Jeffrey Buchman

Opera News calls Director Jeffrey Buchman “a formidable talent.” Constantly pushing the limits of the performing arts, Mr. Buchman’s versatility leads him to a variety of venues to explore some of opera’s classics while also constantly premiering new works. His innovation puts him at the forefront of a new era in directing.

In recent seasons, he directed La Traviata, Don Giovanni and Die Zauberflöte for The Academy of Vocal Arts (AVA); As One for Hawaii Opera Theater; Ricky Ian Gordon’s 27 for Michigan Opera Theatre; Le nozze di Figaro, Carmen, and Madama Butterfly for Opera Naples; and the world premiere of TESLA for the SoBe Arts Festival.

He has led three productions for Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, Carmen, La bohème and La traviata; directed Die Zauberflöte for Opera Naples and Florida Grand Opera, where he also directed productions of Rigoletto and Eugene Onegin; Carmen at Atlanta Opera; a new production of Faust, Turandot, Don Pasquale, and Il trovatore for Opera Naples; Il barbiere di Siviglia for Baltimore Opera; and Tosca with Opera Tampa.

Previous engagements also include La tragédie de Carmen and Il barbiere di Siviglia for Syracuse Opera; Turandot and Manon Lescaut for Mobile Opera; a double-bill of Gianni Schicchi/Suor Angelica, Roméo et Juliette and La fille du régiment at Intermountain Opera Bozeman; Così fan tutte at Brevard Music Center; South Pacific for Anchorage Opera; Hänsel und Gretel for Sarasota Opera; Cold Sassy Tree for the Sugar Creek Music Festival; L’elisir d’amore for Toledo Opera; Il barbiere di Siviglia for the Orlando Philharmonic; and La Cenerentola at Green Mountain Opera Festival. Following his success directing the première of Madama Butterfly in his Nicaraguan début for the National Theater in Managua, Mr. Buchman returned to direct a critically acclaimed production of La bohème.

An innovative director, Mr. Buchman spends time working on new and groundbreaking material for the contemporary opera world. Some of these endeavors include his title as Artistic Director of a dynamic multimedia project entitled “Live Arts” at Grand Rapids Symphony, Andy Vores’ chamber opera No Exit based on the 1944 existentialist play with the same title at Florida Grand Opera, and a contemporary multimedia theatre project entitled Fairy Tales: Songs of the Dandelion Woman at Little Stage Theater in Miami Beach.

Buchman also directs at many universities throughout Florida and the U.S. Some of his university engagements include a double-bill of Gianni Schicchi/Suor Angelica at Miami University, Marva and Ainadamar at the University of Miami, The Bartered Bride for the New World School of the Arts, Don Giovanni at UCLA, and L’elisir d’amore for the University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music

Mr. Buchman has a long history of fostering the artistic growth of young artists throughout the country. He was Resident Stage Director for Sarasota Opera’s Apprentice Artist Program. His work with Tulsa Opera includes directing productions for their Young Artist Studio such as Pirates of Penzance and Luisa Fernanda. From 2005-2010, Mr. Buchman served as stage director and coach for the Opera Department of the New World School of the Arts in Miami, where he created new productions of Die Zauberflöte, Hänsel und Gretel, Amelia Goes to the Ball, La Divina, Die Fledermaus, and Così fan Tutte.

Mr. Buchman studied German at the Goethe-Institut in Prien am Chiemsee, Germany and Spanish at the Instituto Cervantes in New York. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Opera from the Boston Conservatory of Music and a Master of Music degree in Voice from the Peabody Conservatory of Music in his native city of Baltimore, Maryland. He trained in the Young Artist Program of the Florida Grand Opera, where he later was honored with the company’s Evelyn P. Gilbert Award. He also trained in the Studio and Apprentice Artist Programs of Central City Opera, where he was awarded their Studio Artist of the Year award.