Kathy Pyeatt, Director

Kathy first became involved with the Wisconsin District MONC as a singer, when her teacher and mentor Pat Crump, convinced her she might just be able to sing opera. The first year was a bit nerve racking and Kathy’s main goal was simply not to faint. Luckily she did not and she actually won an award for “most promising female”. Kathy auditioned for four years and won various prizes and places and eventually won the District Auditions in 1996 and placed second at the Upper Midwest Regionals in 1997. She has gone on to sing with leading orchestras and opera companies through out the United States. Kathy joined Pat as Co-Director in 2003 and became sole Director in 2007. She is really enjoying giving back to the organization that gave her a start. Kathy is currently searching for a new home in Wisconsin along with her husband, Dan Kerkman, 6 year-old daughter Emma, and her two chocolate labs, Mocha and Nestle.

Patricia Crump, Director Emerita

This is Pat's 38th year of service to the Wisconsin District MONC Auditions. She served 7 years as Treasurer, 25 years as Director, and 4 years as Co-Director. Pat's life work was teaching singing. She has many students who are teaching, performing or both and is very proud of them. There is no one of which she is prouder than Kathy Pyeatt, who has not only distinguished herself vocally but has brought the Wis. Met Auditions into the computer age, serving as a model for other districts. Pat is also grateful for the loyal Wis. Met Audition Board. Most are singers also, and give freely of their time and energy to maintain our reputation as one of the best districts in the country. This history would not be complete without giving credit to my right hand helper of these 38 years of Met work (actual years - 53!), my husband Phil. He has helped with every facet of this work from the beginning and is still our chief financial advisor. We wouldn't be where we are without him, nor would I.

Julie Calteaux, Media Coordinator

Helen Ceci, Secretary & Publicity

Helen Ceci is secretary of WI MONC, and is also in charge of publicity. Back in the Dark Ages she sang in the Met Auditions. She graduated from Oberlin Conservatory of Music with a BFA in Vocal Performance, which included a year of study and performance at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. She has performed in many local concerts, operas and solo recitals for such groups as Milwaukee Opera Company, Florentine Opera on Wheels, Civic Music Association, Sullivan Chamber Ensemble, Bach Chamber Choir, Ceciliana Quartet, Pike River Musicians. She currently teaches private voice to an enormous number of promising students. She lives on the East Side of Milwaukee with her little dog, Thumbelina, and when she is not teaching she likes to read, cook, camp, hike and sew.

Marguerite Greinke, Treasurer

Marguerite has been involved with the Wisconsin District MONC for over 20 years as a volunteer. She is also a singer, having performed with the Florentine Opera, Milwaukee Choristers, and several church choirs. Marguerite sits on the Board of Directors for the Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Harmony Club and Supporters of Opera Singers. She also belongs to the MacDowell Club, Waukesha Music Club and Harmony Club. Marguerite graduated from UW-Madison and worked as a Medical Technologist at Lutheran Hospital, Fairview Clinical Lab, and Bayshore Lab.

Tanya Kruse Ruck, Rehearsal Rooms Chairperson

Tanya Kruse Ruck was a winner of the Wisconsin Met Auditions in 2002 and went on to receive and Encouragement Award at the Regional level. She won the Joan Kreitzer Snyder Award and placed during other years in the competition. For two years, Kruse received coachings from the Supporters of Opera Singers program as a result of her performances in the competition. She is also a past winner of the Levin Competition sponsored by the Civic Music Association. Kruse is a graduate of Luther College and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She made her European debut as Fiordiligi in Cosí fan tutte as part of the Opera Theatre of Lucca, Italy. Stateside, she has been seen as The Soprano in Weill’s The Royal Palace, Madama Cortese in Rossini’s Il Viaggio á Reims, Rusalka in Dvořák’s Rusalka, and Angelica in Puccini’s Suor Angelica. Kruse made her Skylight Opera debut in the title role in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. She returns to The Skylight in the 2007-2008 season playing Margaret in David Carlson’s The Midnight Angel. Kruse has recorded several companion CDs to Hal Leonard vocal publications, several of which can be heard on the company’s website. Equally versatile on the recital stage, Kruse frequently performs as part of the prestigious Chamber Music Milwaukee series at UWM, in addition to her regular solo recitals. She is currently the vice president for the Wisconsin chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and has taught at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee since 2003. Kruse is delighted to have the opportunity to honor Pat Crump, a mentor of Kruse’s for a number of years, with her service to MONC Wisconsin. She believes that the auditions can be a stepping stone to other opportunities for young singers, as it was to her.

Carlene McMonagle, Facilities Coordinator

Carlene McMonagle retired from the voice faculty of the University of Wisconsin Whitewater in May 2005, following twenty-five years teaching studio voice, diction and voice pedagogy; she also served as coordinator for vocal studies. Ms. McMonagle received the University Academic Staff Excellence Award in Teaching. She was also recognized by the Civic Music Association of Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra for excellence in Private Studio Voice Instruction. Numerous McMonagle students have gone on to achieve success in prestigious graduate school programs and professional auditions, including district MONC Auditions. McMonagle presented annual faculty recitals; and as soprano soloist, she has performed in the upper Midwest and sung in such ensembles as Les Jongleurs, the Milwaukee Consort of Viols and the Medieval Consort. Ms. McMonagle holds a Master of Music with Distinction from Indiana University and Bachelor of Science in Music Education from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She serves on the Boards of Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Wisconsin Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Committee and Supporters of Opera. McMonagle also is an active member of the National Association of Teachers of singing, having served as state president, north central regional governor and national board member.

Jane O'Connell, Registration Chairperson

While living in New York Jane was a steady listener to the Met Opera radio broadcasts, subscribed to the Metropolitan Opera, was associated with the MONC auditions and attended the National Winners Concert on a regular basis. She was hooked on opera! When Jane retired from her thirty-two year career as an educator and adminstrator to join her husband in Wisconsin she quickly became an intergal part of the cultural arts community. Jane has been the Registration Chairperson since 1987 and chaired the 25th Anniversary Event honoring Pat Crump's years of service to the MET auditions. She has held many key board positions with the Florentine Opera, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Skylight Opera Theatre, and Opera Guilds International. Jane loves traveling and has toured 132 countries on six continents and has attended opera in all but Antarctica. She holds a BS in Education from SUNY at Fredonia, Master of Arts in Curriculum Development from Hofstra University and Post-Masters Administrative Certification from NYU. She served as teacher, principle and college professor. Jane is a member of Opera America, has been honored by Opera Volunteers Internaional, is listed in Who's Who of American Women and recently was elected as a Life Director at the Florentine Opera.

Cynthia Lawrence, Metropolitan Opera Soprano

Cynthia Lawrence, as Tosca, has sung on five continents and is hailed as one of America’s most exciting singing actresses. She is a regular guest of leading opera companies around the world, including the Metropolitan Opera; The Royal Albert Hall, London; the Lyric Opera of Chicago; Deutsche Staatsoper, Berlin; New Israeli Opera; Opera Pacific; Opera Colorado; Deutsche Staatsoper; Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; Paris Opera, Prague’s National Theater; Grand Theatre de Geneva; Vlaamse Opera, Belgium; Castleward Opera, Belfast, Ireland; Opera Columbus; Dayton Opera; Minnesota Opera; Opera Ontario; Athens Festival, Theater Megaron; New York City Opera; Lake George Opera Festival; Opera Omaha; Central City Opera; Colorado Opera Festival; and Opera Memphis.

She has appeared over 70 times in concert with Luciano Pavarotti; touring cities and countries such as Doha, Qatar; Italy; Chile; Venezuela, Argentina; Germany; Norway; Japan; China; Malaysia; England; Canada; South Africa, and throughout the United States.

Ms. Lawrence has just joined the faculty of the University of Kentucky, Lexington where she will hold the prestigious position of Endowed Chair, Artist-In-Residence. She resides with her two daughters and husband, Mark R. Calkins who is currently on faculty at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN. She maintains a private studio and is a frequent judge for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and enjoys conducting Master Classes for singers performers and colleges. Recently she and Mark gave a joint Master Recital at the 4th International Conference on the Acoustics of Singing held at the University of Texas, San Antonio.

Kyle Marrero, Pensacola Opera Artistic Director

Dr. Kyle Marrero holds Bachelor and Master degrees in Vocal Performance from Bowling Green State University and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Michigan. Currently, he is the Director of the School of Fine and Performing Arts and Chair of the Music Department at the University of West Florida and serves as the General and Artistic Director of Pensacola Opera. Past affiliations have included eleven years as an Associate Professor of voice at Louisiana State University, Production Director for Nevada Opera and Artistic Director of Opera Southwest in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Committed to the development of young singers, Dr. Marrero has served on the staff of Des Moines Metro Opera’s summer festival for eleven seasons as a stage director for the apprentice artist program. As a teacher he has won numerous awards including the LSU Distinguished Teaching Award. During his short tenure at UWF, he has been involved in fundraising and grant endeavors totaling over 2 million in future scholarship and equipment purchases including the purchase of eighteen new Steinway pianos, making UWF a prestigious “All-Steinway” School and the naming of the Warren and Helen Wentworth “All-Steinway” Piano Program. As Artistic Director of Pensacola Opera, Marrero has led the company tripling its annual budget and doubling its patronage in eight years. Demonstrating his commitment to education, he founded the Artist-in-Residence program at Pensacola Opera. The program, encompassing thirteen weeks of residency, provides training to young artists newly out of graduate school and delivers outreach and educational programs reaching over 30,000 children in Northwest Florida and South Alabama.

Robin Thompson

Robin Thompson has been a key player on the American opera scene since graduating from Indiana University School of Music in 1977. His most recent work has been in New York, the majority of which was in a progression of positions at the New York City Opera. It is for this work that he is most identified within the profession. In 1996, Thompson was recruited by then General Director Paul Kellogg to be Artistic Administrator and help provide the company with a new artistic presence on the American and International opera scene. Within a few seasons the executive staff began to diversify and Thompson became the company’s new Associate Artistic Director, a position that put him officially in charge of season planning, casting, and supervising all activities of the company’s Artistic Department. In June, 2007 he assumed the position of Producing Artistic Director for the company. This period saw the City Opera debuts of singers Barry Banks, Sarah Connolly, David Daniels, Joyce DiDonato, João Fernandez, Vivica Genaux, Lorraine Hunt-Lieberson, Bejun Mehta, Alexandrina Pendachanska, Patricia Racette, Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Kurt Streit and Rolando Villazón. Debuting guest conductors included Harry Bicket, John DeMain, Marco Guidarini, Stephen Lord, Anne Manson, and Antony Walker. Important directors added to the roster were Stephen Lawless, Mark Morris, Francisco Negrin, James Robinson, Chas Rader-Shieber, Tazewell Thompson and Stephen Wadsworth. Thompson has also worked for the Canadian Opera Company as Consultant for Artistic Planning and at the Los Angeles Music Center Opera as Artistic Administrator, the latter alongside Peter Hemmings and Patricia Mitchell. Earlier he worked for ten years as a staff stage director at the San Francisco Opera and as a free lance stage director for the opera companies of Montreal, Santa Fe, Houston and the New York City Opera. In addition to his work for the, Robin Thompson has adjudicated numerous other competitions: all levels of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Competizione del’ Opera in Dresden, Dallas Opera Guild, Richard Tucker Foundation and the newly created Jose Iturbi Foundation Vocal Competition. He was the first American to have been invited in many years to adjudicate the Hans Gabor International Vocal Competition in Vienna. In the summer of 2006, Thompson traveled to Finland at the invitation of the Savonlinna Festival to evaluate their overall artistic operations.

Jamie Johns

Jamie Johns is the Skylight Opera Theatre's resident Music Director. He has music directed Skylight’s productions of TINTYPES, THE TRAGEDY OF CARMEN, A TALENT TO AMUSE, THE LAST FIVE YEARS, CABARET, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, THE ALL NIGHT STRUT! and THE WORLD GOES ROUND. He is also a frequent pianist in the Skylight’s Cabaret Series. In 1997, he made his conducting debut at Lyric Opera Cleveland with Mozart’s THE ABDUCTION FROM THE SERAGLIO. He has also worked with Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Madison Repertory Theatre, Florentine Opera Company, Orlando Opera, Orlando Philharmonic, Present Music, Bel Canto Chorus of Milwaukee, Kenosha Symphony and UW-Milwaukee.

Yasuko Oura

Yasuko Oura has received national recognition as a virtuoso collaborative pianist, with concert appearances in Japan, Prague, and throughout the United States, including such notable venues as Alice Tully Hall, Merkin Hall, and Carnegie’s Weill Hall. Also known as a noted vocal coach and repetiteur, she has worked with such distinguished conductors as Harry Bicket, Jane Glover, and John DeMain. Highlights of Ms. Oura’s 2008-2009 season include return engagements at Madison Opera for Madama Butterfly and at Fort Worth Opera for Carmen, as well as her debut with the Florentine Opera for Semele. She has served as music director of Intimate Opera, as an assistant music director for Light Opera Works, was a principal vocal coach and repetiteur at DuPage Opera Theater, Opera Moda, and da Corneto Opera, and often plays with Ars Viva Symphony. She currently resides in Chicago, where she is on the faculty of Roosevelt University as a vocal coach, and has also coached at Northwestern, DePaul, and North Park Universities. Ms. Oura has received fellowships to San Francisco Opera’s Merola Opera Program, Tanglewood Music Center, Aspen Opera Theater Center and Music Academy of the West and has performed for numerous masterclasses, including those for José Van Dam, Rudolf Piernay and Marilyn Horne’s Song Continues series. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College and master’s and doctoral degrees from the Juilliard School, where she was a C.V. Starr Doctoral Fellow.