Trusted

What is trust? How is it earned, and how is it shattered? When an accomplished financial advisor is exposed for orchestrating a decades-long fraud, the fallout extends far beyond his clients — it fractures the very foundation of his family. His two daughters struggle to reconcile the man they knew with the crimes he has committed. As the truth unravels, so do their own perceptions of loyalty, morality, and the fragile nature of trust itself. Set against the backdrop of a high-stakes financial scandal, Trusted is an intimate exploration of deception, betrayal, and the emotional toll of broken faith. Through a dynamic score by COT’s Vanguard Composer in Residence, Aaron Israel Levin, and a taut, contemporary libretto by Marella Martin Koch, the opera delves into the complexities of family bonds, the weight of inherited legacies, and the search for redemption in a world where trust—once lost—may never be regained.

The Vanguard Initiative is COT's comprehensive residency program for composers ready to delve into the world of opera. During the 2025/26 season, COT expands audience access to the creative process by opening the piano/vocal workshop for the seventh opera commissioned through the program. This unique opportunity not only allows audiences to witness the work’s evolution for the first workshop in September 2025 to the concert world premiere in May 2026, but to also play a hands-on role in its development.

Former COT Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya returns to the company to conduct Trusted. The cast for both the September workshop and the concert world premiere in May will feature sopranos Tracy Cantin and Meghan Kasanders, mezzo soprano Quinn Middleman, and bass baritone Kyle Albertson.