Patrons & Ambassadors

HONORARY PATRON

Her Excellency Margaret Twomey AM
Ambassador of Australia to Italy, Rome

Her Excellency Margaret Twomey AM is the Ambassador of Australia to Italy, a position that she commenced in July 2020. Ms Twomey was accompanied to Rome by her cat, Alphonsia (known as Fonsie). Ms Twomey holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Melbourne, and speaks Italian, French and Russian.

Ms Twomey was born in the rural Victorian town of Shepparton on 21 February 1963 where she received both her primary and secondary education. In 1981, she undertook a combined honours degree in Russian and French (language and literature) at the University of Melbourne.
Graduating in April 1985, Ms Twomey joined the Department of Defence (Melbourne) as a graduate trainee, where she worked as a strategic analyst for three years.

In January 1988 Ms Twomey joined the foreign service training program of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, where she worked for the next two years in the East Europe Branch.

In December 1989 Ms Twomey took up her first diplomatic posting, as Third Secretary (political and economic) at the Australian Embassy in Belgrade – where she also had diplomatic accreditation to Romania, Bulgaria and Albania.

Upon her return to Canberra in May 1992, Ms Twomey was seconded to the Office of National Assessments where she worked for two years as the organisation’s East Europe analyst, specialising in Balkans affairs. In 1994 she returned to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade where she worked for two years in the Strategic Assessments Branch.

In December 1995 Ms Twomey became First Secretary (later Counsellor) at the Australian High Commission in London. On completion of her London posting in February 2000, Ms Twomey went on to Suva, Fiji, where she assumed the role of Counsellor and Deputy High Commissioner. She was also accredited to the Pacific island states of Nauru and Tuvalu.

Upon promotion to the Senior Executive Service in March 2002, Ms Twomey returned to Canberra where she took up the role of Branch Head for Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe Branch which included responsibility for Russia and countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

In August 2004 Ms Twomey became Australia’s third Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of East Timor, completing her term in January 2008.

In June 2008 Ms Twomey became Australia’s sixth resident Ambassador to the Russian Federation, with non-resident accreditations to Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

Ms Twomey returned to Canberra in January 2013 where she was Assistant Secretary Policy Planning Branch until November 2014.

Ms Twomey returned to Fiji for her second posting, this time as Australian High Commissioner, in November 2014.

On return to Canberra, Ms Twomey moved to the Office of National Intelligence (on secondment) to take up a role as Assistant Director-General.

HONORARY PATRON

His Excellency Paolo Crudele Ambassador of Italy to Australia

Consul General Hanna Pappalardo holds a degree in Law from “La Sapienza” University in Rome and a Master of Arts in European Studies at the College of Europe, Bruges Campus in Belgium. 

His Excellency Paolo Crudele was born on 30th May 1965 in Salerno where he obtained a Degree in Political Science in 1989. His Excellency is married to Sara and they have two daughters Paola and Claudia.

 In 1992, His Excellency joined the National Diplomatic Service and was assigned to the Directorate General for Economic Affairs. His first posting was at the Embassy of Italy in Guatemala and, between 2000 and 2004, he worked in Madrid, where he obtained the promotion to Counsellor.

Back in Rome, His Excellency held the position of Head of Office at the Directorate General for America and, from 2007, he was called to work in the Secretariat General.

Between 2009 and 2013, His Excellency was posted at the Embassy of Italy in Beijing as First Counsellor and Head of the Trade Office first, then as Deputy Head of Mission. In 2013, he was appointed Ambassador of Italy in Singapore with secondary accreditation in Brunei.

In 2017, His Excellency went back to Rome, holding the role of Deputy Director General and Director for Migration Policies and International Mobility.

Since 12th August 2022, His Excellency is the Ambassador of Italy to Australia with secondary accreditation in Fiji, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.

In 2014, His Excellency was appointed Officer of the Order of the Merit of the Italian Republic.

AMBASSADOR

Cheryl Barker AO

Cheryl Barker studied in Melbourne with Dame Joan Hammond and in London with David Harper. Cheryl has established a distinguished opera and concert career throughout the UK, Europe, USA and Australia. She appears regularly with Opera Australia, where her roles have included Nedda in I pagliacci, the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro, Mimì in the award-winning Baz Luhrmann production of La bohème, Violetta in La traviata, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Tatyana in Eugene Onegin, Giorgetta, Suor Angelica and Lauretta (Il Trittico) and the title roles in Madama Butterfly, Tosca and Jenufa. She has also sung Violetta for Opera Queensland, and Madama Butterfly and Violetta for BTR New Zealand Opera.

Cheryl is particularly noted internationally for her performances of Madama Butterfly, singing the role for English National Opera, De Vlaamse Opera, in Hamburg, Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam and Houston. Other international appearances include the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden (Jenifer / A Midsummer Marriage), Opera du Rhin, Strasbourg (Emilia Marty/Makropoulos Case) and Katya Kabanova/Welsh National Opera and Geneva Opera House.

On the concert platform, Cheryl has appeared at many prestigious venues including London's Barbican, Royal Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Wigmore Hall, St John's Smith Square, and with the Halle Orchestra. She has sung in the Edinburgh, Spoleto and Melbourne Festivals.

Recent and future plans include performances for Opera Australia, Netherlands Opera, Bastille/Paris, English National Opera, Holland Park Festival/London and the London Symphony Orchestra and concerts with the Sydney, Queensland, West Australian and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras. She holds an honorary Doctorate of Music conferred by the Victorian College of the Arts.

AMBASSADOR

Antoinette Halloran

One of Australia’s most accomplished and best-loved sopranos, Antoinette Halloran performs regularly with all the major Australasian opera companies and symphony orchestras and appears frequently on national television and radio.

2017 engagements included the title role in Tosca for West Australian Opera (Helpmann Award nomination), The Fox in The Cunning Little Vixen for Victorian Opera, (Helpmann Award nomination), associate artist for José Carreras’ National Tour and concert appearances with the Melbourne, West Australian and Christchurch Symphony Orchestras. She returns to Opera Australia in 2018 as Praskovya in The Nose.

In 2017 Antoinette was awarded the Alumni Grant by the prestigious Acclaim Awards, enabling her to audition at leading opera houses including the MET and Covent Garden.

A graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts and recipient of an Honours Degree in Music from the University of Melbourne, Antoinette has appeared in many productions ranging from opera to musical theatre and cabaret.

Leading appearances for Opera Australia have included the title roles in Madama Butterfly and Rusalka, Mimi in La bohème, Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire (Green Room Award), Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni Fata Morgana in The Love for Three Oranges and Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus; for New Zealand Opera – Mimi, Cio-Cio-San and Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd; for Victorian Opera – Fiordiligi in Così fan Tutte, Adina in L’elisir d’amore and Mrs Lovett (Helpmann Award nomination); for Opera Queensland – the title role in The Merry Widow; for State Opera of South Australia – Micaela in Carmen.

Antoinette also featured as a guest judge and panelist on the ABC television series Operatunity Oz, and appeared regularly on the hit show Spicks and Specks and was a presenter for ABC’s Art Nation – covering stories on opera and music theatre.

In concert, she has sung with Elvis Costello and the Brodsky Quartet for the Sydney Festival, Mozart’s Requiem with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, Carmina Burana with the Melbourne Chorale, El Niño with Sydney Philharmonia and Haydn’s Creation and Fauré’s Requiem with the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic.

Antoinette has also been a regular visitor to Japan, China and Indonesia where she is much in demand as a guest artist. She recorded Puccini Romance for ABC Classics with tenor Rosario La Spina and the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.

AMBASSADOR

Professor Valeria Esposito
Conservatorio Statale di Musica Gioachino Rossini-Pesaro.

Born in Naples, Valeria Esposito graduated in voice at the Conservatory of Salerno and languages at the University of Naples (English, Russian, French). Later she studied Spanish and obtained the Proficiency Degree in English Studies, Grosses Deutsches Diplom and the Diplome approfondi de Langue Française.

Valeria has won many important competitions, including the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World (1987), and the As.Li.Co. (1987).

Valeria has performed, among others: Queen of the Night – Zauberflöte; Konstanze - Entführung aus dem Serail; Rosina - Barbiere di Siviglia; Fiorilla - Turco in Italia; Giulia - Scala di Seta; Madama Cortese - Viaggio a Reims; Amina – Sonnambula; Alaide – Straniera; Elvira – Puritani; Linda - Linda di Chamonix. 

Valeria has sung under the direction of conductors: Claudio Abbado, Spiros Argiris, Daniel Baremboim, Daniele Callegari, Bruno Campanella, Giuliano Carrella, Riccardo Chailly, Ascher Fish, Daniele Gatti, Gianluigi Gelmetti, Leopold Hager, Lù Ja, Gustav Kuhn, Alain Lombard, Kery Lynn-Wilson, Enrique Mazzola, Peter Maag, Jun Markl, Riccardo Muti, Daniel Oren, Zoltan Pesko, Eve Queler, Stefano Ranzani, Donato Renzetti, Sviatoslav Sutej, Marcello Viotti, and Simone Young.

In 2006 Valeria sang in the New Year’s concert for the President of the Italian Republic Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, broadcast by RAI1. Among her performances in 2008-2009 were two concerts with José Carreras in Naples and Monza (broadcast by Rai1), Elisir d’Amore in Piacenza, Zerbinetta (Ariadne auf Naxos) and Carmina Burana at Carlo Felice Theatre in Genova, and Konstanze in Entführung aus dem Serail in S. Carlo Theatre in Naples. During the opera season 2009-2010 Valeria sang Violetta in Traviata in Jesi, Fermo, and Brindisi, Lucia di Lammermoor at the Carlo Felice in Genova, the role of Hanna Glawari in The Merry Widow at San Carlo Theatre in Naples and the role of Euridice in Orfeo ed Euridice by Gluck at the Bellini Theatre in Catania.

In May 2010 Valeria performed at the Sala Nervi in the Vatican in the Salve Regina by Pergolesi, in the presence of Pope Benedict XVI. In 2011 Valeria sang the role of Euridice in Orfeo ed Euridice by Gluck at the Bellini Theatre in Catania and in December 2011 she sang in Jesi in a concert to honour Ms Clio Napolitano, wife of the Italian President. In 2012 she reprised the role of Hanna Glawari in The Merry Widow at the San Carlo Theatre in Trieste. In 2013 Valeria performed in a concert in Florence (Maggio Musicale) and debuted as Micaela in Carmen at the Opera Theatre of Livorno.

Valeria has conducted Masterclasses for Italian, Kazach and Australian singers - December 2010, October 2011 and December 2012-2019 – She has taught at the Conservatories of Riva del Garda, Potenza and Pescara between 2009 and 2017. She is now teaching opera singing at the prestigious Conservatorio Rossini of Pesaro. 

Besides music Valeria is interested in literature and has published a novel set in the difficult world of Opera, Spirto Gentil - Prospettivaeditrice, 2005, a book of fairy tales, l’Inventafiabe - Statale 11 Editrice, 2007, the collection of novels Violetta vendicata ed altri fantasmi al’opera - Graus Editore, 2009, the e-book Regina@.it - Lulu.com, a collection of poems Le Ali del Suono - ilmiolibro.it

AMBASSADOR

Maestro Andrea Licata – Conductor

Maestro Andrea Licata has conducted many opera and symphonic orchestras in Italy and abroad, including the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, the Orchestra Regionale della Toscana, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Festival of Two Worlds Orchestra of Spoleto and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In Spoleto, he conducted the world premiere of Sarah - the contemporary opera based on the life of Marilyn Monroe composed by Paul Vy and directed by Petrika Ionesco.

In recent seasons, Maestro Licata has conducted Aida, Tosca, Rigoletto, Il trovatore and La fanciulla del West in Baltimore. In 2003/4, he made his Australian debut conducting a new production of Norma for Opera Australia in Melbourne with great success and was immediately re-invited for the 2004/5 season when he conducted Nabucco and La bohème. In 2005/6, he conducted Un ballo in maschera in Bari, La traviata at the Teatro Regio di Parma, Andrea Chenier at the Teatro Massimo di Palermo, Madama Butterfly with Opera Australia and La bohème in Baltimore. More recently, he conducted Rigoletto, Un ballo in maschera, Il Trittico, Cavaralleria Rusticana and Pagliacci for Opera Australia, Ernani in Messina, Tosca in Baltimore and a new production of Lucia di Lammermoor for the New Zealand International Arts Festival.

In the 2009/10 season, Maestro Licata made his debut with Welsh National Opera conducting a revival of David McVicar's production of La traviata and was re-engaged for Il trovatore the following season. He also returned to the Teatro Maestranza, Seville for La traviata and conducted Tosca for Opera Australia. In 2010/11, as well as Il trovatore for WNO, he made his Swedish debut conducting Norma for the Royal Opera in Stockholm and gave performances of Tosca in Palermo in concerts with the Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana.

Among his recordings are Jacquerie by Gino Marinuzzi, Bianca e Fernando and Adelson e Salvini (Nuova Era), Preludes, Symphonies and Intermezzos from Italian Operas, Peter and the Wolf by Prokofiev, Jeux d’Enfants by Bizet and Carnival of the Animals by Saint-Saens with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London (CD).

Recent engagements have included his debut in Beijing conducting Cenerentola, Norma in Messina and Turandot, Aida, La bohème and Don Carlo for Opera Australia and a new production of La forza del destino for Opera Australia in Sydney and State Opera of South Australia in Adelaide. In 2016, he conducted a new production of Luisa Miller in Sydney and Melbourne; he returned to Opera Australia in 2017 for Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci.