Janese Pentico Performed with the SUU Opera
Published: April 04, 2022 | Author: Zina Johnstun | Read Time: 3 minutes
Janese Pentico graduated from Southern Utah University in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education. Right after graduation, she taught high school music in Milford, Utah before moving to the Midwest. She has been living in Wisconsin for the past six years. In those years, she earned a master’s degree in Vocal Performance, started a family, and developed her career as an opera singer.
In 2020, Ms. Pentico joined the Young Artist Program at Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre, where she covered the role of Madama Butterfly. She also performed as Zerlina in Don Giovanni, was heard in a variety of educational outreach programs, and sang in the popular Sundays at the Basile series while she was a resident artist at Indianapolis Opera. Following her residency at IO, Ms. Pentico prepared the title role in Rachmaninoff’s Francesca da Rimini with the prestigious Russian Opera Workshop by virtual means.
When asked about what she had taken and learned from her time at SUU she said, “The university’s motto is ‘Learning lives forever.’ I feel like that has come to mean ‘The more you learn, the more you realize you don’t know.’ I find that is such a good perspective: there’s always something more to learn. And, truly, I credit my professors and mentors at SUU with giving me my entire foundation for what I do now. I hope they don’t remember my initial audition for the college - but I do - and how far we have come!”
She was happy to be back at SUU singing with the opera program in their English-language production of Suor Angelica. This is the third time she had performed as one of Puccini’s leading ladies and added that she doesn’t take that for granted.
Her advice to students now is, “Without knowing the challenges each student is facing, I can say that I felt so much ‘openness’ in the rehearsal process here. That ability to be open, teachable, coachable - while still being true to your life experience - is such an asset to a collaborative performer. I hope the students here can continue to cultivate that and add it to the many other things that they will develop and learn in their careers.”
About the College of Performing and Visual Arts
The College of Performing and Visual Arts (CPVA) at Southern Utah University comprises 26 academic programs including liberal arts (BA/BS) and professional (BFA, BM, BMEd) degrees in art, design, dance, music, and theatre. It includes graduate programs in the fields of arts administration (MFA, MA), music education (MME), and music technology (MM). More than 60 full-time faculty and staff are engaged in teaching and mentoring over 900 majors in the College. CPVA presents over 100 performances, lectures, presentations, and exhibitions each year and is affiliated with the Southern Utah Museum of Art (SUMA), Utah Shakespeare Festival, and the Center for Shakespeare Studies. Southern Utah University is an accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Art & Design (NASAD), National Association of Schools of Dance (NASD), National Association of Schools of Music (NASM), and the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST) making SUU the first public university in the state of Utah to be accredited by all four associations. For more information about the College of Performing and Visual Arts, visit www.suu.edu/pva.Tags: Music College of Performing and Visual Arts