| Damian Savarino has firmly established himself as a reputable professional singer of opera, oratorio, and music theater. He has appeared throughout the U.S. performing such roles as Sparafucile in Rigoletto with Harrisburg Opera, Zuniga in Carmen with the Summer Opera Theatre Company of Washington, D.C., Guglielmo in Cosí Fan Tutte with Bay View Opera (MI), the Jailor in Tosca with Central City Opera, Étienne in Naughty Marietta, Pish-Tush in The Mikado, and Michael in I Do! I Do! with Light Opera Oklahoma. While at the Ohio Light Opera, he sang and recorded the roles Colonel Lester in Victor Herbert’s Eileen and Lord Dramaleigh in Gilbert & Sullivan’s Utopia Limited for the Newport Classic label as well as performed roles in Patience, Eduard Künneke’s Der Vetter aus Dingsda, Romberg’s New Moon, and Camelot. He recently sang the roles of Boatswain in HMS Pinafore and Samuel in The Pirates of Penzance with the Harrisburg Symphony where a critic commented, “Damian Savarino… contributed a rich voice and expert comic timing.”
During the 2007-2008 season, Mr. Savarino sang the role of Dr. Gibbs in Ned Rorem’s new opera Our Town for its Washington D.C. premiere. Of this performance, a local critic reported, “Damian Savarino and Bridgid Eversole demonstrated such fine singing and acting as Dr. and Mrs. Gibbs that one wishes Rorem could expand their roles… Savarino’s rich, sonorous bass-baritone voice was the surprise of the evening for audience members who, like me, missed him in L’elisir last year.” Another critic remarked that the “Standout performers… were Zachary Nelson as Mr. Webb and Damian Savarino as Dr. Frank Gibbs.” Recent concert performances include the bass-baritone solos in Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem with the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra/Symphonic Choir and the Choral Arts Society of Messiah College, Händel’s Messiah and Mozart’s Requiem with the Choral Arts Society of Messiah College, Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs with the West Shore Symphony (PA), and Schubert’s Mass in G, as well as several concerts of Bach and Händel with the Handel & Haydn Society of Boston.
In February of 2005 he was a finalist in the annual Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition where critics touted he “polished off Figaro’s First Act aria in splendid voice” and he “proved to be a fine singer and excellent actor.” From his recent performances in Camelot, a critic hailed him by saying “the songs of Camelot haven’t sounded so sweet since Robert Goulet brought them to Broadway in 1960”. Mr. Savarino is also an active recitalist who recently made his European recital debut in Sicily, as well as presented a guest artist recital at Penn. State University. He is a graduate of Ithaca College and the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he worked and trained extensively with John Moriarty. Currently, he is pursuing his Doctor of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance degree at Catholic University of America. |
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