Our Team
Board of Directors: Kenneth Kaufman (President), Steven Coit, David Laibson, Nina Zipser, Beth Terry, Edward Elwyn Jones, Noam Elkies, James C.S. Liu, John Shutkin, Rachel Yurman
Young affiliates of the LHO Board: Ben Rosenthal ‘22, Benjamin Perry Wenzelberg, '22
Benjamin T. Rossen
Executive Director
Native New Yorker Benjamin T. Rossen is the Executive Director of Lowell House Opera and the composer and librettist of LHO's 2024 production, The Unknowable, an "operatic ballet" in two acts. Concurrently, Benjamin is completing his Master's in piano performance at the New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) as a candidate of the Harvard / NEC Dual Degree Program. Before his tenure at LHO, Benjamin '23 graduated from Harvard College in three years. He completed the degree of Bachelor of Arts with a double concentration in Economics and Music, with high honors. During his time as an undergraduate, Benjamin founded the Harvard Ballet Orchestra, which premiered original student choreography set to ballet repertory in Spring 2023. By extension, he was the inaugural Music Director of the Harvard Ballet Company for its 30th season. Further, Benjamin was Music Director for the Harvard College Opera's (HCO) 30th season. He led HCO in its Winter 2023 production of Lehár's "The Merry Widow," which also saw the premiere of Benjamin's original overture. For this composition, he was awarded by the Harvard Music Department the 2023 Hugh F. MacColl Prize.
Benjamin has performed numerous times as a guest artist with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS), The Cliburn, and the Music@Menlo Chamber Music Festival. In addition, he was named a 2018 Finalist-Winner at the National YoungArts Foundation, a Finalist for the NPR “From the Top” program, and a quarterfinalist at the 2019 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition & Festival. After making his recital debut at age nine and concerto debut at Carnegie Hall at age 10, he went on to win prizes at multiple international and national competitions. These include CMS, the George Gershwin International Music Competition, the Kaufman International Youth Piano Competition, the Music Teachers National Association, the New York Piano Festival & Competition, and Steinway & Sons Piano Competition. Benjamin has performed on three continents and has participated in numerous international festivals.
Benjamin currently studies piano with Professors Alessio Bax and Dang Thai Son. He is a 2020 U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Young Steinway Artist.
R0ss Simmons
Business Manager
Ross is a 2021 alumnus of Harvard and Lowell House. Since graduating, he has been working as a Senior Marketing Analyst for an insurance tech company called Insurify. He is very excited to return to Harvard theater as the Business Manager of the Lowell House Opera. At Harvard, he was the President of the Harvard-Radcliffe Gilbert and Sullivan Players, a producer of their 2019 production of H.M.S. Pinafore, and a performer in several of their other shows. As a board member of the HRG&SP, he was instrumental in two of their initiatives to expand the canon and revive interest in the artform. One, the Rewrite project, was to have Harvard undergraduates write a new show to fit Sullivan's music to replace some dated G&S works. The outcome of this project was the HRG&SP's 2022 production of The Milk Made. The other, the Non-G&S Show, was meant to bring people into the organization by producing a show in the G&S style that was more familiar to modern students. The result of this was the 2020 production of Kiss Me, Kate! that was unfortunately canceled by the COVID-19 pandemic. He was also a co-chair of the Lowell House Committee and a leader in various other campus organizations. He has always loved musical theater and, since college, has harbored a love for opera. He is originally from Higginsville, Missouri.
Lauren Perl
Pechet Fellow for Production
Lauren Perl (She/Her/Hers) is a Junior at Harvard College in Quincy House studying History and Literature. She is originally from Rockville, Maryland. Lauren is incredibly fascinated by music theory and musical theater history (Ask her anything about Stephen Sondheim!) She grew up performing as a member of Take The Stage Performance Company, Ovations Theater Company, and Young Artists of America. At Harvard, she previously served as the vocal coach and orchestrator for 52! and the band manager for Iscariot. Currently, Lauren sings Alto 1 in Radcliffe Choral Society (RCS), and serves as the manager of the A Capella Subset of RCS, the 'Cliffe Notes! She is a comedian and writes/performs with the Harvard Undergraduate Stand Up Comic Society, SatireV, and Harvard Sketch, and she has performed in LA, Boston, and DC.
Liza de figueiredo
Pechet FELLOW for Marketing and development
Liza (she/her) is currently a sophomore residing in Winthrop House at Harvard. She's pursuing a degree in Applied Mathematics with a focus on Economics. Originally from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, she has a background in musical theater and classical singing. Before her time at Harvard, Liza served as the Director of North Carolina for MyVote Project, a voter education nonprofit. In this role, she managed a team of 50 and created digital content for the organization's online presence. At Harvard, Liza is a member of the Harvard LowKeys acapella group and serves as their Vice President. She's also a part of The Crimson Multimedia Board, where she enjoys taking photos of campus life. Outside of her academic and extracurricular commitments, Liza is passionate about musical theater. In her free time, she arranges music, sings, and plays the piano. Liza is thrilled to join the LHO team!