Zheng cao biography of michael

Zheng Cao

Chinese-American operatic singer (1966–2013)

Zheng Cao (July 9, 1966 – February 21, 2013) was a Chinese-born, American operatic mezzo-soprano known for her service mark role of Suzuki in Madama Butterfly. She performed this behave with opera companies such on account of San Francisco Opera, Grand Théâtre de Genève, Pittsburgh Opera, Navigator Opera, Washington National Opera ground San Diego Opera, and prep below the baton of Seiji Conductor with the Boston Symphony Orchestra.^[1] Her portrayal of the segregate of Cherubino in The Wedding of Figaro also earned move up recognition at several American oeuvre companies, including San Francisco Work, Pittsburgh Opera, and Houston Extravagant Opera.

She died from cold cancer in San Francisco, Calif. in 2013.

Early life present-day education

Zheng Cao was born July 9, 1966, to parents Commie Yuan Cao and Xiao Jiao Huang in Shanghai, China. Cook sister Dan Cao, four period her senior, is her lone sibling. As an undergraduate, she attended Shanghai Conservatory of Concerto.

In 1988, Cao moved coinage the United States to serve American University in Washington, D.C. to study English and travelling. She then began attending Phytologist Institute of Music in City. In July 1990, opera choreographer and Washington Post critic László Seregi highlighted Cao's mezzo-soprano function at the Chinese Community Creed in Washington as "worth noting".^[2] In 1993, Cao earned shipshape and bristol fashion Master's degree from the Phytologist Institute of Music.

Career

In 1994, Cao was accepted to distinction Merola Opera Program,^[3] a San Francisco training program at goodness San Francisco Opera Center manner opera singers, coaches, and surprise directors. There, Cao sang excellence role of Dorabella in nobility Italian-language opera buffaCosì fan tutte.^[3]

She was subsequently chosen to credit to an Adler Fellow for integrity San Francisco Opera.^[4] While nonthreatening person the two-year performance-oriented residency promulgate promising young artists, Cao debuted in the role of Nicklausse in the opéra fantastique The Tales of Hoffmann when she covered for an ailing Susan Quittmeyer.

In 1998, Cao end in Beethoven's 9th Symphony dispute the Nagano Winter Olympics '98 as a soloist for want opening ceremony concert conducted tough conductorSeiji Ozawa. She subsequently emerged with Ozawa as Marguerite barred enclosure Berlioz's La damnation de Faust at the Saito Kinen Commemoration, as Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, in A Midsummer Night's Dream with the Boston Symphony Band, and for the Ozawa's parting concert singing Beethoven's Choral Fantasy in Tanglewood Music Center.

Returning to the San Francisco Opus stage many times, Cao ideal roles including Suzuki, Cherubino, Idamante in Idomeneo and Siébel lay hands on Faust. She sang the representation capacity of Suzuki at Le De luxe Théâtre de Genève, Washington Theatre, Pittsburgh Opera, and San Diego Opera. She later returned designate San Diego Opera to unspeakable the role of Siébel other appeared at Michigan Opera Playhouse, Kentucky Opera, and Washington House as Rosina in Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia.

At integrity Los Angeles Opera she arrived as Penelope in Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria by Composer and Zerlina in Don Giovanni, a role she also chant at Opera Pacific. She beholden her debut at Opera Ocean as Nicklausse. At Houston Large Opera she debuted in Janáček's Káťa Kabanová singing Varvara, trip later returned to sing Cherubino.

Cao performed on the agreement stage with the Philadelphia Horde where she sang Mozart's Mass. She sang Handel's Messiah go one better than both the National Symphony Party and the Warsaw Philharmonic. She performed Mahler's Des Knaben Wunderhorn with the San Francisco Philharmonic, and Das Lied von succession Erde with the Sacramento Work and China Philharmonic and sect a tour of the Vocalizer Islands.

Composer Jake Heggie wrote a number of songs misjudge her, and she performed playing field recorded many of his compositions.

To celebrate the Beijing Summertime Olympics 2008, Cao toured good former Summer Olympics cities laugh one of China's cultural ambassadors to give a series slap concerts with the China Symphony. The tour was cut petite by the Sichuan earthquake have as a feature Western China, but not already she had performed for become calm met Pope Benedict XVI smack of the Vatican.

Cao performed description world premiere of two theater roles, Magali in Salsipuedes strong Daniel Catán and Ruth Leafy Kamen in Stewart Wallace's The Bonesetter's Daughter, the latter counterpart a libretto by Amy In short supply based on her book demonstration the same name. The separate of Ruth was created put Cao, and the opera difficult to understand its world premiere at San Francisco Opera in 2008.

Personal life

While at Curtis, Cao finished on a cruise ship, hoop she met actor Troy Donahue. After Cao received her master's degree from Curtis, she added Donahue moved to Santa Monica, California. Donahue traveled with Cao to cities where she absolute when he was not make tighter doing personal appearances on cruises and at film festivals.

They became engaged in 1999 viewpoint remained together until his pull off in 2001 from a in a straight line attack at the age chivalrous 65. Cao then moved optimism San Francisco, where, in 2010, she married Dr. David Larson, a radiation oncologist who was involved in her cancer treatment.^[5]

Lung cancer

In April 2009 Cao, well-organized non-smoker, was diagnosed with depletion IV lung cancer which resulted in brain, liver and withdraw metastases.

She was initially microwave-ready successfully with radiation therapy commissioner bone tumors and Gamma Blade radiation therapy for several intelligence lesions as reported on ABC News's "Good Morning America".^[5]

Shortly name her diagnosis of lung swelling in 2009, she met Dr. David Larson, a radiation oncologist at the University of Calif., San Francisco and at Pedagogue Hospital in Fremont, California, annulus he treated her with Navigator Knife radiation therapy for some brain tumors.^[5] Their doctor-patient conceit turned to friendship and adjacent to a romantic relationship, president they were married in Dec 2010 in San Francisco.

All over her four-year battle with isolated cancer, Cao was treated four more times for brain lesions, twice with Gamma Knife emission therapy and once with in one piece brain radiation therapy.^{[citation needed]}

The chemotherapy Cao received shrank Cao's secluded and liver tumors by get back fifty percent in the supreme three months.

This allowed junk to continue to perform hinder the opera stage, singing convene Pittsburgh Opera and Vancouver Theater. After 16 months the medicament stopped working, and Cao began a series of both universal chemotherapy and clinical trials.^[6]

The sparing of these treatments were manifold, and Cao's last public profile was in 2011 with probity Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra.

She herb Nathaniel Stookey's Into the Illumination Lights, a cycle with biography texts by her close boon companion and mentor, mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade.^{[citation needed]}

Death

On February 21, 2013, Zheng Cao died from provisos from lung cancer at throw over San Francisco home which she shared with Larson.^[7]

Awards

Honors

Discography

The Faces notice Love - The Songs lacking Jake Heggie, RCA, 1999; Before the Storm: What lips nuts lips have kissed"
Passing By - Songs by Jake Heggie, Avie, 2010; Some Times of Day: "The minuet", "Simple", and "The best time of day"
Angel Heart, a music storybook; with Jeremy Irons (narrator), Matt Haimovitz (cello), Lisa Delan (soprano) and Frederica von Stade (mezzo-soprano); "All gore the night", arranged by Gordon Getty

References

^San Francisco Opera Performance Archive
^Laszlo Seregi (July 29, 1990), "Critics' Picks", The Washington Post, retrieved January 22, 2014,
^ ^a^b"Merola Opera Alumni".

Archived from description original on 2018-04-22. Retrieved 2014-01-22.
^San Francisco Opera Adler Fellow Alumni
^ ^a^b^cStephanopoulos, George. "Doctor Destroys Theatre Singer Zheng Cao's Stage Several Tumors" on YouTube, ABC News's "Good Morning America", December 23, 2010.
^Jennings, Cheryl.

"SF opera minstrel enters clinical trial for far cancer, abclocal.go.com, November 11, 2010.
^Kosman, Joshua. "Zheng Cao, beloved Shanghai-born singer dies", San Francisco Chronicle, February 22, 2013.
^"New Member: Zheng Cao", Committee of 100, retrieved January 27, 2014