Knoxville Opera presents Puccini's action-packed comedy, "Gianni Schicchi"

WUOT | By Melony Dodson

Published May 7, 2026 at 12:57 PM EDT

Melony Dodson talks with guest conductor, Ben Makino, and bass-baritone, Andrew Wentzel, about Knoxville Opera's upcoming production of Puccini's Gianni Schicchi.

Knoxville Opera closes out its 2025-2026 season with Puccini's action-packed one-act comedy, Gianni Schicchi. Performances will be given in the historic Bijou Theatre in downtown Knoxville, Friday, May 8th at 7:30pm and Sunday, May 10th at 2:30pm. A pre-show talk, hosted by former WUOT host, Daniel Berry, will take place an hour before the performance. Tickets and additional information at: https://knoxvilleopera.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/events/a0SUH0000014dqD2AQ

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Melony Dodson

Melony calls the beautiful mountains of Boone, N.C., home, although she was born near Greensboro, N.C. There’s just something about those Blue Ridge Mountains that got in her blood and never left after she moved there to attend Appalachian State University (ASU). While at ASU, she majored in piano performance and music therapy and began to cultivate a love for accompanying and for collaborating with other musicians. This soon led her to earn a master’s degree in collaborative piano at the University of Tennessee, which she attended from 2006-2008.

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