By William H. Kelly III
(JACKSON, Miss.) – Jackson State University (JSU) proudly announces the launch of its inaugural S.O.S. (Summer Opera/South) Boot Camp. Beginning June 8, students from Xavier University of Louisiana, Alcorn State University, Tougaloo College and JSU will participate in the weeklong training at the F.D. Hall Music Center.
“Jackson State University is honored to welcome international artists and rising collegiate talent to our campus for the inaugural S.O.S. Boot Camp,” said Phyllis Lewis-Hale, DMA, assistant professor of music and the director of opera and musical theater at JSU. “This intensive experience not only marks a new chapter in the revitalization of Opera/South, but also celebrates a powerful exchange of artistry, culture and education across HBCU communities and beyond.”
The camp is a collaborative effort led by the Opera/South Company, housed in JSU’s Department of Music, in partnership with the HBCU Opera & Musical Theater Collective. Hale serves as the project director for the camp and is the director of Opera/South.
Various workshops and masterclasses will offer students vocal training, audition techniques, diction and language coaching, vocal health strategies and more. The immersive training will emphasize integral operatic development through vocal performance, artistic leadership and community engagement, guided by renowned national and international artists.
Among the faculty are teaching artists such as Albert Lee, DMA, associate dean at the Yale School of Music and a Pulitzer-Prize winning tenor, Sakinah Davis, DMA, assistant professor of music and specialist in Spanish repertoire and African diaspora opera from Xavier University and Hale, an international soprano who also serves as the founder and president of the HBCU Opera & Musical Theater Collective.
Additional instructors will include award-winning tenor and Associate Professor of Music at Salisbury University John Wesley Wright, DMA, who specializes in African American song, Tyler J. Tucker, a pianist, coach, and conductor currently with Tri-Cities Opera and newly appointed to the University of Oklahoma faculty, and Donald Lee III, a composer and pianist with credits at Chicago Lyric Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
“Our students will have a rare opportunity to work with world-class artist-scholars who are shaping the future of opera,” said Hale. “From private lessons and style coachings to masterclasses and performances, they’ll gain essential technical skills and engage deeply with the cultural legacy of diverse operatic traditions.”
There will be a range of free events open to the public including the opening concert, student recital, a masterclass and the closing concert. The closing concert will debut “Jubilee,” a newly commissioned opera by JSU’s Margaret Walker Center, created by Randy Klein and Joan Ross Sorkin, inspired by Walker’s award-winning novel. The opening concert will feature performances by the S.O.S. faculty.
The S.O.S. Boot Camp was made possible in part by sponsors such as the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Grants for Arts Projects (GAP), Opera America, Opera Mississippi, Pensacola Opera, the Margaret Walker Center at JSU and others.
To become a sponsor or discover more ways to support the Opera/South program at JSU, visit https://www.jsums.edu/music/opera-south-company/. Find the full list of free events by visiting the following link to JSU’s Department of Music Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Musicjsu/.
Media Contact: William H. Kelly III, william.h.kelly@jsums.edu