// contact Knut.

The following people compose an international collaboration of artists, performers, crew members, technicians, librettists, opera enthusiasts, cybertheorists, and netizens in the development of the "first opera in cyberspace."

Singers at the South by Southwest Opening Party:

Bruce Cain, baritone, is Assistant Professor of Music and has performed both in opera and concert throughout the United States. He began his career with the Chautauqua Opera, where The Chautauqua Daily wrote that he "sang richly and sensitively, and acted the part believably". In Chicago, he has been dubbed "an eloquent soloist" (Chicago Sun-Times), and his Chicago Symphony Orchestra debut was praised for its "sensitivity" (Chicago Tribune). Among Dr. Cain's opera roles are Belcore in The Elixir of Love, Dr. Blind and Falke in Die Fledermaus, Marcello and Schaunard in La Boheme, Guglielmo in Cosi fan tutte, a gambler in Prokofiev's The Gambler, and Count Ogelby in The Secret Marriage with Chicago Lyric Opera, Skylight Comic Opera Theatre, Pamiro Opera, Chautauqua Opera, Whitewater Opera, Northwest Indiana Opera Theatre, and Opera Grand Rapids. Dr. Cain is also an accomplished concert performer. Midwest audiences have heard him frequently in Handel's Messiah and Bach's Cantatas and Passions. He has performed Brahms' German Requiem and Liebeslieder Waltzes, FaurÈ's Requiem, Haydn's Creation, Mozart's Requiem, Orff's Carmina Burana, and Vaughan-Williams' Mass in G Minor, and Russo's The Golden Bird with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Recent performances include Honegger's King David, Stravinsky's L'histoire du Soldat, Bach's Cantata #140, Saint-Saens' Christmas Oratorio, Rachmanimoff's The Bells, and Britten's War Requiem. Dr. Cain received his Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from McMurry University, the Master of Music in Voice Performance from Indiana University, and a Doctor of Music Degree in Voice Performance from Northwestern University.

Claire Vangelisti, soprano, is an August 1997 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where she completed a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance. Dr. Vangelisti is beginning her fifth year teaching applied voice at Southwestern University in Georgetown, TX and has also maintained a private voice studio in Austin for six years. During her graduate studies at The University of Texas, Ms. Vangelisti participated in the UT Opera Theater and performed in several productions, including principal roles in Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann, Mozart's Cosí fan tutte, Benjamin Britten's The Turn of the Screw, and Johann Strauss' Die Fledermaus. She also performed extensively with The University of Texas New Music Ensemble. More recently, Ms. Vangelisti has participated in the Austin Lyric Opera Young Artist Program, and has had the opportunity to perform several cameo roles on the mainstage in productions such as Rigoletto, The Ballad of Baby Doe., as well as the role of Papagena in Die Zäuberflöte. In addition to her work in opera, Ms. Vangelisti enjoys the oratorio repertoire and has performed as a soloist in many works, including Mozart's Grand Mass in C Minor, Missa Brevis in F Major, and Mass in C Major, as well as Schubert's Mass No. 2 in G Major, Vivaldi's Gloria, Rutter's Requiem, Handel's Messiah, and Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass. In June and July of 1998, Ms. Vangelisti was a principal vocalist with The Laredo Philharmonic Orchestra in their annual Mozart Festival, and she also presented a solo recital in Lisbon, Portugal at the Centro Cultural de Belém, in conjunction with I Curso International de Música Vocal Luisa Todi.

Eric Peabody, a native of Michigan, has lived in Austin since 1991. He has performed extensively in opera,recital and oratorio throughout Texas, the U.S. and abroad. Recent engagements have included roles with Austin Lyric Opera, Houston Opera in the Heights, Unity Theater and the State Opera in Kosice, Slovak Republic. He also created the role of King Arthur in the opera Tom Thumb by Canadian composer Gerald Berg (based on the play by Henry Fielding) in a world-premiere with the Moravian Philharmonic. In addition, he maintains a law practice with the Austin firm of Hanna & Plaut, L.L.P., for whose support he is ever thankful.

Melinda Brou, mezzosoprano, is a Senior Music Education major at Southwestern University. While at Southwestern, she has performed in the University's Opera Theatre program and the University Chorale. Melinda is a student of Dr. Carol Kreuscher.

Oliver Worthington, tenor, came to Austin to pursue a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Texas. He sings with local organizations such as the Austin Lyric Opera where he was described by Opera News as 'a clear, crisp, promising tenor.' Regionally, he has appeared as a soloist with various organizations and opera companies such as the South Texas Lyric Opera, Unity Theater, Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival, Aspen Opera Theater, Lowell Opera, Ohio Light Opera and Lyric Opera Cleveland. He also is active as a recitalist and has performed on various chamber music series such as those in Huntsville, Georgetown, Round Top and Amarillo. Mr. Worthington is a voice instructor at Southwestern University and maintains a private studio in Austin.

Madelyn Starbuck, aka honoria, (Impresaria) an internationally known Mail Artist who has performed in Italy, France, and the United States. Ongoing performance art projects in Austin, Texas. Researcher at the Computer Writing and Research Labs and a research fellow of the ACTLab at The University of Texas at Austin. She holds a Master's Degree in Instructional Technology, has presented papers comparing creative collaboration in the mail art network with the dynamics of virtual communities: Museo Pratto, the University of Florence, and Studio Rauton in Paris.

George Oldziey, (Composer), instructor of music at Southwestern University, Georgetown, Texas. Best known for composing the score one of the world's best selling CD-ROM science fiction adventure games, Mr. Oldziey has received awards and recognition for his compositions in multimedia and ensemble music. His knowledge of electronic communities combined with his facility with composition software makes him an ideal composer for this opera.

Vicente Fores, Ph.D., (Libretto Editor), playwrite, translator and university professor is now working in the field of artificial intelligence applied to education. He has produced a successful play, ñHomage to Heiner Muellerî performed in March 1996 in Valencia, Spain. He is also a founding member of the Spanish Shakespeare Institute that until now has produced and performed fourteen of Shakespeare's plays for Spanish theatrical productions. He is facilitating contact with a number of European opera producers.

Knut Graf, (Technical Director, Website Designer), ACTLAB fellow, is a multi-media artist working on interactive media and virtual environments. He has studied Communications Design at Merz Academy Stuttgart, Germany and Advanced Design Research and Communications Theory at the University of Texas at Austin. He has worked on various CD-ROM and online productions. Since July 1997 he is a multimedia developer at frogdesign inc. in Austin, Texas.

Karen Palazzini, Ph.D., (Libretto editor-in-chief), musician, economist, teacher, has collaborated on the compilation and organization of the couplets collected from virtual librettists. Karen has also written the seduction of bookish. In this wetware photo, Karen as bookish's clone is in the process of seducing Richard MacKinnon in the role of bookish.

Richard MacKinnon, (Director of Operations) is a writer, researcher, and lecturer who is credited with pioneering the political science of cyberspace.He is the first social scentist to research the Internet's premier conferencing network called Usenet. Also an active participant in the "cyberliberties" movement, he sits on the board of directors for the Electronic Frontiers--Texas, and has written essays on the efficacy and politics of technology. He is currently writing a book for MIT Press called _Cybergovernance: Politics Among the Disembodied_.

Sandy Stone, (Mentor), philosopher, professor, cybergodess, director of the Advanced Communication Technologies Laboratory (ACTLAB). Performed in the first webcast reading (December 9, 1995). Sandy IS the theory and practice in action from which this cyberopera has grown.

Tom Holmes, performance artist and exhibiting gallery artist sometimes appears as a Texas sheriff. (Artistic Director of the 1999 SXSW performance of scene one.)

Bryan Green, (Artistic director and choreographer), was born in Dallas but grew up in Santiago, Chile. After returning to the United States, he eventually found his way to the arts through dance and choreography mediums as well as picking up skills as a gymnast, and working as a graphic designer. In Austin, he currently works on yearly spring productions at alternative venues as well as choreographic commissions for local dance and theater companies. Bryan's work has been produced by Sharir Dance Co., Diverse Works in Houston, Living Arts of Tulsa and different showcases in the Souteastern United States.

Justin Madison Smith, (Video Effects Director) has a diverse background in new media production and information technology and is currently Director of Communication Technology for Industrial-Strength Network, Inc. He spent several years as MIS Director for the multimedia production house Digital Arts of Austin. Mr. Smith, versed in a variety of disciplines from interactive design, to Internet-based virtual communities, to theories and methods of an unnameable discourse, is an Advanced Communication Technologies Laboratory (ACTLAB) fellow.

Heather Kelley has served in various capacities since the opera's inception, including reader in performances, libretto writer, photograper, and promotions. Ms. Kelley is a producer at Humancode in Austin, Texas, where she is developing educational and entertainment software. She holds a Master's Degree in Radio-Television-Film from the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in gender issues in new communication technologies. Her thesis addresses gender and sensory modes in computer interface. She is a member of UT's ACTLAB. Ms. Kelley received her BA at Agnes Scott College, and began her online career in radio, in academic publishing, and at Georgia Institute of Technology.

Jane Henrici, Ph.D. (Cyberopera Actress and Ambassador-to-the-real-world) Jane has performed in libretto readings, done make-up and participated in promotion. In the 96 & 97 readings, she presented the part of honoria. Jane also is using her doctorate in antropology to teach an introductory cultural antropology class at the University of Texas at Austin, and publishing articles on tourism, gender, and Latin America.

Angelo Gomez, baritone in 1996 webcast.

Ali Hossaini, graphic designer, author of the Archaeology of the Photograph, was an editor and producer for the third cyberopera webcast, which was also presented at CiberArt 96 in Valencia, Spain.

Barna Kantor, Cinematographer, has been making videos and films since 1995. For the cyperspace opera projects he has been responsible for production design and videorecording. He has been cooproducing all the opera events as well.Mr. Kantor is one of the founders of the Austin Film Cooperative.

Janet Davidson, soprano, is currently studying vocal performance at the University of Texas. She has performed lead roles with the UT Undergraduate Ensemble, Austin Civic Orchestra, and the Austrian American Mozart Akademie. Ms. Davidson made her European debut at the Altestheatre Steyr (Austria) in July 1996, performing with conductor Hugo Rinaldi of the Marin Opera Company in San Francisco.

Martha Hadley Mccarroll, soprano in 1996 webcast.

Thomas Monclova, technical advisor for 1996 webcasts, is a Systems Analyst for the Academic Computing Instructional Technology Systems at the University of Texas at Austin.

Ryan Goertz, composer for the first two cyberopera webcasts.

Jay Mahavier, Video editor of the October 1996 webcast opera-music video.