Sarah Stephens founded International Artists Management in Bremen, Germany in 1996. Her agency specialized in professional personal management and bilingual promotion for international opera singers in Europe and later expanded to include management for conductors, stage directors and other classical musicians. Her artists performed in theaters throughout Europe including the Staatsoper in Berlin, Covent Garden in London, Opéra Bastille in Paris, Stockholm, Basel, Zürich, Graz, Bayreuth Festival, Semperoper in Dresden, Düsseldorf, Duisburg, Bayerische Staatsoper in München, Mannheim, Leipzig, Bremen, Oldenburg, Kiel, Darmstadt, Augsburg, Nürnberg and Münster.

Ms. Stephens was granted the German agency license in 2000 authorizing her to operate as a recognized artists management agency (Künstleragentur) in Germany. A second license was issued the same year entitling her agency to engage in business internationally and throughout the European Union. In 2008, she returned to the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis to complete her Master’s degree with a bilingual thesis on Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde. Subsequently, she came to New York City and founded Stephens Nicolson Artists Management with Mark Nicolson.

Sarah Stephens studied in Germany, learned German fluently, and made Germany her residence for most of her adult life. She has lived in Freiburg, Hamburg, Berlin, and in Bremen where she resided until 2008. Ms. Stephens attended the University of Vermont, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg (Germany), and the University of Minnesota. She is a Board member of Freiburg University Alumni in NYC and a co-founder and former Executive Board member of Opera Managers Association International (OMAI). In 2022, she became a member of the Performer Development Network at Opera America and joined the Minnesota State Arts Board as an Artistic Advisor Panelist. She has taught masterclasses at Middlebury College (Deutsch für Sänger), Cincinnati College of Music, Juilliard School of Music and Hunter College. Born and raised in Minneapolis, she returns there often to be with family and friends on the Minnesota lakes.

Mark Nicolson brings over 30 years of international experience as a singer to Stephens Nicolson Artists Management as Artistic Director. He has great respect for the Golden Age of Opera and has been mentored by some of opera's legendary singers and coaches including Virginia Zeani, Nicola Rossi-Lemeni, Franco Corelli, Jerome Hines, James King, Regine Crespin, Mignon Dunn, John Wustman, Martin Katz, and Steven Lord.

Mr. Nicolson has sung in opera houses and concert halls throughout the world in a wide range of repertoire including the works of baroque, classical, bel canto, verismo, and 20th century composers. He has always strived to be a consummate performing artist and values a close collaboration with his colleagues and the mastery of linguistic, musical, and theatrical details. He attended Bradley University, University of North Texas, Indiana University, and Opera Music Theatre International where he worked with Jerome Hines as well as Frank Corsaro at the Actor's Studio. He believes that artistry is achieved through a greater understanding of those around us and our desire to learn from every musical endeavor.