Barbara August Teichert
Barbara Augusta Teichert has helped to bring many of LA Opera’s most beloved productions to the stage for over 16 years. Now, through her generosity, the company is thrilled to bring Puccini’s Turandot to the stage this season. A board member since 2009, Barbara has helped to give life to an impressive number of our productions: Luisa Fernanda (2007), Die Walküre (2009 and 2010), Tamerlano (2009), Il Postino (2010), Simon Boccanegra and The Two Foscari (2012), Thaïs and La Traviata (2014), Pagliacci and Gianni Schicchi (2015), Macbeth (2016), Nabucco (2017), El Gato Montés (2019), Roberto Devereux (2020), La Cenerentola (2021), Javier Camarena in recital (2022) and Otello (2023). She also supported the 2007 Verdi Requiem and the 2008 gala celebrating Plácido Domingo’s 40th anniversary in Los Angeles, as well as a 2006 DVD production of La Traviata, starring Renée Fleming. She is a member of LA Opera’s 20th and 30th Anniversary Angels leadership giving programs.
Barbara, who lives in Pennsylvania, shows her love of opera by making sure that a number of companies have the support they need. In 2018, she was elected to the board of Opera Philadelphia. She has underwritten a number of productions there over the years, ranging from Don Carlo and Kevin Puts’ Silent Night to Jennifer Higdon’s Cold Mountain and Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar. She also served on the board of Washington National Opera for nine years, supporting a project there every season for over a decade. For the Metropolitan Opera, she has underwritten a number of productions, ranging from the world premiere of Tan Dun’s The First Emperor to Idomeneo and La Rondine.
We are grateful for Barbara’s longstanding generosity and honored that LA Opera is one of her treasured opera homes.
The Alfred and Claude Mann Fund
LA Opera is proud to present this extraordinary production of Turandot, made possible thanks to the incredible generosity of the Alfred and Claude Mann Fund. The Alfred Mann Trust created this fund with a series of gifts that have now had an impact of over $10 million in support. The Manns established the fund as a way of showing their devotion to LA Opera. It underwrites two productions each season, enabling the company to raise the curtain on a host of memorable presentations, which have included La Bohème (2012, 2016), Tosca (2013, 2017, 2022), Carmen (2013), The Barber of Seville (2015), El Gato Montés (2019), The Light in the Piazza (2019), Roberto Devereux (2020), Il Trovatore (2021), Aida (2022), Lucia di Lammermoor (2022), Don Giovanni (2023), and now this production of Turandot.
The Manns’ connection to LA Opera is a true love story. Claude’s own passion for opera brought Al to the art form. As LA Opera Honorary Board Chairman Marc Stern noted, “Al hadn’t been an opera lover, but he loved Claude and therefore loved the opera.”
A biotech entrepreneur, Al Mann founded 17 companies in his lifetime and was the CEO of MannKind Corporation, a company focused on developing new, lifesaving treatments for diabetes, cancer, and autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. He also served as chair of the Alfred Mann Foundation, a trustee of USC and a board member of the LA Philharmonic. Claude Mann is a philanthropist who earned success in the restaurant business. She has been a member of LA Opera’s board since 2008.
Sadly, Al passed away in February of 2016. With each thrilling production underwritten thanks to the Manns’ generosity, his legacy in the arts—and his love story with Claude—live on.
The Estate of Cat Pollon
This production of Turandot is made possible thanks to the support of devoted patron Cat Pollon. LA Opera is deeply grateful to have been the recipient of a very generous gift from Ms. Pollon’s estate upon her passing in May of 2022. The company is honored to recognize her as an underwriter of this grand production. A lifelong opera devotee, Ms. Pollon, whose given name was Ellen Jagger Pollon, and her late mother Elisabeth became subscribers in 1991. Cat was passionate about the company and many of its early founders, artists, and administrators. She often extended herself to support LA Opera beyond what was financially feasible for her and volunteered her time as a board member of the Opera League of Los Angeles. Ms. Pollon was a singer herself, and she traveled extensively to see opera around the world. Her love of opera was matched only by her love of cats, and thus, she adopted the name Cat.
Ms. Pollon’s family had a long history of philanthropy and engagement in Los Angeles. Her father, John J. Pollon, was a former director of City National Bank and a former Los Angeles City Planning Commissioner. He was active in youth sports organizations and conservation groups. Her mother, Elisabeth Pollon, was a founder of American Cinematheque, a nonprofit which grew out of FILMEX (the Los Angeles International Film Exposition) and now operates several movie houses in Los Angeles, including the Egyptian Theatre and the Los Feliz 3 Theatre.
LA Opera extends its gratitude to Cat Pollon for her devotion to the company and her dedication to ensuring that the beauty of opera will continue to be enjoyed by generations of audiences throughout Southern California. Her singular flair will be missed by all who knew her.
The De Marchena-Huyke Foundation
LA Opera is honored to thank David Niemetz and the board of the De Marchena-Huyke Foundation in their debut as underwriters with this superb production of Puccini’s Turandot. Mr. Niemetz is the president of the De Marchena-Huyke Foundation, which continues the legacy of the late Rafael de Marchena-Huyke, honoring his passion for LA Opera and for arts education.
Mr. de Marchena-Huyke, who was affectionately known as Rafa, began attending LA Opera in 2005 and became a subscriber in 2014. In 2017, he became a Music Center Founder and a member of the Opera Council, making a multi-year commitment to support the company and to demonstrate his deep love of the art form. He liked to attend the Opera Ball and participate in donor gatherings featuring the artisans, directors and singers who bring our performances to life. He was always the last patron to leave donor events, because he so enjoyed getting to know the singers and staff personally.
Mr. de Marchena-Huyke was born in Barranquilla, Colombia. He came to the United States to attend college at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo. After graduation, he moved to Los Angeles, eventually becoming a United States citizen. It was in Beverly Hills and Hollywood that he honed his creative talents and developed a successful career as a hair stylist and interior designer. Rafael was married later in life to his dearest friend Luisa Islas Richardson, who passed away in 2015. He said, “People are surprised to know that Luisa and I had known each other practically our entire life. In a matter of fact, after 58 years of friendship, I found myself proposing marriage to her.”
Rafael passed away peacefully in January of 2019, just six weeks shy of his 87th birthday. Through the De Marchena-Huyke Foundation, Mr. Niemetz honors Mr. de Marchena-Huyke’s wish to continue uplifting LA Opera. Each season, the Foundation’s support allows the company to reach higher levels of artistic excellence and share the power of opera with a wider audience. And each time Mr. Niemetz attends an LA Opera performance or gala event, we serve rosé champagne in Rafa’s memory. LA Opera is deeply grateful to Mr. Niemetz and the board of the Foundation for underwriting this production in honor of Mr. de Marchena-Huyke.
