California native Heather Mathews is a stage director, producer, and educator with nearly three decades of experience bringing music and theatre together in vivid, emotionally compelling productions.​
 

She currently serves as Director of Opera and Chair of Opera and Musical Theatre at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.​

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She has directed over 150 productions across the United States, which includes a wide-ranging repertoire from Mozart to Puccini and Strauss, as well as contemporary chamber operas and new works.​

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Notable productions include the West Coast premiere of Errollyn Wallen’s ANON, Jonathan Dove’s Mansfield Park, Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges, and Poulenc’s Les Mamelles de Tirésias.​

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She is equally at home in bringing to life musical theatre masterpieces, including Sondheim’s Into the Woods, Finn’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Guettel’s Myths and Hymns, and Pasek and Paul’s Edges.

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As an educator and mentor, she is deeply invested in guiding emerging artists toward sustainable, fulfilling careers. Her goal is to foster creativity, courage, and craft in the rehearsal room, preparing performers to embody characters with authenticity and dramatic truth.