David Roth (opera director)

David Roth (May 9, 1959 – July 19, 2015) was an American opera director and stage director. He was the General Director of the Kentucky Opera from 2006 to 2015.

Life and career[edit]

Born in Beloit, Wisconsin, Roth grew up in western Wisconsin on a 600-acre farm.[1] Roth went to grade school in Westby and Viroqua, Wisconsin, and then graduated from Viroqua High School in 1977.[2] He earned degrees in Business Administration and Vocal Performance from the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse.[1][3][4] He began his career working for the Minnesota Opera. He worked as a director's assistant for John Copley, Colin Graham, and Francesca Zambello. He went on to stage works for the Baltimore Opera, the Minnesota Opera, and the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.[3] In 2000 he joined the staff of the Fort Worth Opera where he worked for six years as the director of production and director of finance.[4]

In 2006 Roth left his post in Fort Worth to assume the role of General Director of the Kentucky Opera.[4] He staged several productions for the Kentucky Opera over the next nine years, and also established Kentucky Opera's Composer Workshop Series; a program which enabled composers to develop new works in Louisville.[3] Under his leadership the company staged the world premieres of two operas by composer Daron Hagen: New York Stories and A Woman in Morocco.[5] He remained director of the company until his death in 2015 due to a car crash caused by a heart attack Roth suffered while he was driving in Urbana, Illinois.[6]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Richard Slawsky (January 15, 2007). "Following his passion: Kentucky Opera director David Roth prepared for farm career before discovering love of the arts". Business First.
  2. ^ David Roth-obituary
  3. ^ a b c "Ky. Opera: General director found dead in car during return from business trip". WHAS-TV. July 20, 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-12-08.
  4. ^ a b c "Obituaries: David Roth". Opera News. Vol. 80, no. 5. November 2015.
  5. ^ Tara Anderson (July 20, 2015). "Louisville Arts Community Remembers Kentucky Opera Director David Roth". WFPL.
  6. ^ Elizabeth Kramer (July 23, 2015). "Family: Ky Opera's Roth died of heart attack". The Courier-Journal.

External links[edit]

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