Presents

Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Words and story adaptation by John Davies

The Three Little Pigs will be performed in one act with no intermission.

Approximate run time is 40 minutes.

Please silence all cell phones and electronic devices.

Synopsis

In this delightful children’s opera, John Davies reimagines the classic tale of The Three Little Pigs with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. When the three pig siblings - Despina, Cherubino, and Don Giovanni - set out to build their own homes, they each take a different approach: one with straw, one with sticks, and one with bricks. Of course, the hungry wolf, Wolfgang Big Bad, has his own plans, and the pigs must use their wits, their voices, and a little teamwork to outsmart him. With Mozart’s sparkling melodies and plenty of humor, this playful opera introduces young audiences to the joy of music and the timeless lesson that hard work and cooperation triumph over trickery.

Cast and Creative

Kristin Kenning, Stage Director

Kristin Kenning is a stage director from Detroit, Michigan and is Director of Opera at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. Recent productions include Rigoletto, La Rondine, La Canterina, The Ghosts of Gatsby, Trouble in Tahiti, and Il Matrimonio Segreto for Mobile Opera; The Pirates of Penzance and Rusalka: The Littlest Mermaid for Opera Birmingham; The Ghosts of Gatsby for the OPERA America New Works Forum and Seagle Music Colony; The Merry Widow, Naughty Marietta, and The Desert Song for the Birmingham Music Club; Mademoiselle Modiste and The Vagabond King for Minnesota's Skylark Opera; and The Light in the Piazza, Dragon's Breath, The Marriage of Figaro, and On the Town for Samford Opera. She is a champion of new work and has directed often for the Atlanta Opera’s 24-Hour Opera Project as well as commissioning award-winning new works for Samford University. Upcoming projects include Die Fledermaus for Samford Opera, The Magic Flute for Mobile Opera, Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci for Opera Birmingham, and stage directing for Opera Viva in Verona, Italy.

John Robertson, Music Director

John Robertson holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in Piano Performance and Pedagogy, and he is currently pursuing a DMA in Piano Accompanying and Chamber Music at the Eastman School of Music, studying with Dr. Jean Barr, Dr. Andrew Harley, and Dr. Russell Miller. In 2019, he was the recipient of the Barbara M. H. Koeng Award for Excellence in Vocal Accompanying, and in January 2020, he was invited to participate in Renée Fleming’s SongStudio at the Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall. John has repeatedly performed in Opera Birmingham’s Sounds of the Season and Home for the Holidays recitals, the annual Opera Birmingham Vocal Competition, Opera Shots, and Art of the Rocks at the Birmingham Museum of Art. In January 2017, he performed with pianist Laurie Middaugh in a special two-piano accompaniment for Opera Birmingham’s production of Three Decembers, and he returned the following season to perform in The Tragedy of Carmen. He has performed in the orchestra for Samford University’s production of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas and Red Mountain Theater Company’s productions of Fiddler on the Roof, Newsies, Beauty and the Beast, and Mamma Mia! John has served as chorusmaster and vocal coach for many operatic and musical theater productions, including The Desert Song, Die Fledermaus, and Naughty Marietta with Birmingham Music Club, and The Pirates of Penzance, Amahl and the Night Visitors, On the Town, The Marriage of Figaro, Hansel and Gretel, and numerous opera workshop performances with Samford Opera. Active also as a music director, he has conducted Samford University’s recent productions of Bat Boy: The Musical, Nice Work if You Can Get It, Children of Eden, and Urinetown: The Musical, the University of Alabama Opera Theater’s recent productions of Alcina and Amahl and the Night Visitors, and Opera Birmingham’s recent production of The Pirates of Penzance. John has given recitals throughout the United States and has also worked as a staff accompanist at the Alabama School of Fine Arts, Bob Jones University, Birmingham-Southern College, Eastman School of Music, Samford University, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and the Vann Vocal Institute, accompanying faculty in recitals and undergraduate and graduate students in recitals, auditions, and competitions. John currently serves on the opera and voice faculty at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, AL, as vocal coach and opera conductor. For three years, John served as Lecturer and Collaborative Pianist at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, teaching applied piano and courses in accompanying, chamber music, and musical theater. He previously served as a member of the music faculty of Judson College in Marion, Alabama, teaching applied piano and group piano, and courses in music theory and piano pedagogy.

Cherubino Pig:

Isabelle Knowles

Freeman Artist

Mezzo-soprano Isabelle Knowles is a recent graduate of the University of Arizona (UA), where she received a B.S. in Neuroscience and a minor in Music while studying under Dr. Kristin Dauphinais and Dr. Andrew Stuckey. At the UA School of Music, she appeared as the Second Witch in Dido and Aeneas, Viktoria (cover) in Hinterkaifeck, and the Alms Sister in Suor Angelica. Other credits include Le Nozze di Figaro, Orphée at the Lyrique-en-Mer Festival, and Aida with Arizona Opera (her professional debut). Isabelle also enjoys musical theatre and recently portrayed Tzeitel in Fiddler on the Roof in a completely sold-out run at Arizona Arts Express Theater. Prior to college, she studied violin seriously and has taught for the last year. Isabelle is excited to begin her M.M. in Vocal Performance at Samford and to explore Birmingham. She is grateful to have been named a Freeman Studio Artist at Opera Birmingham and looks forward to performing in this season’s productions.

Don Giovanni Pig:

Leland Garris

Freeman Artist

Tenor Leland Garris is quickly establishing himself as a vibrant and expressive performer, known for his artistry and compelling stage presence. A native of Auburn, Alabama, he earned his Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Auburn University in 2025. His stage roles include Kaspar in Amahl and the Night Visitors, and he will perform Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus with Samford Opera’s fall production. He was also cast as Basilio in the Anatolia Conservatory of Music’s summer workshop in Greece. Dedicated to the bel canto tradition and equally at home in both comedic and dramatic repertoire, Garris brings passion, elegance, and vocal beauty to every performance.