About our Guests

ANGELA HENCH is a classical soprano born and raised in Ann Arbor Michigan. She trained at the Longy School of Music of Bard College under Anna Gabrieli in Cambridge, MA. Branching out to New York City after training, Angela crossed over into the musical theater and cabaret scenes working with New York musical theater festival, the New York fringe festival, and performing at iconic venues like The Duplex and Birdland. Since moving back to Michigan in 2017, Angela has performed with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Dearborn Symphony, Opera MODO, FOTO Michigan, the Comic Opera Guild, Arbor Opera Theatre, the Encore Musical Theatre, The DIO, CRLT, and the Croswell Opera House. In 2022, she was recognized by the vocal academy, receiving her first Grammy nomination for her cover of the Freddy Mercury hit “Barcelona” receiving international acclaim. She is thrilled to be singing with the Dearborn Symphony and thanks both the Symphony and Friends of the Opera of Michigan for this wonderful opportunity.

COLETTE ROBERTS (soprano) received her Bachelor’s in Vocal Performance from Northern Arizona University in 2015 where she consequently received a performance certificate in 2017. During this time, she performed roles such as Dido in Dido and Aeneas, La Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro, and Nerone in L’Incoronazione di Poppea. Colette was a district finalist for the MONC competition in both 2017 and 2018 and received Encouragement Awards at the regional level both years. Colette has performed with Friends of the Opera of Michigan, for the last 6 years alongside Quinto Milito playing the role of Rosabella in scenes from The Most Happy Fella as well as numerous holiday concerts. Colette currently works as a board-certified music therapist in both hospice and special education settings in the Ann Arbor area.

CAMERON BARRETT JOHNSON is an American tenor with a masters degree from the University of Michigan. He sings frequently with the professional courses of Detroit Opera and Cincinnati Opera and frequently holds chorus solo roles. Cameron has been studying voice with famed tenor George Shirley for the last five years and is currently working on completing his specialist degree.

QUINTO MILITO (baritone), graduated from the famed G. Rossini Conservatory of Music in Pesaro, Italy. He made his operatic debut at the Spoleto Festival in Italy under the baton of the late Thomas Schippers. He has sung in Europe and throughout the USA. He has sung the roles of Tonio and Silvio in Leoncavallo’s I PAGLIACCI with the Detroit Symphony. A favorite role among the forty in his repertoire is that of Tony Esposito in Loesser’s celebrated musical THE MOST HAPPY FELLA. He has performed under the baton of renowned conductors such as Rafael De Burgos, Paul Freeman, Marcello Abbado and Leslie Dunner. Quinto is the Artistic Director of Friends Of The Opera of Michigan (FOTO). Among his many awards, in 1995 he received the Enrico Caruso Medal Award, given by the ENRICO CARUSO MUSEO in Milano Italy. Quinto is also a composer of over fifteen compositions.

LUIZ-OTTAVIO FARIA (bass) made his operatic debut in the title role of Tom, in Un Ballo in Maschera with the legendary tenor Carlo Bergonzi, Fernando Teixeira, and Stefka Evstatieva at Theatro Municipal do Rio de Janeiro and the Theatro Municipal de Sao Paulo, directed by Maestro Isaac Karabtchevsky. Since his auspicious debut, the distinguished basso’s career in concert and opera performances has taken him around the globe, especially in Europe, USA, Canada, Mexico and Brazil. Following his studies at The Juilliard School of Music, he won several important national and international singing competitions and musical Foundation awards, such as the 23rd National Carmen Gomes Competition (1988), prize Bass Guilherme Damiano, The Juilliard School Scholarship (1989), William Randolph Hearst Foundation, Die Meistersinger, (Aims), Austria (1994), Opera Index, YWCA Vocal Competition, the Great Buffalo Opera Competition (1995), the New Jersey State Opera Vocal Singing Competition, and Lola Hayes Vocal Competition (1996). He is also the recipient of the The William Matthews Sullivan Foundation (1997). Faria recently made a triumphant debut and a critically acclaimed performance in the title role of Banquo in Macbeth at the Teatro La Scala di Milano and Marcel in Meyerbeer’s Les Huguenots at the Carnegie Hall with the Opera Orchestra of New York, where he first attracted international attention and was admired equally for his real and majestic bass voice and for his acting ability.