Hosted by:
🎵 Alissa Roca — soprano, founder, and Executive Artistic Director of Paradox Opera
🎭 Gwen Hyland — baritone, librettist, and creator of Don G (Abridged!) and PXO’s upcoming major new commission The Genders of Gybberidge
Opera, fandom, and everything in between.
Fandom of the Opera is where high art meets high chaos — a podcast exploring opera through the lens of pop culture, fandom, and creative collaboration.
Each episode, Alissa and Gwen pull back the curtain on what makes opera magical, messy, and more relevant than ever — from behind-the-scenes stories and artist interviews to deep dives into music, storytelling, and the strange overlap between classical and internet culture.
Episode 18: Patricia Freaking Wallinga only writes bangers
Welcome back to Fandom of the Opera! Our guest this week is Patricia [Freaking] Wallinga (https://patriciawallinga.com), composer, vocalist, nerd, and absolute goddamn delight. She's ostensibly on the podcast to chat about "Everything What's Wrong of Possums", the unhinged song cycle Gwen commissioned from her (premiering this weekend in our "Critters, Creatures, & Cryptids" concert!) -- but when you get three people with ADHD and overlapping interests into a conversation, who knows what sorts of tangents you'll end up following! Listen to find out her feelings about writing the best dots, giving DnD campaigns a proper ending, and (possibly most important) being the frog. (It makes sense in context, we swear!)
To keep up with Patricia, you can also follow her on BlueSky (https://bsky.app/profile/pwallinga.bsky.social)!
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean & Erin Reifler
21 Aug 2026
Episode 17: Pokémon cannot have a redemptive relationship with Christ
In this week's episode, Alissa and Gwen discuss how much better video games were when they were kids, which is totally different from every other generation's nostalgic memories of their youth because we're the main characters of the universe and therefore OBJECTIVELY CORRECT. Remember when there were only 151 Pokémon? Remember when the PS2 was the cutting edge of gaming technology? Remember when you weren't painfully aware of your mortality and how each passing day brings us all closer to the inevitability of the grave? Cling to the innocence of youth with us as we talk about our favorite retro games!
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean & Erin Reifler
22 Jul 2026
Episode 16: The Importance of Being an Earner
In this week's episode, Alissa and Gwen discuss the socioeconomic difficulties of being a professional artist in modern America: namely, that we live in hell. Along the way, we touch on the concept of inherent human dignity, the ways we've been conditioned by our culture to accept futility & dissatisfaction in our lives, and what artists can do to keep their souls from being completely crushed by the machinery of late-stage capitalism.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean & Erin Reifler
8 Jul 2026
Episode 15: Hal... it's about cats.
In this week's episode, Alissa and Gwen discuss the merits of a much-maligned masterpiece -- Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats! From the original cast recording to the current revival, Cats: The Jellicle Ball, we talk about what makes it work so well, why so many people are missing out by not giving it a chance, and how the addition of queer black ballroom culture makes the revival such an incredible experience.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
24 Jun 2026
Episode 14: Einsol's Razor
This week, we welcome a special guest: our friend Xavier, creator of the TTRPGs Einsol's Razor and Outrunners! In tonight's episode, we discuss a variety of topics, including drag mothers, music theory, inclusion, and how to create an NPC so awful that your players will kill him every chance they get. (Fucking Trevor.)
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
11 Jun 2026
Episode 13: Oops, All Trains!
After a brief hiatus due to performance chaos, we've returned with what might be our most unhinged episode to date -- possibly because we recorded it at 2 AM. Please enjoy Alissa and Gwen's wide-ranging discussion on composers in hell, kink philosophy, reinventing trains, and ragebaiting Gwen. Also, Gwen does a bunch of voices, several of which may get her canceled.
Is this a coherent episode? No. But is it an entertaining episode? God, we sure hope so.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
20 May 2026
Episode 12: Something's About To Happen
On this week's episode, Alissa and Gwen chat about upcoming projects like RPG Limit Break and Don Giovanni (Abridged!), as well as shows starting on time, the importance of taking your meds, and the proper pricing structure for feet pics.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
29 Apr 2026
Episode 11: Spoilers & Suffering
This week, Gwen and Alissa have a lengthy discussion about two things that have taken up a lot of time in their lives recently! This episode comes with a massive SPOILER WARNING for plot details of hit video game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and the 2009 musical Next to Normal -- which, as it turns out, are about exactly the same thing. (Give or take a flaccid Eiffel Tower.)
Content warning for extensive discussion of death, suicide, and other self-destructive behaviors.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
15 Apr 2026
Episode 10: Serving Canto
This week, we welcome our friend & colleague Chris to the podcast! Together, we discuss the current state of classical singing in America, what "bel canto" singing actually is, and how we've been radicalized by our experience with Next to Normal!
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Special Guest: Chris Fotis (Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/chris_fotis/) | TikTok (https://www.tiktok.com/@chrisfotis))
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
1 Apr 2026
Episode 9: Critical Thinking
On this week's episode, we have a conversation about the distressing lack of theater reviewers in the Triangle region and the role of criticism in the arts in general. Are performers and critics natural enemies? Can arts journalism survive in an age of casual online cruelty? And, perhaps most importantly: how much horniness should be allowed in video games??
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
19 Mar 2026
Episode 8: Trebuchet Cabernet
In this episode, we discuss recent news in the opera world: budgeting turmoil at the Met, the passing of a colleague, and the viral comments a certain actor twink made about ballet and opera. Along the way, we also answer several important questions, like "is it a waste of time and effort to preserve dying art forms", "when did the first season of Stranger Things come out", and "how many alternate names can we come up with for Timothee Chalamet?" *
*(No, thirty years ago, and three.)
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
4 Mar 2026
Episode 7: MARCH MADNESS
We cover a lot of ground this week! We start off with an addendum to our AI episode, followed by discussion of our upcoming opera The Genders of Gybberidge, adding some friendly competition to our ongoing fundraising campaign, and queer representation in opera. In our numerous detours along the way, we also touch on libraries, pay transparency, mezzo pants roles, and The Ugly Duckling. It makes sense in context, mostly.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
18 Feb 2026
Episode 6: FUCK AI
This week's episode is all about generative AI and its growing use by certain arts organizations. We discuss why exactly we hate it so much, what we think of claims that AI "democratizes" the process of making art, and what it says about the integrity of opera companies who are willing to embrace it. In addition, we discuss our artistic philosophies, why you can't grow without failure, and what it means to really support artists and creators in today's world.
CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains brief discussion of specific harms that are linked to AI, including LLM Psychosis leading to suicide and the ability of AI deepfake technology to create nonconsensual sexual content. This may be upsetting to some members of our audience, and listener discretion is advised.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Alissa Roca
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
21 Jan 2026
Episode 5: Auditions Suck!
In this episode, we talk auditions — the good, the bad, and the deeply cursed. Drawing from our recent Next to Normal auditions, we pull back the curtain on the audition process and discuss things casting teams may not explicitly tell you they’re looking for, how decisions actually get made, and what can quietly work in your favor.
Along the way, we share plenty of audition horror stories, reflections from both sides of the table, and (of course) go off on several tangents that you will never expect.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Alissa Roca
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
7 Jan 2026
Episode 4: THAT was a Reference
In this episode, we’re joined by our friends Sami & Adam for a wide-ranging conversation about music, fandom, and how our relationships with opera (and art in general) are formed. We talk about their limited but memorable exposure to opera growing up, how hearing it in the background still left an impression, and how those early experiences connect to their love of D&D, video game music, and storytelling.
Along the way, we dig into how music functions in games and tabletop play, why fandom spaces matter, and how opera fits into a broader creative ecosystem — plus plenty of laughter and chaos, as always.
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Special Guests: Sami (https://linktr.ee/kaos0328?utm_source=linktree_profile_share&ltsid=7ff40d35-cfd8-49ed-b67f-dc1b2e3b4f0d) and Adam (https://linktr.ee/n0ze_?utm_source=linktree_profile_share&ltsid=8cbffa3d-d56b-4668-a664-5c98899b06a0)
Edited by Alissa Roca
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
24 Dec 2025
Episode 3: Be Gay -- It Helps Your Parents
In this week’s episode, we’re joined by a very special guest: Maria Roca (aka Alissa’s mom!). We cover everything from Maria’s history with opera, theatre, and the arts to her years as a legendary Con Mom, plus a whole lot of heartfelt chaos in between. There’s laughter, vulnerability, incredible storytelling, and several moments that feel like getting a warm hug — with just a little trauma sprinkled in for seasoning.
As requested by Maria, please check out and support:
Roots of Compassion and Kindness (ROCK) Center
www.fgcu.edu/cas/centers/rockcenter/ (http://www.fgcu.edu/cas/centers/rockcenter/)
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Special Guest: Maria Roca
Edited by Alissa Roca
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
9 Dec 2025
Episode 2: Messiah Hot Takes & Trauma
In Messiah Hot Takes & Trauma, we unleash our spiciest opinions on Handel’s Messiah — and trust us, they are very hot. We also spiral (with love!) into a whole tangent on the nature of oratorio, drag the Greek gods into the conversation, and round things out by fan-casting the Messiah entirely from pop culture.
Plus plenty of laughter, fandom chaos, and a surprising amount of emotional damage for an oratorio-themed episode. And we want to hear from you: who would you cast in your pop-culture Messiah?
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Alissa Roca
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
24 Nov 2025
Episode 1: Rossini is Shonen Slop
In our very first episode of Fandom of the Opera, we introduce our hosts Alissa & Gwen, recap the absolute whirlwind that was the 2025 PXO raid train, and dive into the extremely important question: Which opera composers map to which anime genres?
Plus plenty of laughter, fandom chaos, and quite a few surprising hot takes. Join us as we kick off this wild adventure!
Hosted by Alissa Roca & Gwen Hyland
Edited by Alissa Roca
Art by CHIMI
Music by Rachel Dean and Erin Reifler
24 Nov 2025
Fandom of the Opera Trailer
Welcome to Fandom of the Opera — the podcast where opera obsession meets full-blown fandom energy.
Join us for hot takes, deep dives, questionable jokes, and the kind of chaotic joy that only opera lovers, anime nerds, and internet creatures can bring to the same table.
Subscribe now so you don’t miss our first episode!
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