The Forge Kickoff Event Cast

JEFF BERMAN is a multi-instrumentalist, improvising artist, composer and educator whose work reflects his global musical vision spanning many genres. Jeff’s performing and recording collaborations include clarinet/mandolinist Andy Statman, pianist Paul Bley, tabla master Samir Chatterjee, singers Linda Thompson and Susan McKeown, saxophonists Dave Liebman and Erik Lawrence, cellists Robert Een and Arthur Russel, guitarist Matt Balitsaris, banjo virtuoso Tony Trischka, flamenco dancer Carolina Loyala-Garcia, Tibetan singer Pasang Dolma, songwriter Peter Stampfel of the Unholy Modal Rounders and choreographers Yin Mei and Gia Cacalano. Jeff has three recordings on Palmetto Records featuring his own compositions, and his music has been used for a wide range of performance, dance, theatre and film scores including the Academy Award nominated documentary In Our Water. He is a founding member of the fusion trio Appalasia, with whom he has recorded two albums.

Robert Frankenberry enjoys a multi-faceted relationship with music as a singer, pianist, conductor, orchestrator, director, and even occasionally as a composer. On stage, he has performed a wide range of roles including Mozart (Amadeus), John Adams (1776), Bacchus (Ariadne auf Naxos), the tile roles in Don Carlo, The Tales of Hoffmann, Faust, and Willy Wonka, and Orson Welles in Daron Hagen’s filmopera Orson Rehearsed. At the piano, he regularly performs works by living composers with such groups as Pittsburgh’s IonSound and AnimeBOP: New York City’s The Phoenix Players and PRISM Players; and multi-city entelechron and Chrysalis Duo. He has served on the coaching/accompanying staff at Seton Hill, Duquesne, Carnegie Mellon, and Point Park; the voice faculty at Mercyhurst and Point Park; and the Theatre Arts faculty at the University of Pittsburgh, where he provided vocal direction for Pitt Stages’ productions of Nine, Peter & The Starcatcher, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream; musical direction for Hair and Little Shop of Horrors; and direction for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and Parade. He served as visiting Music Director for the opera program at the University of North Texas, and was significantly involved with Pittsburgh Festival Opera from 2000 – 2021 in various capacities, including Artistic Administrator, Music Director, and Director of the Hans and Leslie Fleischner Young Artist Program. He can be heard singing and playing on the Naxos, Albany, New World Records, Roven Records, New Dynamic Records, and Innova labels, as well as various streaming platforms.

Matt Gillespie is a composer and keyboardist originally from Asheville, NC, and moved to Pittsburgh in 2005. He studied at UNC-Greensboro, East Carolina University, and University of Pittsburgh, where he earned his PhD in composition and theory in 2014. He plays piano with Aria412 and Alia Musica-Pittsburgh, and writes primarily vocal and chamber music, in a variety of styles. His opera, Thomas the Rhymer, was produced by Aria412 in October 2024.

Mai Khôi is an award-winning singer, composer, and activist. She rose to stardom in 2010 after winning the Vietnam Television Song and Album of the Year awards as one of the first female songwriters in Vietnam. As a pop star, Khôi released seven albums in genres of Vietnamese pop and dance, and made regular nationally televised performances. Several years later she became increasingly uncomfortable having to submit her work to government censors and, thinking she could reform the system from within, nominated herself to run in the National Assembly elections on a pro-democracy platform. Her campaign sparked a nationwide debate about political participation and culminated in a meeting with Barack Obama in May 2016. Her activism came at a high price, however: she had her concerts raided, was evicted from multiple residences, and was detained and interrogated by the police. Khôi’s artistic transformation is evident in Mai Khôi Chém Gió, a genre-splicing dissident trio she founded in 2016 that combines protest music with free jazz and lost musical traditions of Vietnam’s hill tribes. She also went on to participate in Seaphony, a project that aims to create the first pan-Southeast Asian orchestra comprised of ethnic minority musicians, as a conductor, arranger, and composer. Her current project, Mai Khôi and the Dissidents, is an eclectic and experimental jazz-ish quintet that’s as likely to launch into a noisy protest song or collective improvisation as a lullaby or love ballad. She is also developing an autobiographical multimedia stage show called “Bad Activist” that combines original music, projections, archival footage, and storytelling to fiercely advocate for democracy and freedom of expression in Vietnam and around the world. Since 2019, Mai Khôi has lived in exile in the USA. In 2019, she was a resident artist at SHIM:NYC, and in 2020, she was awarded an Artist Protection Fund Fellowship in cooperation with the University of Pittsburgh, City of Asylum, and the International Free Expression Project. Mai Khôi was an Exiled Writer and Artist in Residence at City of Asylum in Pittsburgh from 2020-2023; she has continued to reside in Pittsburgh after the conclusion of this residency. In recognition of her work at the intersection of art and activism, Khôi has been awarded the 2018 Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent and the 2022 Four Freedoms Award for Freedom of Speech.

Soprano Kelly Fiona Lynch has sung with the Erie Chamber Orchestra, Pittsburgh Philharmonic, Johnstown Symphony Orchestra, Westmoreland Philharmonic Orchestra and the Edgewood Symphony Orchestra, where she sang Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder and the title role in Bizet’s Carmen. Oratorio repertoire she has performed includes the soprano solos in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Rossini’s Stabat Mater, Verdi’s Requiem and Strauss’ Vier Letzte Lieder. She was also featured as Chrysosthemis in Elektra and Amelia in Simon Boccanegra with Chatham Concert Opera. At Pittsburgh Opera Theater, she has also performed Waltraute in their recent production of The Valkyrie, as well as the role of Miss Darlington in Night Caps. For Undercroft Opera, Kelly has been heard as Larina in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, and in the title roles in Verdi’s Aida, Bellini’s Norma, and Puccini’s Suor Angelica, as well as Giorgetta in Il tabarro. She has also sung the title roles in Lucia di Lammermoor and La Traviata for Erie Opera Theater. Kelly has also performed in Italy and Central America, and has conducted masterclasses in San Jose, Costa Rica. Based in Pittsburgh, Kelly is on the faculty at both Chatham and Seton Hill Universities.

David caught the singer/songwriter bug after seeing the movie “True Grit”. He was so enamored of Glen Campbell’s rendition of theme tune that when he got home he put on his cowboy duds, grabbed his sister’s steel string guitar and busted out his own version. He was three years old. His father captured the moment on 8mm film. When the film was developed and projected little David was devastated – there was no sound. He never got over it. A few years later a piano appeared in their basement. His father took it as loan collateral for a nee’r do well uncle. David loved it and would spend hours playing whatever game to mind, imagining he was being backed by a symphony orchestra. The one day it was gone, having been returned to his uncle. He never got over it. In his grade school band he wanted to play guitar, but they didn’t have that instrument and he ended up with a trumpet. It didn’t really take, though he did briefly form a duo with a neighborhood kid who had drums. Meanwhile back in school his music teacher repeatedly told him to shut up when singing in music class. Her lower lip would drop below her teeth and spittle would fleck from her mouth. So David rebelled by singing without moving his lips and throwing his voice, while making up ribald and scandalous lyrics to delight his classmates and confound Sister Cecilia. She never discovered who was doing it, or what the class thought was so funny. Many years later a high school music teacher turned his head around by complimenting him on his speaking voice and telling him singing was an extension of speaking. Therefore, he should be able to sing. When he left home at 18 one of the first things he did was find a voice teacher. He never got over that either, but this time in a good way. Years go by, and some dreams fade but never truly disappear. When he turned 40 he bought his first real guitar. When he was 50 he formed his mid-life crisis band, David and the Disasters (who can still be found on YouTube and Spotify). Sadly, he disbanded the band when he secured a publishing contract for his first book; not having room in his life for both. He never got over it. Today he maintains some presence singing his original tunes in Pittsburgh’s open mic scene, which is still recovering from the COVID shutdowns. He is delighted to make his Aria 412 debut in this program, and hopes to never get over it. In a good way.

Sara Stock Mayo is a registered drama therapist, musician, poet, and spiritual leader. She has led musical programs and held cantorial positions at many Pittsburgh synagogues, including 11 years as the Music Director at Temple Sinai. Sara has been the Executive Director of Pittsburgh Playback Theatre, an improvisational company dedicated to storytelling and deep listening in service of social healing. She has worked in clinical, social service, and educational settings and as a chaplain and spiritual director. Sara is one of the co-founders of ShpielBurgh Productions, a community-based Jewish theatre company. One of Sara’s favorite groups to lead is Rosh Hodesh, It’s a Girl’s Thing through Moving Traditions in which female-identifying teen girls learn about healthy friendships, body image, and safe care in a Jewish framework, through arts-based and other embodied activities. She holds a BFA in Theatre from Syracuse University, a Masters in Drama Therapy from New York University, and has studied chaplaincy at UPMC as well as received a certificate in Spiritual Direction from the Yedidya Center for Jewish Spirituality. She is a co-leader of her chapter of the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom which is dedicated to growing relationships between Jewish and Muslim women and is an active member of Bend the Arc, a liberal Jewish social justice organization.

L.E. McCULLOUGH has recorded with Irish, French, Cajun, Latin, blues, jazz, country, bluegrass and rock ensembles on 52 albums for Angel/EMI, Sony Classical, RCA, Warner Brothers, Kicking Mule, Rounder, Bluezette and other independent labels. Dr. McCullough has authored over 150 books and articles on Irish music including Favorite Irish Session Tunes, The Complete Irish Tinwhistle Tutor and St. Patrick Was a Cajun. He has composed filmscores for three PBS specials produced by WQED-TV, three Celtic Ballets co-composed with T.H. Gillespie for Dance Kaleidoscope and has performed on the music tracks of eight Ken Burns PBS television series and the Warner Brothers film Michael Collins starring Julia Roberts and Liam Neeson. In Pittsburgh, he writes plays for Prime Stage Theatre; his Freedom House: Giving Life a Second Chance will premiere in January, 2026 at New Hazlett Theater.

Mark Micchelli is a composer, pianist, scholar, and educator whose work hybridizes contemporary classical, jazz, and popular music idioms. He is the producer, writer, and music director for Mai Khôi’s “Bad Activist,” a multimedia theatrical performance that has been performed over forty times in the US and internally. Other recent works include Glitched-On Bop, an album of solo piano+electronics music released on New Focus Records in July 2025, and Five Years in Exile, a noisy fusion album to be released on Ropeadope in 2026. Dr. Micchelli’s compositions have been featured at ICMC, SEAMUS, SPLICE, the Pittsburgh Humanities Festival, the Global State of Human Rights Conference, College Freedom Forum, the Bowling Green New Music Festival, and numerous regional music festivals and conferences. As jazz pianist, he has performed at the Smithsonian (Washington, DC), Joe’s Pub (New York, NY), the Four Freedoms Award Ceremony (Middelburg, Netherlands), the PEN America World Music Festival, the Pittsburgh Jazz Poetry Festival, and jazz clubs throughout the US. As a classical pianist, Dr. Micchelli was a keynote performer at the 2022 Stravinsky in America conference and a featured performer at the 2021 Music on the Edge series. Finally, Dr. Micchelli is a music theorist who received a 2023 SMT Emerging Scholar Award for his Music Theory Online article “Sound Structures and Naked Fire Gestures in Cecil Taylor’s Solo Piano Music.” He has also released an episode for SMT-Pod (where he serves on the production team) and presented scholarship at the SMT national conference and regional music theory conferences in the Mid-Atlantic (MTSMA) and Northeast (NECMT). Dr. Micchelli received his PhD at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was the first graduate to earn a combined degree in Composition/Theory and Jazz Studies. He received his MA in Integrated Composition, Improvisation, and Technology from the University of California-Irvine and his BA in Music and Computer Science from Columbia University. His primary instructors include Amy Williams, Eric Moe, Nicole Mitchell, Mari Kimura, Chris Dobrian, Michael Dessen, Kei Akagi, and Andy Wasserman. Dr. Micchelli is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor of Composition at West Virginia University. Previously, he served as Artist Lecturer in Electronic Music at Carnegie Mellon University and Instructor at the University of Pittsburgh. He splits his time between Pittsburgh, PA and Morgantown, WV.

James J. Ogburn (b. 1974) is a US-born composer, conductor, author, and teacher whose works have been featured at over two-dozen festivals and season concert programs in Thailand, the People’s Republic of China, Indonesia, Great Britain, the Czech Republic, Spain, Poland, Germany, Italy, and throughout the U.S. He has been Resident Artist at festivals and organizations, including the “International Opera Course – Giacomo Puccini,” “Del Mar College Music Symposium,” Wichita State University, University of Kansas, Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra, and many others. Dr. Ogburn received Composition & Theory degrees from Central Washington University (B.M., 2004), and the University of Pittsburgh (M.A., 2006 & Ph.D., 2009). From 2009-2015, he was Chair of Composition and Theory at Mahidol University College of Music (Bangkok, Thailand), as well as Director of Enclave Ensemble, Program Manager of the Thailand International Composition Festival, Director of the Young Thai Artist Award, and Researcher for the Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra (TPO). Currently, he is Associate Professor of Composition and Theory at the Schwob School of Music of Columbus State University. For more information and to hear recordings of his music, please visit: www.jamesogburn.com.

SUE POWERS grew up in a family with deep roots in Western Pennsylvania’s traditional music and began playing banjo and singing folk music in high school. Her parents were sacred singers, and her grandfather and great-grandfather were old-time fiddle players who performed for local square dances. A founding member of Devilish Merry, Susan adapted her unique ‘claw hammer’ style to blues, rock and pop music; her innovative use of the five-string banjo in Celtic music is showcased on several recordings featuring her playing, singing and songwriting. Her original music has been used in modern and traditional dance, performance, theater and film, including the Smithsonian exhibit Lewis and Clark: Clash of Empires, a Roger Sayers documentary about “outsider” folk-artist Howard Finster and Jerry Starr’s stage play Buried: The Sago Mine Disaster. A multi-discipline visual artist and teacher for 30 years, Susan holds a BFA in Painting from Carnegie-Mellon University and MFA in Painting from Pratt Institute. She conducts lectures and demonstrations in schools and universities on the aesthetics of cross-cultural collaboration and creativity, exploring the music of the banjo from the perspective of a trained visual artist.

Soprano Desirée Soteres enjoys singing in concert, musical theater, and opera and is known for her powerful voice and strong characterization. She comes to Pittsburgh via Chattanooga, Memphis, Cincinnati, St. Louis, Portland, New York City, San Jose, and ports around the globe through Cunard Cruise Lines. Last season she created the role of the Queen of Elfenland in Thomas the Rhymer with Aria412. She filmed and performed in Aria412’s stage version of I Hear America Singing directed by composer Daron Hagen. Desirée co-founded and performs monthly with Aria412 and has premiered works with Pittsburgh Festival Opera, Alia Musica, and the New Dischord Festival. Highlights include originating the title role in Eve Apart as well as Rosella in The Mother of Fishes and Flora Dart in A New Kind of Fallout. She has had the pleasure of singing her favorite operatic role, Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute with Opera San Jose, West Bay Opera, Stockton Opera, Pocket Opera, Undercroft Opera and as a Resident Artist at Portland Opera. Other theatrical performances include Roselinda in Die Fledermaus with Undercroft Opera, Despina in Cosi fan tutte with Mission City Opera, Blonde in Abduction from the Seraglio with Pocket Opera, Cunegonde in Candide with Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., and Rosa Bud in The Mystery of Edwin Drood with Chattanooga Theater Center. Desirée has appeared as Abigail in The Crucible, Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Lucy in Threepenny Opera and Celeste #1 in Sunday in the Park with George. She was a featured performer in a series of concerts in Europe, South America, and Australia aboard Cunard’s Vistafjord and Royal Viking Sun. Desirée received her MM in vocal performance from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, her BA in music from Rhodes College in Memphis and studied in Austria.

Spencer Swenson is a director, editor, and photographer whose work explores the everyday struggles and conditions created by capitalism. Rooted in traditions of slow cinema and hyperrealism, he draws inspiration from filmmakers like Robert Bresson, Kelly Reichardt, and Pedro Costa. His films center on themes of isolation, depression, soft pleasures, and class, offering solace to those navigating the precariousness of modern life. He has directed and edited music videos for artists like Casket Cassette, Moyana, and up-and-coming Chicago rapper JAY.WES. Spencer is also a founding member of the 640 Films collective and is currently developing a documentary about the Port Huron Statement.

From community singing groups and state choirs to world premiere operas and masterworks, Tenor Logan Williams has rooted himself in the musical industry. Logan has a B.M.E. in Music Education from Wingate University, a M.M. for Vocal Performance at Carnegie Mellon University, and an AMS Certificate in Voice at Carnegie Mellon University. Beyond the stage, Logan possesses a wide range of related musical skills. He has previously worked as a Music Director, Music Librarian, Music Teacher, and Vocal Coach. In addition to world premiere operas, Logan has showcased his skills in mainstage operas as a cover in Così Fan Tutte, as a soldier role in Der Kaiser von Atlantis, and Ottone in Villa as Decio. Logan has continued this throughout last summer as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi in Lucca, Italy, and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni in Chicago. Logan actively engages in community outreach initiatives with groups including Aria412, and CMU Renaissance Choir sharing his passion for music with diverse audiences and inspiring the next generation of performers. His commitment to artistic excellence and holistic musical education sets him apart as a multifaceted talent in the industry.