Events Calendar

Masterclass: Michael Shell

As acclaimed director Michael Shell puts it, “If you don’t support singing with authenticity as an actor, it doesn’t really matter.” In this masterclass, you’ll uncover the techniques to create the illusion that you are that character, elevating your performance from simple execution to a powerful, immersive experience that resonates with audiences. Whether you seek to strengthen your acting craft or add another dimension to your singing, this masterclass equips you with the tools and insights to enhance your artistry and create a more authentic, compelling stage presence. Participants and audience members alike are bound to get a deeper and dynamic relationship with stagecraft. All welcome to attend! Students are nominated by their voice instructor.

Michael Shell is associate professor of music in voice at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and resident stage director for IU Jacobs School of Music Opera and Ballet Theater.
His "visionary" and "masterful storytelling" (Opera News) is steadily leading him to be one of the most sought-after directors in the United States. His "thoughtful and detailed score study" (Opera Today) is shown in character development and relationships onstage as well as the complete visual world he creates.  
Of his most recent new production of Candide, it was said by Broadway World that "This production was one I could watch over and over again. Each moment of the show required the sets, costumes, and actors to be at their best. The final picture we see on stage is a beautiful reminder of what our world can be. While we all have our own beliefs, when we come together, we make something beautiful." The driving force behind his work as a director is to tell the story in the most authentic and theatrical way possible.
Shell has directed productions for Atlanta Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Michigan Opera Theater, Opera Omaha, Opera San Jose, Opera Tampa, Opera North, Virginia Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Wexford Festival Opera, and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. He made his international directing debut at the Wexford Festival Opera in 2010 with a production of Winners, by American composer Richard Wargo and returned the next fall to direct Double Trouble – Trouble in Tahiti & The Telephone. He has written and directed three cabarets, including All About Love and The Glamorous Life - A group therapy session for Opera Singers, both for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
Shell holds a B.M. and M.M. in Music/Vocal Performance from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. He was a Corbett Scholar at The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, as well as studying Acting and Scene Study on a school awarded scholarship at the internationally renowned H. B. Studios in NYC.
He has been a guest faculty member at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Florida State University, and Webster University, St. Louis, teaching Opera Workshop and directing Undergraduate Opera Workshop performances. In addition, Shell has guest directed at the A. J. Fletcher Opera Institute and Oklahoma University and was frequent guest director at Indiana University before being joining its faculty.  As an educator his philosophy is to inform, excite, and empower his students to be the most authentic singing actor possible. Over his short time at I.U., he has created the new core of dramatic training courses offered at JSOM.

In 2020-21, Shell directed all five IU Jacobs Opera Theater productions under COVID protocols, when no other U.S. academic institution or opera company was presenting fully staged indoor productions. The school’s The Turn of the Screw by Benjamin Britten won a National Opera Association Best Opera Production award that season.

This masterclass is free and open to the public.