I am a witless forger of my fate, a fate that should have been about touching a life, providing someone insight into their humanity, reminding whomever that all of us are everything. We are all, we are…from the book, JOHN K.

Stephanie Vlahos comes to the directing profession with the experience of a former, professional opera singer with a crossover edge. Her career has ranged in its collaborative work with artists such as Pierre Boulez, Andre Previn, Van Dyke Parks, John Adams, Ry Cooder, Jeff Bridges, Walter Hill, Sir Peter Hall, Director Peter Sellars, the composer Danny Elfman, and Music Producer David Was. Stephanie has coached and mentored students in theatre technique and voice for a number of years. Some of those students include: Angel Blue (premiering Violetta at Covent Garden this Fall), Julie Adams (Adler Fellow, winner of Metropolitan Opera Competition), Dawn Cantwell (Principal performer on Broadway, Sting’s Last Ship and Wicked), and the band HAIM.

A recipient of the Chanel Diva Award, Stephanie has sung in opera houses nationally and internationally in addition to her direction of and performances in cabaret-influenced performance art, earning her the monicker of the moonlighting Diva by the Associated Press. Her one-woman shows toured Europe, most notably a tour in Greece where she was also featured as a Maria Callas character in Nicholas Triandafilydis film, Mavro Gala. One of 30 artists across the States to be nominated for the prestigious United States Artists Grant for directing in 2014, Stephanie is recognised for her unique stagings of classical work such as La Boheme with Lyric Opera Virginia, and Britten’s Little Sweep in collaboration with Maestro James Conlon not to mention a new work for the Confucius Institute conceived and directed by Stephanie entitled Pacific Cinderella that premiered in Hangzhou, China in 2013. Stephanie has directed opera, theatre, and event shows from sold-out performances of operas such as Le Nozze Di Figaro and Don Giovanni for California State University to critically successful Equity theatre productions of Old Wicked Songs and The Morini Strad.

Stephanie earned her degree in music at Yale University with further studies in voice at The Juilliard School. While in Los Angeles, Stephanie was proud to serve on the Thornton School of Music, Board of Counselors at the University of Southern California . In addition to her work as a Stage Director, Stephanie served as Theater Coach for the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program at LA Opera for five years. Stephanie is currently based in Edinburgh where she is working on a variety of projects with folks from both the States and the UK. Meanwhile, she still thinks every morning should have at least one biscotti in it.