AJ Helms

The first-year stage manager in the Ryan Opera Center Ensemble from Raleigh, North Carolina, graduated with a BFA in Stage Management from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2025, and most recently served as the Stage Manager Fellow at the Metropolitan Opera for the 2025/26 Season. At the Met, they worked on La fille du régiment, Porgy and Bess, and La traviata. Helms spent the past three summers at the Seagle Festival, first as assistant stage manager, followed by two summers as production stage manager. Highlights of their time as department head at Seagle include Carmen (PSM), Don Giovanni (PSM), and Roméo et Juliette (ASM). While in school, Helms broadened their theatrical education by working as a stitcher at UNCSA’s Dance Costume Shop, an electrician at Atlas Stageworks Lighting, and a stagehand at Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts. They also worked on many productions with the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute, both as a stage manager and assistant director; highlights included Die Fledermaus (PSM), The Rivals (AD), and Orlando Paladino (ASM).

In Lyric’s 2026/27 Season, Helms is assigned to Don Giovanni, Don Pasquale, Hérodiade, and La traviata.

AJ Helms is sponsored by Roberta L. Washlow & Robert J. Washlow.

^{Last updated: June 22, 2026}