Meet the people who make it happen at Opera Acadia.
Our Team.
Sarah Joyce Cooper, Artistic Director
Co-founder of Opera Acadia, Sarah Joyce Cooper is an award winning soprano known for her “passionate power” (Parterre Box) and “meltingly beautiful” (Opera News) singing. Recent highlights include her debut with Seattle Opera as Minnie Tate in the world premiere of Tazewell Thompson’s Jubilee; soloist Carnegie Hall appearances in Mozart’s Requiem and Vesperae solennes de confessore; and the title role in James Kallembach’s American Jezebel:The Trial of Anne Hutchinson, a world premiere performance commissioned by Harvard University.
Eric Mahl, Music Director
Co-founder of Opera Acadia, conductor Eric Mahl has solidified his place as one of the most exciting conductors of his generation. Known for his clarity, contagious energy and passion, he is the Music Director with the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra, the Northport Symphony Orchestra, and the Western Connecticut Youth Orchestra. In addition, he is the faculty/festival ensemble conductor at the Charles Ives Music Festival and principal guest conductor with the Geneva Light Opera Company.
Zachary Fisher, Chorus Master
Zachary Fisher is a choral conductor, educator, and tenor committed to the promotion of classical music throughout the state of Maine. A specialist in Baroque repertoire, he has appeared as tenor soloist in Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, and Charpentier’s Messe de Minuit pour Noël. He will appear this season with the Spoleto Music Festival in Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas and recently served as Chorus Master for Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore with the Bar Harbor Music Festival. He is a member of the voice faculty at the University of Maine, where he instructs the Opera Workshop program.