Doug Scholz-Carlson

Doug Scholz-Carlson recently made his directing debut in Minnesota Opera’s La fanciulla del West at the company that first introduced him to opera when he joined the chorus of La Cenerentola in 1998. Doug sang in the chorus and later served as assistant director for numerous productions. Minnesota Opera audiences know his fight choreography from various shows including Otello, Carmen, The Handmaid’s Tale, Wuthering Heights and the world premieres of The Shining, The Grapes of Wrath and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Silent Night. Doug is Artistic Director of the Great River Shakespeare Festival in Winona, Minnesota, where he has directed productions including Macbeth and Cymbeline and played roles including Henry in King Henry V, Feste in Twelfth Night and Edgar in King Lear. Recent directing credits include Lucia di Lammermoor for Portland Opera, Pittsburgh Opera and Austin Lyric Opera, The Turn of the Screw for Palm Beach Opera and Madison Opera and Brundibár for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and Palm Beach Opera. Also known as a fight choreographer, Doug’s fights have appeared in productions at theaters including New York City Opera, Opera Philadelphia, Utah Opera, Guthrie Theater, Children’s Theatre Company and the Seattle Police Department. As an actor, Doug has performed at theaters including the Guthrie Theater, Repertory Theater of Saint Louis, Utah Shakespeare Festival and the Seattle Repertory Theater. Upcoming projects include Roméo et Juilette at Austin Lyric Opera, The Barber of Seville at Madison Opera and a traveling production of The Pirates of Penzance for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.