EXECUTIVE & ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Abla Lynn Hamza – Co-Founder

Executive/Artistic Director & Board President
Abla Lynn Hamza is a professional soprano whose career includes principal roles with Sarasota Opera, Opera Southwest, and St. Petersburg Opera, as well as secondary, comprimario and bit roles with major companies such as Dallas Opera, Fort Worth Opera, and San Diego Opera.

She is the Co-Founder, Executive/Artistic Director, and current Board President of Opera À la Carte San Diego, a women-led opera company dedicated to making opera more accessible, inclusive, and community-driven. In its first year and a half as a nonprofit, the company has presented over fifteen concerts, created performance opportunities for nearly 50 local singers, and produced its first fully staged opera to critical acclaim.

In addition to her performance career, Abla brings a growing foundation in arts leadership. She previously founded the Philadelphia chapter of Opera on Tap, producing concerts throughout the city, including at the Barnes Foundation and the Old City Festival. She also worked as a public relations assistant at the Curtis Institute of Music for three years, gaining valuable experience in institutional communications and arts management.

Abla is deeply committed to building a vibrant opera culture in San Diego—one rooted in collaboration, excellence, and artistic equity.

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Maria Caughey-Co-Founder

Creative Director & Board Secretary Maria is a dynamic Creative Director and Board Secretary for Opera à la carte, bringing a multifaceted background as a professional opera singer, artist and educator.  An East Coast Native, she has graced the stages with The Metropolitan Opera, Washington National Opera, Annapolis Opera, Opera Camerata of Washington, to name a few.

Beyond her performance career, Maria is a highly regarded music educator, with a Teacher of the Year nomination for work in public schools as a general music and chorus teacher and extensive opera outreach in Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C. She currently champions music education through educational outreach with San Diego Opera, as a teaching artist at Villa Musica and as Treasurer for the National Association of Teachers of Singing(NATS) San Diego. 

With a strong foundation in music as well as visual arts, Maria has seamlessly integrated her artistic sensibilities into her work.  She feels passionately about the mission of Opera à la carte to support the artistic community and foster the growth of singers in San Diego & Southern California, while educating the public about the beauty of classical singing and the marvelous interdisciplinary world of opera.

DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS/CONCERTS

Chelsea Seener Gornall – Co-Founder

Director of Programs/Concerts, & Board Treasurer

As both an operatic performer and experienced bookkeeper, Chelsea Seener Gornall is all about finding harmony between creativity and organization. Focused on bridging financial strategy with artistic vision, she offers a unique dual perspective as Treasurer with Opera à la Carte.

A versatile vocalist, Chelsea’s voice spans the lyric drama of opera, the heart of musical theatre, and the boldness of rock. She has been a featured soloist across the U.S. and has performed internationally in six countries. Born and raised in San Diego, she’s proud to be building a vibrant opera community in the city where she first took the stage.

While music has always been her primary focus, Chelsea has over a decade of experience as a bookkeeper and office manager. Her leadership began early—serving as a cultural ambassador in high school and in an exchange program with Japan, helping launch her college’s Student NATS chapter, and being one of the first educational outreach performers for San Diego Opera; she's been lifting up the arts since day one. She now supports Opera à la Carte both onstage and off, and is proud to be part of a nonprofit that brings people together through music and shared purpose with even more exciting things on the horizon!