Wednesday, August 6th, 2025
6:30 PM Cocktail Hour
7:30 PM Performance
Rain Date: August 7th, 2025
Featuring: Baritone Justin Austin
Accompanied by: Michael Banwarth
Hosted at the Edwin J. Nieman Sr. House
13030 N Cedarburg Rd, Mequon, WI 53097
Attire: garden party
Sung in Multiple Languages
Run Time 1 hour, no intermission
Picnic basket details to come!
Baritone Justin Austin, praised for his "mighty lyric voice" (NYT) and "intensity and charisma" (Opera), was named Rising Star of the Year at the 2024 International Opera Awards and is a recipient of the 2024 Marian Anderson Vocal Award, earning acclaim for his expressive artistry and immaculate musicianship.
About Al Fresco
Prepare for an unforgettable summer soirée at the highly sought-after Al Fresco series, nestled in enchanting gardens and beautiful homes of Southeastern Wisconsin. Join us for captivating performances by some of opera's finest talents.
And yes, dinner and bar options are available or bring your own picnic for a truly picturesque experience!
Featuring
Baritone Justin Austin
Accompanied by Michael Banwarth
About the Nieman House:
Since its completion in 1929, the Edwin J. Nieman Haus has stood majestically over this area of Ozaukee County, which once held claim to the largest silver fox farms in the world. Herman H. Bruns, the architect, custom-designed the home for Erna Fromm and Edwin J. Nieman Sr. in 1928. The couple, who moved to the Mequon-Thiensville area after their marriage in 1921, had brought with them twelve pairs of silver foxes from the Fromm Fox Farms in north-central Wisconsin. Their entrepreneurial endeavor was to establish silver fox farms in southeastern Wisconsin, similar to those started in Hamburg, Wisconsin, by Erna’s four brothers. Through the combined efforts of the Fromm brothers and Edwin’s father, John Nieman – a self-made, wealthy businessman from the Cedarburg and Mequon-Thiensville area – the families started Fromm Bros. Nieman and Company. John Nieman, whose accomplishments in the early 1900s included the founding of two area banks and the building of the Cedarburg Cannery and Old Milwaukee River Cannery, was instrumental in providing the business skills, experience, and working capital necessary to expand the Fromm fox herd and grow Fromm Bros. Nieman into the world’s largest Silver Fox producer. By 1914, Herman H. Bruns was an established architect in the Milwaukee area, having designed numerous Lutheran churches and Jewish synagogues. In 1928, the Nieman family commissioned Bruns to design and build the Edwin J. Nieman Haus. Edwin Sr. and Erna lived in the house from 1929 to 1985, raising their two children, Sylvia and Edwin Jr., and entertaining grandchildren and friends. Owing to the progressive decline of the fur industry, the house was sold to the Lynch family in 1986. In 2012, the property was reacquired by Thomas Nieman, the grandson of Edwin Nieman Sr. and owner of Fromm Family Foods. The headquarters and original manufacturing plant for Fromm Family Foods is located right up the hill from the Nieman Haus. Fromm Family Foods, a recognized market leader in Neighborhood Pet, continues to provide the resources for the restoration of this magnificent Bruns Tudor Revival house to the decadence and splendor that was the pre-depression 1920s.