Lyric Tenor RONALD GENTRY is well known among opera-goers for his versatility as a singer and actor, as well as for his beautiful voice. From Rodolfo in La Bohème to Little Bat in Susannah, to Peter Quint in The Turn of the Screw, his many masks are easily interchangeable. Newsweek Magazine hailed Ron Gentry as “the silvery tenor” for his portrayal of Mozart in Rimsky-Korsakov’s Mozart and Salieri, while the New York Daily News said his acting was “not far removed from that of Tim Curry” in Broadway’s Amadeus.

Mr. Gentry has appeared in leading roles with many regional opera companies including Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Hawaii, Memphis Opera, Connecticut Opera, and the Chamber Opera Theatre of New York, and he has toured extensively with Southern Opera Theater, and Karlsrud Concerts, performing over 60 concerts in the United States and Canada. A recipient of grants from the National Opera Institute and the Sullivan Foundation, and named “Young American” at Cincinnati Opera, he was educated at the University of Memphis.

Ron Gentry has performed over 2,000 performances, in a repertoire of over 50 operatic roles, including Don Jose, the Duke of Mantua, Pinkerton, Rodolfo, Alfredo, Don Ottavio, Nemorino, Almaviva, Ernesto, Prince Schwisky, and Kaspar. He has performed with opera greats such as Renata Scotto, Beverly Sills, Italo Tajo, Sherrill Milnes, David Holloway, Louis Quilico, Grace Bumbry, Birgitt Nielssen, Richard Tucker, Jerome Hines, Norman Treigle, George London, Pablo Elvira, Justino Diaz, Neil Shicoff, George Shirley, Mignon Dunn, Gilda Cruz-Romo, Gabriella Tucci, Fabrizio Milano, Ermano Mauro, Carol Neblett, Enrico DiGiuseppe, Catherine Malfitano, Gianna Rolandi, John Alexander, Ruth Welting, Chester Ludgin, Spiro Malas, Peter Glossup, Patricia Craig, among many others. His experience in creating roles outside the mainstream, such as Mozart in Rimsky-Korsakov’s Mozart and Salieri, the Sexton in The Bishop’s Ghost, by Donald Freunt (world premiere), and the American premiere of Don Juan in Dargomyzhsky’s The Stone Guest, Matt in the New York premiere of Malicone’s The Face on the Bar Room Floor, conducted by the composer, Peter Quint in Britten’s Turn of the Screw, The Italian Suitor in Jacques Ibert’s Angelique, and Azael in l’Enfant Prodigue, has kept him in the public eye. His prodigious acting skills have been displayed in featured supporting roles such as both Pang and Pong in Turandot, the First Jew in Salome, Malcolm in MacBeth, and Arturo in Lucia di Lamermoor. In his years on tour with Southern Opera Theater, he performed roughly 100 performances of eight to ten operas each year. Not limited to opera, he has sung numerous oratorios and symphonic works such as Mozart Requiem, Bach Magnificat, Handel’s Messiah, Dubois’ Seven Last Words, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Schubert Mass in G, and Ariel Ramirez’ Missa Criolla. His operetta and musical theater experience includes Prince Carl in the Student Prince, Philip in the New Moon, Camille, in the Merry Widow, Doc in The Most Happy Fella, Lieutenant Cable in South Pacific, Nanki-Poo in The Mikado. He has also served professionally as stage manager, lighting director, and props master. With this cadre of experience, he has been the able Director of Opera Workshop and a Vocal Instructor at the Interlochen Arts Academy for the past two decades, and continues his work as Vocal Instructor at Northwestern Michigan College, in Traverse City, Michigan, where he lives and performs regularly with his wife, soprano Nicole Philibosian. Together they created and operate “Chantez Productions, International,” a performance and training program for both teachers and students of singing, now in its tenth season.