Sarasota Opera beefs up development staff

The Sarasota Opera has added two new members to its development team, Karen Misantone and Davis Wolfe, and promoted a longtime employee, Brenda Tamm.

“I am very excited to have Karen and Davis join Brenda and me as we continue to serve our community of supporters and further Sarasota Opera programs and mission,” said Melissa Voigt, director of development. “It is rewarding to have the opportunity to work with these talented individuals.”

Misantone has joined the opera’s development team as leadership giving officer, working with high-level donors. She has more than two decades of local nonprofit experience, including with the Circus Arts Conservatory, the Child Protection Center and Asolo Repertory Theatre.

Misantone earned her master’s degree in sociology from the University of South Florida and her bachelor’s degree in sociology and English literature from St. Lawrence University in New York.

Also joining the opera's development staff is Wolfe, who has been named patron giving associate. Wolfe recently moved to Sarasota from Portland, Oregon, where he was born and raised.

Wolfe has several years of experience in the performing arts field, most recently as a house manager for the Portland 5 Center for the Arts, where he facilitated the presentation of opera, theater, dance, comedy and music. Prior to that he worked for the Pacific Northwest Ballet and the Willamette University Theater.

Tamm has been named patron giving and operations manager at Sarasota Opera.

Tamm joined the development team in 2016, most recently serving as individual giving officer. She began her tenure at the opera as assistant to General Director Richard Russell

Before coming to Sarasota Opera, she worked as an office manager for a real estate developer and entrepreneur. A Florida native, Tamm grew up in Daytona Beach and moved to Sarasota in 2001.