Changing the Narrative ‘23
Join us
…at 6pm on Thursday July 13th at Urban Growler Brewery in St. Paul for the 3rd annual installation of this FREE concert that has been described by attendees as "powerful", "unexpected", "funny", "provocative", and our favorite, "hopeful".
Changing the Narrative was born in the pandemic, back by popular demand in 2022, and again in 2023 after our audience nearly doubled! Come enjoy the summer and be moved by the generous authenticity of seven incredible local artists.
Our Singers
Hailed as a “revelation on the stage” (Boulder Daily Camera) whose “gorgeous soprano soars” (The Austin Chronicle), Mary Kettlewell (she/her) is a versatile and effervescent soprano praised for her vibrant vocal tone as well as her charming and coquettish comic acting abilities. Ms. Kettlewell holds a Bachelor of Art from the University of Missouri Columbia (2016) and a Masters in Voice Performance from the University of Colorado Boulder (2018). Originally from Columbia, Missouri, she has performed across the Midwest and beyond with Opera in the Ozarks, Opera NEO, Missouri Symphony Society, Boulder Opera, Boulder Bach Festival, Loveland Opera Theater, Opera on Tap Colorado, Grand Junction Symphony Orchestra, Inversion Ensemble, LOLA – Local Opera Local Artists, and Gilbert & Sullivan Austin.
Voice/Stage Actor and Director and Dramatic Coach Amanda Carlson (she/her) has been praised as a "gifted, intense and committed performer and director". Her staging of Benjamin Britten's Rape of Lucretia with Journey North Opera Company was hailed as one of the Star Tribune's 10 Best Classical Performances of 2019.
She holds a Bachelor's of Psychology from St. Olaf College, and has 10 years of Acting, Directing, and Coaching experience in the Twin Cities, having worked with such companies as Eat Street Players, Twin Cities Fringe Opera, Lyric Arts Main Street Stage, Journey North Opera Company, Ladyslipper Ensemble, TEDxMinneapolis.
Amanda's personal artistic goal is, through storytelling, to open the pathways to empathy, self-reflection, and the full emotional experience of life for the audience, the performer and herself.
American soprano Elena Stabile (she/they) is a dynamic performer of operatic and contemporary art music and a teacher of both voice and piano. She is currently pursuing her doctorate at the University of Minnesota, under the tutelage of John De Haan, and sings regularly with Twin Cities area churches and organizations. She is also a founding member of Strange Trace, a new music collective dedicated to the production and performance of new compositions that seek to holistically redefine the experience of opera. Recent projects include Eugene Onegin (Tatyana) with Skylark Opera and the collegiate premiere of Hometown to the World (Linda Larsen) with the UMN University Opera.
Praised for her artistry and vocal color, Mary Laymon (she/her), soprano, has established herself as a powerful and versatile soprano in the Twin Cities. She excels in difficult repertoire and continues to gain recognition in music circles for her talent, musicality, commitment to character, and beautiful singing.
Mary was featured with The National Opera, The San Francisco Opera, and The Minnesota Opera where she created the role of Justine in the premiere of Libby Larsen’s Frankenstein: A Modern Prometheus. Some acclaimed operatic roles have included Cio-Cio-San in Madame Butterfly, Countess Almaviva in The Marriage of Figaro, Nedda in Pagliacci, and The Voice in Poulenc’s Le Voix Humane. She is also at home in musical theatre with recent engagements including The Sound of Music as Mother Abbess and The Music Man as Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn.
Ms. Laymon performs regularly and has been teaching people to sing since 1983, and for the last 20+ years is proud to be affiliated with MacPhail Center for Music. Additionally, she is the Director of the Chapel Singers, a hip choir at Plymouth Congregational Church in Minneapolis. Mary resides in Central Minneapolis with her husband Chris and their two sweet, singing dogs.
… and our Collaborative Pianist, local hero Carson Rose Schneider
Kristina Butler (she/her), soprano, is passionate about story-telling through music. As a classical soloist, she has performed locally with the Dakota Valley Symphony, The St. Olaf Band and the Minnesota Symphonic Winds. She has performed at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul, Minnesota as a competition finalist for Minnesota Public Radio’s Minnesota Varsity and at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, performing music by Grammy-nominated composer Kim André Arnesen. In 2021, Kristina researched and produced a music album titled “Sueños de Zazá'' while in Ecuador as a Fulbright Arts Grant Fellow. With support from Universidad de las Artes, she collaborated as a vocalist and music director with 35+ musicians, sound techs and composers to create a soundtrack composed of previously unknown Ecuadorian mestizo songs. While in Ecuador, she also enjoyed being the jazz vocalist alongside her friends in Sepia Jazz Trio and classical soloist with the Sinfónica de Guayaquil. Kristina holds a B.A.from St. Olaf College where she graduated in Spanish and Music. She currently studies voice with Dr. Tracey Engleman.
Emma Arachtingi (she/her), soprano, has been awarded numerous accolades in her career. Most recently, Arachtingi won second place in Schubert Club’s Bruce P. Carlson Student Scholarship Competition. A graduate of St Olaf College, Arachtingi was a member of the St Olaf Choir beginning in her sophomore year. This season, Arachtingi has been in the world premier of Paola Prestini’s Edward Tulane with Minnesota Opera, the midwest premier of Proving Up by Missy Mazzoli with Journey North Opera Co., and a Skylark Opera production of Menotti’s opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. Starting this fall, Arachtingi will begin her graduate studies in Voice Performance at Penn State.
Described by Chris Hewitt of the Star Tribune as “singing with dignity, beauty and power,” vocalist Ilah Raleigh (she/her), soprano, Ed.D., maintains dual careers in the performing arts and arts education. As a performing artist, she seeks to tell new stories through song and contribute to the expansion of the American lyric theater canon. Her performance credits include productions with Washington National Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Minnesota Opera, Opera Orlando, Elision Theatre, and the Lakes Area Music Festival. She has also performed with the Orlando Philharmonic, Bloomington Symphony Orchestra, MacPhail Spotlight Series, Thursday Musical, and the An die Musik “Live! Concert Series.” MacPhail Spotlight Series, Thursday Musical, and the An die Musik “Live! Concert Series.”
Dr. Raleigh’s passion for arts education and commitment to equity and accessibility are evident in her work in community education, PreK-12 education, and higher education. In addition to doctoral studies at the University of St. Thomas in Educational Leadership and Learning, she holds a M.Mus., Vocal Performance, from the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, and a B.A. in Italian Studies (Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of Minnesota. Dr. Raleigh currently serves as the Director of Visual and Performing Arts at The Blake School, in Hopkins, MN. She is excited to perform with the Journey North Opera Company for the first time, singing on the Changing the Narrative series!
Martina Marraccino is the brainchild of singer/ songwriter/ choreographer Martino Gabriel-Mayotte (they/them). Martina has performed for 15+ years in Detroit, New York, New Orleans, Toledo, and more, including the last 12+ in Minnesota. Host and producer of GLAM Boylesque, Show Off, and Queer Circus.
Changing the Narrative 2023 Program
Mary Kettlewell (she/her)…………..Meadowlark from The Baker’s Wife by Stephen Schwartz
Elena Stabile (she/they)…………….I’m Not that Girl from Wicked by Stephen Schwartz
Mary Laymon (she/her)…………….The Lake Isle of Innisfree by Ben Moore
Emma Arachtingi (she/her)…………Nuvoletta, Op. 25 by Samuel Barber
Intermission
Amanda Carlson (she/her)…………The Glamorous Life from A Little Night Music by Stephen Sondheim
Ilah Raleigh (she/her)………………..Never Enough from The Greatest Showman by Loren Allred
Kristina Butler (she/her)…………….Carceleras from Las hijas del Zebedeo by Ruperto Chapi
Martina Marraccino (they/them)……As We Stumble Along from The Drowsy Chaperone by Lisa Lambert & Greg Morrison