Daniels’ sub announced for ‘Orlando’
Countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen will sing the role of Medoro in the production of Handel’s “Orlando” that opens at the San Francisco Opera on June 9, the company announced. He replaces David Daniels, who was removed from the production in November after allegations of sexual assault were made against him.
Nussbaum Cohen, who turns 25 on Monday, Feb. 11, is an Adler Fellow with the Opera, and this engagement will mark his company and role debuts. He was named a Grand Finals Winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 2017, and appeared in December with the American Bach Soloists. He is scheduled to sing in Handel’s “Saul” with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra in April.
Daniels has appeared regularly in San Francisco since his 1998 company company debut in Monteverdi’s “L’Incoronazione di Poppea.” He was pulled from the production after a young singer, baritone Samuel Schultz, accused Daniels and his husband, conductor Scott Walters, of having drugged and raped him in 2010.
In January, Daniels and Walters were arrested in Michigan, where they live, on a charge related to the alleged incident. They are scheduled to face trial in Houston.
In addition to the “Orlando” change, the company announced that bass Kristinn Sigmundsson will replace Ferruccio Furlanetto in Dvorák’s “Rusalka,” opening June 16.