Conductor Maria Sensi Sellner’s artistry, versatility, and reputation for innovation are making her an increasingly coveted collaborator and an impresario for the 21st century. Praised as “mightily impressive”, she was the first three-time winner of the American Prize for Opera Conducting and is a proud alum of The Dallas Opera’s Hart Institute for Women Conductors. Maria is the Artistic & General Director of Resonance Works, the multi-modal performing arts company she founded in her native Pittsburgh in 2013; co-founder and lead producer of the Decameron Opera Coalition; and a frequent cover conductor for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Her unique, artist-driven programming has been praised for its “innovative streak” (Post-Gazette) and for bringing a “welcome infusion of sophistication and diversity” (I Care If You Listen) to Pittsburgh’s cultural landscape. The 2021-22 season will include a return to the stage and a growing number of company debuts - including Portland Opera, Raylynmor Opera, and Opera Steamboat - conducting her favorite mix of Verdi, bel canto, and contemporary opera repertoire. Recent conducting highlights include the world premiere of “I am a Dreamer Who No Longer Dreams” (Sosa/Jacobs) for Boston’s White Snake Projects, a remount of Resonance Works’ award-winning immersive production of L’elisir d’amore at Permian Basin Opera, the U.S. premiere of James MacMillan’s Gloria, and numerous regional premieres, including David Lang’s little match girl passion and Dvorak’s Rusalka.