A theatre professional for more than 40 years, Helena Binder was an actor and director of plays and musicals before focusing her career on opera, allowing her to bring her wit and warmth to many of the finest companies in the United States. Known for her masterful sense of timing and for fostering natural, genuine and moving performances, her innovative and imaginative productions have been seen at New York City Opera, Dallas, Minnesota, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Portland, Anchorage and Palm Beach Opera, Wolf Trap, Opera Saratoga, Opera Omaha, Opera Idaho, Opera North, Chattanooga Symphony and Opera, Syracuse, Roanoke and Toledo Opera among many others. Her productions of Ermione and Il ritorno d’Ulisse garnered high praise from the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, and her Elixir of Love for Minnesota Opera was named one of the Twin Cities’ top ten classical performances of 2015. Of her Italian Girl in Algiers the Minneapolis Star Tribune said, “In an evening of captivating performances, she steals the show.” A choreographer as well, Ms. Binder has collaborated with such notable directors as Frank Corsaro, Simon Callow and Christopher Alden and has created dances for New York City Opera, Dallas, Pittsburgh and Glimmerglass Opera where she also went on for an ailing countertenor. For over thirty years she directed the Legislative Correspondents Association Show at the New York State capitol, the oldest political satire revue in the country, and for her distinguished career in the arts, Helena Binder was named a Union Notable by her alma mater Union College, where she earned her B.A. She holds a Master of Arts from New York University and studied acting at Circle in the Square. As an actor she has performed in regional theatre in the United States and abroad in roles ranging from Peter Pan to Shakespeare’s Juliet, and was a member of the band Blotto, that recorded the hit, “I Wanna Be A Lifeguard.” A committed acting teacher and sought after coach, Ms. Binder has been on the faculty of Union College, the Opera Institute of Boston University’s School of Music and the New England Conservatory and is a guest teacher in improvisation at Dartmouth College.