Stage Director – Alyssa Weathersby
Alyssa Weathersby is a NYC-based director-choreographer whose “inventively staged” works and “beguiling production[s]” straddle the opera and musical theatre worlds (Houston Press). Alyssa most recently directed the premiere of TENET’s Shakespearean musical pastiche, Tempest Tossed, in NYC, and made her Houston Hobby Center debut this summer directing and choreographing Iolanthe (G&S Society). Last season, her stylistic staging was seen in Opera in the Heights’ Lucia di Lammermoor and TENET’s Ariadne Unbound, and her choreography was the centerpiece of Opera del West’s Carmen. Previously, Alyssa returned to Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre where she choreographed Anything Goes and served as Co-Director/Choreographer alongside Emmy-winning and Tony-nominated George Pinney for Guys & Dolls and Little Shop of Horrors, directed the world premiere of Hildegard, Reborn with the NYPL at the Lincoln Center, directed Opera del West’s La Divina, and directed/choreographed Early Music Access Project’s regional premiere of James Shirley and Matthew Locke’s Cupid & Death at the famed Blackfriars Playhouse in Staunton, VA, where she previously directed their production of Venus & Adonis in 2022.
Other highlights include directing the sell-out productions of Rigoletto (Opera in the Heights) and L’elisir d’amore (Boston Opera Collaborative), devising and directing an updated Così fan tutt[i] (Carnegie Mellon University), and directing Hansel & Gretel (New England Conservatory). Alyssa has also served as staff at the international festival Prague Summer Nights (director, choreographer, fight choreographer).
Alyssa is a proud member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and holds degrees from the University of Houston and the New England Conservatory. Learn more at www.alyssaweathersby.com.
Music Director – Dr. Clifton Evans
Dr. Clifton Evans is excited to be returning to the Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Houston, for whom he previously served as assistant conductor from 2000-2002 and music director from 2002-2008. He recently was named as Director of Orchestral Activities and Professor of Conducting at Oklahoma City University and Artistic Director of the Oklahoma Youth Orchestras. Dr. Evans has enjoyed a conducting career that has taken him to Hong Kong, England, China, Austria, the Czech Republic, and throughout the United States. Highly sought after as a clinician and lecturer, Dr. Evans has conducted numerous Honor Orchestras and Bands and given multiple lectures on conducting and rehearsal technique.
In addition to his duties as a professor, Dr. Evans maintains an active schedule at festivals, conventions, and workshops. Recently named Principal Conductor for the American Festival for the Arts in Houston, TX, he will return to conduct during the 2026 summer season. He has served as a presenter multiple times for the Texas Orchestra Directors Association annual convention and has recently become involved with their “Winter Clinic” program, a new workshop focusing specifically on rehearsal technique.
Dr. Evans’ previous positions include Director of Orchestras at the University of Texas at Arlington, Artistic Director of the Arlington Youth Symphony, Director of Orchestras and Chamber Music for the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston, Conductor for the Houston Youth Symphony, and Music Director and Conductor of the Houston Civic Symphony. He resides in Norman with his wife, Christy.
Assistant Music Director – Gregory McDaniel
Gregory D. McDaniel is a passionate conductor and educator active in many different musical surroundings. Praised for his “impeccable musicality and technique” (La Presse – Montreal), Mr. McDaniel was recently featured in concert with Orchestre Metropolitan, conducting Boulanger’s D’un Matin de Printemps. This past year he was named Artistic Director of the Houston Ebony Opera Guild, for whom he conducted their annual African-American Music Gala, which featured a performance of Julia Perry’s Stabat Mater. He also recently worked with Opera in Heights as their chorus master for La Boheme and cover conductor for Hansel and Gretel. Past seasons have included leading performances of Missy Mazzoli’s Proving Up and William Grant Still’s Highway 1, USA for Opera Ithaca. Lastly, McDaniel has collaborated with, prepared choruses, and conducted performances for PRIZM, Fort Bend Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Boise Baroque, Henderson Symphony, and EADO Lyric Company.
A native of Houston, Gregory received degrees from the University of North Texas in Orchestral Conducting and the University of Houston in Choral Music Education.