Where Every Story Begins
Every great theatre has a story.
Every performance begins with a single moment.
Every dream begins with a spark of inspiration.
Napa Valley Stage is the culmination of a lifetime devoted to music, theatre, education, and community—a journey that has spanned decades, crossed continents, and been shaped by countless extraordinary people and unforgettable experiences.
But every story has a beginning.
This is ours.
It Began with a Song
I still remember sitting in that audience, completely captivated by what I was seeing and hearing. Their voices filled the room with a kind of joy and purpose I had never experienced before. In that moment, something inside me awakened.
I remember thinking one simple thought:
"I want to do that."
I was eight years old when a boys’ choir visited my elementary school to perform.
Within weeks, I joined the choir, beginning a journey that would shape every chapter of my life. For the next five and a half years, I sang music in English, German, and Latin, discovering not only a love of music but also the discipline, teamwork, and joy that come from creating something beautiful together.
A few years later, I had the privilege of leading the music for my Bar Mitzvah, singing the entire Friday evening and Saturday morning services. Standing before my congregation, I experienced something I had already begun to discover through the choir—that when I was making music and sharing stories through song, I felt completely at home.
Looking back, it is remarkable how one afternoon in an elementary school auditorium set the course for everything that followed. That single performance opened the door to a lifetime of opera, musical theatre, teaching, cantorial service, and ultimately the dream of creating Napa Valley Stage.
None of that was imaginable to an eight-year-old boy sitting in the audience.
He simply knew he had found something he loved.
A Lifetime on the World's Stages
What began with a boys' choir eventually became a lifetime devoted to music, theatre, and storytelling.
Over the next four decades, I was fortunate to perform in opera houses, concert halls, and theatres throughout the United States and Europe. My journey led me to extraordinary stages, including Carnegie Hall, the BBC Proms at London's Royal Albert Hall, the San Francisco Opera, L'Opéra de Lyon, and many other remarkable companies and venues. Along the way, I had the privilege of performing a repertoire that ranged from Mozart and Verdi to Sondheim and contemporary musical theatre.
Each performance brought new opportunities to grow—not only as a performer, but as a storyteller.
Every role required stepping into another person's life. Every rehearsal demanded curiosity, discipline, and collaboration. Every audience reminded me that live theatre is more than entertainment; it is one of the few places where complete strangers gather to laugh, reflect, and experience something together.
As my career expanded, so did my understanding of what it meant to serve a community through music. Alongside performing in opera houses and concert halls, I was privileged to serve congregations as a cantor, leading worship, celebrating weddings, and helping young people mark some of the most meaningful moments of their lives. Whether on an international stage or at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, I came to understand that music has the power not only to entertain, but also to comfort, inspire, and connect us to one another. Whether performing on an international stage, teaching voice to aspiring artists, or leading music within a congregation, I discovered that the most meaningful moments were never about applause. They were about connection.
Looking back, I realize that every stage was preparing me for something I could not yet imagine.
The dream of building a permanent home for professional theatre in Napa Valley.
BBC Proms — Royal Albert Hall, London
Carnegie Hall — New York City
Leading a Bar Mitzvah Service at The Western Wall — Jerusalem, Israel
Opera Around the World
Moments from an International Career
From San Francisco to Japan, from Israel to Europe, these productions shaped my life as a storyteller and performer. Each role deepened my belief that great theatre and opera have the power to connect people across cultures, languages, and generations.
Tito – La Clemenza di Tito
San Francisco Opera
with Frederica von Stade as Sesto
Achilles – King Priam
American Premiere • San Francisco Opera
with Daniel Sumegi as King Priam
Don José – Carmen
San Francisco Opera • Japan Tour
with Reveka Mavrovitis as Carmen
Hoffmann – Les Contes d’Hoffmann
Israeli Opera
with Nico Castel as Spalanzani
Rodolfo – La Boheme
San Francisco Opera Japan Tour
with Cynthia Clayton as Mimi
Every role has been a chapter.
Napa Valley Stage is the next one.
Every Great Story Deserves a Stage
Whether through opera, musical theatre, or developing new works, every production has been another opportunity to step into another life—and invite audiences to do the same.
FROM OPERA TO MUSICAL Selected moments from Stephen Guggenheim's musical theater career prior to the founding of Napa Valley Stage.
The MeshugaNutcracker!
Stephen Guggenheim as Gronam and Susan Gundunas as Esther
Guggenheim Entertainment & The National Jewish Theater Festival
Assassins
Stephen Guggenheim as John Wilkes Booth
San Jose Playhouse
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Stephen Guggenheim as Pierre
San Jose Playhouse
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Stephen Guggenheim as John Jasper and Theresa Swain as Rosa Bud
3Below Theaters
Sunday in the Park with George
Stephen Guggenheim as George and Julia Wade as Dot
San Jose Playhouse
Theatre, Family & Finding Another Artistic Home
While opera took Stephen to stages around the world, another chapter of his artistic life was unfolding much closer to home—and this one became a family journey.
Together with his brother, Scott Guggenheim, and sister-in-law, Shannon Guggenheim, Stephen helped found and lead three theatre companies in San Jose: The Retrodome, San Jose Playhouse, and 3Below Theaters. For more than a decade, the Guggenheim family worked side by side to create a vibrant home for musical theatre in Silicon Valley.
What began as a shared love of theatre grew into something much larger. Together, they produced dozens of musicals, concerts, premieres, educational programs, and special events, building not only productions but a community of artists and audiences who returned again and again.
Stephen served in many roles throughout those years—as producer, music director, performer, and artistic collaborator. He helped shape seasons, cast productions, music direct shows, develop new work, build community partnerships, raise funds, and take part in the countless decisions required to keep a theatre company moving forward.
The work was ambitious and wonderfully varied. Productions included Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Sunday in the Park with George, Man of La Mancha, Nine, La Cage aux Folles, The Fantasticks, Assassins, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and Jerry Springer: The Opera, among many others.
There were important milestones along the way: the San Francisco premiere of Schoolhouse Rock Live; the post-Broadway production of The People in the Picture, developed in collaboration with playwright Iris Rainer Dart and legendary songwriter Mike Stoller; and the North American premiere of A Spoonful of Sherman, created with Robert J. Sherman and celebrating three generations of one of musical theatre's most beloved songwriting families.
Creativity within the family extended to creating new work as well. Stephen performed as Bill Todson in the original musical Thanks for Playing…The Game Show Show!, which he co-wrote with Scott and Shannon. His performance earned BroadwayWorld's award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical, while the production was recognized as Best Musical of the Year.
Stephen, along with Scott and Shannon, also co-created and co-produced The MeshugaNutcracker!, an original holiday musical that grew far beyond its initial productions. It was ultimately filmed for national release through Fathom Events and later streamed on BroadwayHD.
But perhaps the most lasting accomplishment of those years was not any single production.
It was learning what it means to build a theatre.
Working alongside Scott and Shannon taught Stephen that a theatre company is more than what happens onstage. It is artists and audiences, relationships and trust, risk and perseverance. It is creating a place where people want to gather—and giving a community a sense that the theatre belongs to them.
Those years, and the extraordinary partnership Stephen shared with his brother and sister-in-law, became an essential part of the journey that ultimately led to Napa Valley Stage.
Building a Home for Storytelling
Great theatre is more than a performance.
It is a place where communities gather, where conversations begin, where laughter is shared, where hearts are moved, and where people leave seeing the world—and one another—a little differently.
That is the theatre I have always believed in.
Napa Valley Stage was created with a simple but ambitious vision: to establish Napa Valley's resident professional theatre company—a welcoming artistic home where exceptional performances, meaningful partnerships, and lifelong memories are created together.
Our productions will celebrate the timeless classics, embrace contemporary voices, champion new works, and create unforgettable theatrical experiences that reflect the creativity, beauty, and spirit of Napa Valley.
Just as Napa Valley has become known around the world for excellence in hospitality, food, and wine, I believe it can also become a destination for extraordinary live theatre.
But a theatre company is not built by one person.
It is built by artists who inspire us, audiences who believe in us, volunteers who give generously of their time, businesses that invest in their community, and donors whose vision helps make great art possible.
In 2026, Napa Valley Stage reached an important milestone in that journey, receiving recognition from the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
That recognition transformed a vision into something tangible: an organization created to serve this community, support artists, inspire audiences, and build a lasting home for professional theatre in Napa Valley.
And now, with our inaugural season ahead of us, the next chapter begins.
Together, we are building more than a theatre company.
We are building a home for great storytelling.
Why Napa Valley?
Throughout my career, I had the privilege of performing in communities where professional theatre was woven into the cultural fabric of everyday life. I experienced firsthand how a resident theatre company could inspire audiences, enrich education, strengthen local businesses, and become a source of civic pride.
Over the years, one question continued to return to me:
Why doesn't Napa Valley have that?
The more I asked that question, the more convinced I became that it wasn't because Napa Valley didn't want professional theatre—it was because no one had yet built it.
Napa Valley is known throughout the world for excellence. People travel here to experience extraordinary food, exceptional wines, breathtaking landscapes, and warm hospitality. It is a place that celebrates craftsmanship, creativity, and unforgettable experiences.
I believe the performing arts belong naturally alongside those traditions.
Napa Valley deserves a professional theatre company that reflects the same commitment to artistic excellence that has made this region internationally recognized. A theatre where residents and visitors can gather to experience stories that entertain, challenge, inspire, and bring people together.
That belief became the foundation of Napa Valley Stage.
Our vision is not simply to produce outstanding theatre. It is to create a lasting cultural home where artists, audiences, educators, students, businesses, and community partners come together through the shared experience of live performance.
For me, Napa Valley Stage is more than the next chapter of my career.
It is the fulfillment of a dream that began many years ago—and an invitation to help build something that will serve this community for generations to come.
The Story Is Just Beginning
Every meaningful journey begins with a single step.
The story of Napa Valley Stage began many years ago with a young boy who discovered the joy of music. It grew through decades of performances, classrooms, concert halls, theatres, and communities around the world.
Today, Napa Valley Stage is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a singular purpose: to build a lasting home for professional theatre in Napa Valley.
But the most exciting chapter has not yet been written.
It will be written by every artist who steps onto our stage, every audience member who shares an evening with us, every volunteer who gives their time, every donor who believes in our mission, and every child who discovers the magic of live theatre for the very first time.
That is the future we are building together.
The curtain has not yet risen on our inaugural season.
The applause has not yet been heard.
The stories that will inspire, challenge, and bring our community together are still waiting to be told.
And that is what makes this moment so extraordinary.
You are here at the very beginning.
We invite you to join us as we build a home for world-class storytelling, rooted in the heart of Napa Valley.
Together, we will create something that will inspire audiences for generations to come.
The story is just beginning.