saint John Passion). Additional credits include performances with Lyric Opera Baltimore, Young Victorian Theatre Company, Victorian Lyric Opera Company, and Hong Kong Disneyland. He holds degrees from Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins University and Oklahoma City University.

John Kun Park,  tenor, returns to West Bay Opera to sing the role of Erik in  Der fliegende Folländer.  A native of Los Angeles, California, Mr. Park made his WBO debut singing Ismaele (Nabucco). He recently debuted with Pittsburgh Opera Festival as Erster König ( Die Liebe der Danae , R. Strauss), and covered Siegmund ( Die Walküre ). Earlier this year, he debuted with Sarasota Opera as Monostatos ( Die Zauberflöte ) and understudied Ismaele ( Nabucco ). With Long Beach Opera, he made his debut as the Tenor Soloist ( Le vin herbé , Frank Martin). He appeared with Central City Opera performing as Don José ( Carmen ), and has regularly been a resident studio artist with Sarasota Opera.

Salvatore Atti,  tenor, returns to West Bay Opera to sing the role of Steuermann in  Der fliegende Folländer.  He made his WBO debut as Don Jose in Carmen (2018). An award-winning alumni of San Francisco’s prestigious Merola Opera program, originally from Buffalo, NY, he recently moved to Northern California. Mr. Atti is a graduate of The Boston Conservatory, where he received a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance, a Master’s degree in Opera, and a Post-Master’s Certificate. He has sung with many opera companies in the Boston area to acclaimed reviews. Mr. Atti also studied at Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music where he performed Peter Quint in Turn of the Screw and Tito in La Clemenza di Tito.  While in San Francisco Mr. Atti performed in the Schwabacher summer concert series and the grand finale, singing Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor and Leicester in Maria Stuarda.  He also performed with Cincinnati Opera in the workshop performance of Blind Injustice in the principal role of the defense attorney.  He also participated in the workshop performance of If I Were You written by Jake Heggie, singing the role of Fabian with San Francisco Opera. He also performed excerpts for Opera America. Mr. Atti has performed with Sacramento Philharmonic and Opera, New Rochelle Opera, Berkeley Chamber Opera, and the Boston Opera collaborative, where he was a board member primarily focused on music education.  Mr. Atti has performed in Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Italy.  He had the honor of participating in Verdi’s bicentennial celebration during which he sang Alfredo in La Traviata at the Verdi opera house in Busseto, Italy. During these performances, Mr. Atti was named "piccolo Pavarotti." 

Laure de Marcellus,  mezzo-soprano, returns to West Bay opera to sing Mary in Der fliegende Holländer.  She made her WBO debut as the Countess in Pique Dame. Ms. de Marcellus sung the role of Carmen and Dalila with Opéra Sudio de Genève in Geneva, Brangaene (Tristan und Isolde) with the Volkstheater in Rostock, Germany and honed her craft at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin, where she sang multiple roles like Maddalena (Rigoletto), Smeton (Anna Bolena) and Grimgerde (Die Walkuere) and the Third Lady (Die Zauberfloete). A native of Geneva, Switzerland, her concert repertoire has led her to sing The Messiah, Beethoven’s 9^th and the Verdi Requiem with symphony orchestras in Spain, Austria, Serbia, Singapore and Switzerland. An enthusiastic recitalist, she is currently touring with a concert celebrating the release of her first CD, Pauline Inspired, an album of French and Spanish romantic melodies, recently heard in San Francisco, Madrid and Geneva. Ms de Marcellus is an avid reader of historical biographies and loves to bake.