The Mead Witter School of Music and the School of Music Alumni Associated are thrilled to announce Nathaniel Stampley ’08 as the 2024 recipient of the School of Music Distinguished Alumni Award.
“I am honored to be chosen for this acknowledgement,” Stampley said. “As a student walking, protesting, and performing on campus, I never would have thought that my contributions to such a vast student body many years ago would mean so much to me today. My experience on all of the many stages (Mills, Morphy, Music Hall, Union Theater, Union South) have helped shape me throughout my career.”
During his studies in Madison, Stampley performed in major and featured roles with University Opera (Mirabell’s Books of Number, The Old Maid and the Thief, Gianni Schicchi, Le nozze di Figaro), sang in scenes and outreach programs with Opera Workshop, performed with the university orchestra as a winner of the Concerto Competition, won the sophomore men’s division at Wisconsin NATS, and was invited to perform solos in excerpts from Elijah with the UW–Milwaukee Orchestra.
Stampley studied with Professor of Voice and Opera Mimmi Fulmer while at UW–Madison, and he has returned to campus multiple times over the years to share his expertise and artistry with students, the university, and the community through concerts, guest artist classes, and career talks.
“From the moment I first heard Nathaniel Stampley, when he was auditioning as a teenager for a Summer Music Clinic tuition waiver, I knew he was a special artist and human being,” Fulmer said. “It has been a privilege and joy to be part of his life in the years since then. His phenomenal success as a performing artist combined with his dedication to his family makes him a role model for all aspiring performers.”
A native of Milwaukee, Stampley has enjoyed an international career in musical theatre over the past 25 years. He went from Madison to Chicago, where he appeared multiple times with Apple Tree Theatre. This led to national and international success.
He starred as Porgy in the national tour of “The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess,” and as Mufasa in “The Lion King” on Broadway and in a long-run production in West End London. He was in the cast of the Broadway production “The Color Purple” (both the original production and revival) and toured across the United States in “Ragtime.”
In 2021-2022 he was featured in a new work, “Paradise Square” in Chicago and on Broadway, and appeared in “A Man of No Importance” on Broadway in fall 2022. His performance in the title role of Man of La Mancha with Marriott Theatre brought him a Joseph Jefferson Award.
He completed a run in the title role of Sweeney Todd at the Signature Theatre in Washington D.C., and in fall 2023 he played the featured role of Herbie in Gypsy at the Marriott Theatre (Chicago).
Stampley has also appeared as guest artist with numerous orchestras and ensembles, including the Philadelphia Orchestra under the direction of Yannick Nézet-Séguin, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and the El Paso Symphony, among many others. He has performed at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and 92Y. He has embarked on a television career that includes appearances on Law & Order: SVU (NBC), The Blacklist (NBC) and Blue Bloods (CBS).
Stampley is an Artistic Associate at the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. He is also a Lunt- Fontanne Fellow awarded by the Ten Chimneys Foundation.
As part of the celebration, Stampley will host a career talk on February 20, 2025 at 4:30 pm in Morphy Recital Hall in the Humanities building, as well as a master class and Q&A on February 21, 2025 from 3:30 pm-5:15 pm in Collins Recital Hall at the Hamel Music Center. Both events are free and open to the public.
The Mead Witter School of Music Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes an alumnus or alumna who is making, or has made, an outstanding contribution to the music profession in service or in artistic impact.
“On behalf of the School of Music Alumni Association, let me say how thrilled we are to introduce our 2024 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, Nathaniel Stampley,” said Garry Owens, President of the School of Music Alumni Association. “Since Nathaniel received his degree from the School of Music, he has enjoyed a highly successful career as a performer on Broadway, London’s West End, and many other venues worldwide. We are all very proud of Nathaniel and applaud his myriad accomplishments throughout the years.”
