"Nicholas Kilkenny as Renato brings his fine bass-baritone voice to the role as well as some equally fine acting chops. Just as with higher voices, lower voices can sometimes have a problem projecting over the pit, but again, NOT HERE! Very impressive." - Peter Hall, Buffalo Rising
Dr. Kilkenny is a passionate, versatile performer with an equal passion for education and pedagogy. His operatic roles range from the comedic (Dulcamara in l’Elisir d’amore, Bartolo and Antonio in Le nozze di Figaro, Elviro in Serse, Betto in Gianni Schicchi), to the tragic (Renato in Un ballo in maschera, Commendatore in Don Giovanni, Lino in Bastianello) to the villain (Mephistopheles in Faust) and everything in between (Colline in La bohème, Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Peter in Hänsel und Gretel, King Balthazar in Amahl, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Sagristano in Tosca). Some companies Nicholas has had the pleasure of working with include Buffalo Opera Unlimited, Nickel City Opera, Geneva Light Opera, Opera Sacra, Hudson Opera Theater, Eastman Opera Theater, and Rochester Lyric Opera. In addition, Nicholas made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2014 singing the role of Jewel Scrooby in Howard Hanson’s Merry Mount with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.
As an advocate for performing and marketing new opera works, Dr. Kilkenny has had the privilege of premiering the roles of Dr. Mynter in Persis Vehar’s Shot! with Nickel City Opera, Captain in David Rosenbaum’s new adaptation of Twelfth Night, and Judge in David Glen Nettles’ The Fall of Stag Lee with Buffalo Opera Unlimited. In 2014 he recorded the role of Katis for Cary Ratcliff’s opera Eleni, in collaboration with soprano Kathryn Lewek.
In addition to his opera career, Nicholas is often heard performing the bass and baritone solos to iconic concert works, including Handel’s Messiah, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Bach’s Weihnachtsoratorium, St. Matthew Passion and Magnificat, Dvořák’s Te Deum, Haydn’s Creation, Lord Nelson Mass and Missa in tempore belli, Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem and Five Mystical Songs, and the Requiem set by Mozart, Brahms, Fauré, and Duruflé.
While his professional performance experience is clearly rooted in classical music, Dr. Kilkenny has found equal success as a freelance contemporary musician performing a variety of instruments, including acoustic and electric guitar, bass guitar, mandolin, and keyboard, in a wide range of venues, such as musical theater pit orchestras, recording studio sessions, live music venues and festivals, and private events. Recent credits include playing guitar for Theatre444’s productions of RENT!, tick…tick…BOOM!, and Alice by Heart.
Dr. Kilkenny’s passion for performance is matched only by his passion for teaching and pedagogy. His teaching philosophy is creating a specified curriculum for each student that is catered to help them grow as an artist and prepare for their chosen career path. This is achieved by employing practices acquired through years of education and experience in pedagogy, classical and contemporary music performance, music technology, and stagecraft.
Dr. Kilkenny holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from SUNY Buffalo State University, a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Vocal Performance and Literature with a minor in Pedagogy, also from Eastman. While at Eastman, he was a finalist in the Friends of Eastman Opera Theater Competition and was the 2014 recipient of the William McIver Award for Excellence in Teaching. Nicholas is currently on faculty at Nazareth University’s School of Music where he teaches applied voice and voice related courses with previous positions at the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam, Houghton University, Finger Lakes Community College, and as a teaching assistant at the Eastman School of Music.
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