Crescendo! Vocal Arts Camp

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Deadline for Camp Registration: Monday, June 15, 2026
First half of tuition due: June 15, 2026 Second half of tuition due: June 22, 2026

CLICK HERE FOR CRESCENDO! Registration Form

Crescendo! Vocal Arts Camp with Indianapolis Opera is an exciting summer vocal workshop for high school aged students held at the Basile Opera Center, home of the Indianapolis Opera, in the Meridian-Kessler neighborhood in the heart of Midtown Indianapolis.

This five-day camp is an intensive program for students aged 13-18 years old (rising high school freshmen through rising college freshmen). Over the course of the camp, students will learn about and experience the art of solo vocal performance through classical repertoire, folksong, and musical theater while also enjoying workshops in movement, acting, sight singing, choral music, diction, and technical theater. At 5 PM on the last day of camp, we conclude with the Crescendo Showcase, a fully-staged final concert featuring all of the campers in solo and group performances.

Students receive individual attention and training through daily private lessons, coachings, and master classes, benefitting from the extensive performing and teaching experience of our highly acclaimed faculty.

COST:
Full 5-day Camp: $375 (Students must participate in the full 5-day camp to appear in the Crescendo Showcase.)
Single Day Cost: $80
Please note, students are responsible for providing their own lunch.

For more information, please contact Education Director, Lyndsay Moy at [email protected] or 317-283-3531.

SCHOLARHIP INFORMATION:
We have limited partial scholarships available.

If your singer is in need of a partial scholarship, we ask that they submit, along with their application, a 200-300 word statement, to be evaluated by camp leadership. Applicant's statement should describe the following:
a) Why are you interested in participating in Crescendo Vocal Arts Camp?
b) What are you most excited to learn about or participate in during the camp?
c) What are your goals for yourself while at Crescendo?

Scholarship amount is determined upon receipt and review of submitted materials.

TESTIMONIALS

"The Indianapolis Opera Vocal Arts Camp helped me successfully prepare for countless auditions and performances. They helped me choose material well-suited to my voice, which I still use today. I am so grateful for the high-quality training and advice I was given throughout my time at Crescendo, and I am also very thankful for the awesome friends I made while I was there! I had an absolute blast curating art with some incredibly talented people. I feel as if the training I got during my time at the Indianapolis Opera has properly equipped me to break my way into the industry."

- Zoe Lowe

"Crescendo Vocal Arts Camp gave me so much confidence in moving forward in musical theater! The one-on-one coaching time and teaching sessions taught me how to stretch my body and voice to full capacity. I left understanding how to fully prepare for an audition and which songs were the best options for my vocal range. I truly feel like this camp took my current skillset and pushed me to my potential. The connections I made with fellow theater teens and teachers boosted my excitement for all things musical theater!"

- Ransom Reynolds

"I learned so much from camp, from new dance warm-ups to new singing techniques. These skills will follow me throughout the rest of my career and I'm very grateful to have learned them. Participating in this camp led me to meet so many amazing people, make new friends, and be taught by so many fantastic educators and performers, and I couldn't be more thankful. I later had the opportunity to perform with Indianapolis Opera in Amahl & the Night Visitors (December 2025) and learned even more and grew as a performer. I can't wait to participate in the Crescendo Vocal Arts Camp again!"

-Greta Shambarger (age 13)

"Indianapolis Opera's Crescendo Vocal Arts Camp prepared me to be a well-rounded musician and performing artist. This camp showed me what it means to be not only a great performer but also a great collaborator as we explored a variety of repertoire with incredible coaches. Because of these experiences, I had the opportunity to work with the Indianapolis Opera both as an administrative intern and as a member of the chorus for productions including Don Giovanni (2021), Carmen (2023), and West Side Story (2025). Crescendo inspired me to approach both my onstage and backstage passions with professionalism, creativity, and joy."

- Elizabeth Enderle (2018, 2019)

Sample Daily Schedule:

10:00 AM Welcome/Daily Overview

10:15 AM Warm-Up/Movement for Theater/Choreography
- students get to know one another and warm up their bodies and minds for the day

11:30 AM Voice faculty introductions and Vocal Masterclass
- students meet the faculty and have an opportunity to express feedback among their peers
OR
11:30 AM Daily Vocal Workshop
- Workshops throughout the week will focus on various aspect of singing, including vocal health, character development, presentation, etc.

1:00 PM LUNCH

1:30 PM FREE Headshots with Roger Manning during lesson rotations

2:00 PM Voice Lesson Rotations among the faculty (30 minutes each)
- begin preparations for Crescendo! Showcase
- focusing separately on technique, diction, musicality, physicality, and acting.

4:00 PM Mock Auditions
- discussion of audition strategies and building a package
OR
4:00 PM Group Workshop
- building and rehearsing group numbers for Crescendo! Showcase

5:00 PM Pick-Up/Departure

RACHELLE WOOLSTON Co-Director

Dr. Rachelle Woolston, soprano, completed a bachelor's degree in voice at Brigham Young University, then master's and doctoral degrees at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. A Region Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, some of her favorite stage roles include Angelica (Suor Angelica), Nedda (I Pagliacci), Violetta (La Traviata), Cio-Cio San (Madama Butterfly), The Queen of the Night (The Magic Flute), Valencienne (The Merry Widow), and Mother Abbess (The Sound of Music). Orchestral performances include the Varna International Orchestra in Italy, West Texas Symphonic Choir, Indianapolis Symphony Pops, and Kokomo Symphony. Dr. Woolston has a eighteen-year career as a private voice instructor and is an adjunct professor of voice at Ball State University. She has previously served as the Director of Education & Community Engagement for Indianapolis Opera, and continues to run their Crescendo! Vocal Arts summer camp for high school students. Rachelle enjoys collaborating in recital with her husband PJ, a bassoonist, traveling, and spending time with her four children.

LYNDAY MOY Co-Director

Mezzo-soprano Lyndsay Moy is an Indianapolis native and serves as the Director of Education & Community Engagement of Indianapolis Opera. Lyndsay is a leading artist with the company, an alumna of the IO Resident Artist Program, and has appeared in several IO productions, most recently as Netter Fowler in Rodgers & Hammerstein's Carousel this past May. She has also portrayed Bloody Mary in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific, Kate Pinkerton in Puccini’s Madame Butterfly, and the Housekeeper in Leigh’s Man of La Mancha. Other operatic roles include Maurya (Vaughan-Williams' Riders to the Sea), Marcellina (Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro), Fidalma (Cimarosa’s Il matrimonio segreto), Mère Marie (Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites), Zita (Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi), L’Architecture (Charpentier’s Les Arts Florissants), L’écureuil (Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges), and La Badessa (Puccini’s Suor Angelica), among others. Lyndsay holds a Master of Music in Voice from The Cleveland Institute of Music, as well as a Bachelor of Music in Voice and Bachelor of Arts in Painting from DePauw University. During her training at CIM, she received the Frederick B. Prentice Award for Excellence in Voice, and at DePauw, the prestigious Performer’s Certificate, along with four first-place awards from the NATS Great Lakes Region competition. Regionally, Lyndsay has also regularly appeared as an alto soloist in concert works, including Handel’s Messiah, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, Beethoven Mass in C Minor, Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy, and most recently, Christopher Tin's The Drop That Contained the Sea. She resides locally with her husband, daughter, and two border terriers.

DOUG KING Choreographer

Doug King is an Indianapolis local director, choreographer, and equity actor. Most recently with Indianapolis Opera, he served as choreographer for Rodgers & Hammerstein's Carousel at the Palladium. On stage, Doug has worked extensively in Chicago and Indianapolis. Locally, he primarily works with Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre, having been in over a hundred productions. Roles include Will Parker (Oklahoma), The Scarecrow (Wizard of Oz), Frank Shultz (Show Boat), Cosmo Brown (Singin' in the Rain), Joy (Cinderella). Other productions include South Pacific, Seven Brides For Seven Brothers, and 42nd Street. Dough was in the first national tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and he has directed nearly a dozen productions of the show at various theatres and schools. Doug has danced in A Yuletide Celebration with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and with Indianapolis Ballet Theatre and Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre. He is on the dance faculty at Anderson University teaching tap, jazz, and musical theatre. Doug works with numerous high schools and universities with the choral and theatre departments.

MITZI WESTRA

Mitzi Westra, mezzo-soprano, received her B.A. degree in music and religion from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Her graduate work was done at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, where she received her M.M. and D.M.A. in vocal performance, working with such nationally renowned artists as coach/accompanist Margo Garrett and opera directors James Robinson and Vern Sutton. She was frequently seen on stage in roles such as Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus, Zita in Gianni Schicchi, Florence Pike in Albert Herring, Amastre in Xerxes, and Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro. In 1993 she portrayed Ma Moss in the touring production of The Tender Land. While in Minneapolis, she spent 4 years performing, touring, and recording with a professional choral group, the Dale Warland Singers, and was alto section leader for the DWS Chamber Singers. She then moved to Beaumont, Texas, and taught private voice, diction, and music theory at Lamar University. While there, she played the roles of Lalume in Kismet and Lady Larkin in Once Upon a Mattress, as well as performing frequently with the Symphony of Southeast Texas. Since moving to Indianapolis, she has appeared as soloist with Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, New Century String Quartet, The Indianapolis Quartet, and the Grammy Award-winning Pacifica Quartet, as well as performing regularly on the University of Indianapolis Faculty Artist Series. Opera performances in Indiana include Katisha in The Mikado and the mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors. As an avid choral musician, she has sung with several professional organizations, including the Grammy Award-winning ensemble Conspirare and Santa Fe Desert Chorale. She has also sung with Indianapolis Symphonic Choir and Chamber Singers, Meridian Vocal Consort, Beecher Singers at Second Presbyterian Church, and Mon Choeur, the resident vocal chamber ensemble at University of Indianapolis. She currently teaches vocal studies at University of Indianapolis, as well as being an alto section leader at Second Presbyterian Church, recording for Aireborn Studios in Zionsville, and maintaining her own private studio. She is pleased to be married to Frank Felice, composer and professor at Butler University in Indianapolis ( www.frank-felice.com ). She can be heard on two professionally released recordings of Frank’s music--Reflections and Whimsies: Chamber Music for Strings and Voice (2020) and The Beauty of Innuendos (2023), which encompassed all four of his song cycles for mezzo.

JARED SLOTHOWER

Jared Slothower is excited to be returning to Indianapolis Opera for the Crescendo! Vocal Arts camp! He was seen last in Indy Opera’s production of Carmen in 2023 as part of the chorus. Jared is a multifaceted musician and teacher based in Indianapolis, Indiana. He currently serves as the Tenor 2 section leader at Second Presbyterian Church, Staff accompanist at Anderson University, and has a private studio of 25 students. His favorite roles have included Cinderella’s Prince (Into the Woods), The Minstrel (Once Upon a Mattress), Danilo (The Merry Widow). Jared has been a soloist and ensemble member of numerous choirs and orchestras, including CCM Chamber Choir, Kantorei, Elysian Voices, Ball State Concert Choir, Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Rock Valley Pops Orchestra, and Rock Valley College Concert Choir. Jared is very passionate about art song and has collaborated with Second Presbyterian fine arts and music to create themed art song performances using local singers titled, The Art Song Series. Jared lives in Indianapolis with his husband and their two dogs.

THADDAEUS BOURNE

2022 Latin GRAMMY® Award winning album vocalist Thaddaeus Bourne has been praised for his rich baritone (Brooklyn Discovery), his lyrical and touching singing (Parterre Box) and his suave stage presence (Opera News). Originally training as a flutist, he began voice lessons as a means of studying breath support and quickly discovered the joy of making loud noises in foreign languages while playing with swords. He has sung over forty roles performing in the USA, Europe, Africa, and Latin America. His recent work includes a concert and masterclass for the Conservatorio Profesional de Música Marcos Redondo in Ciudad Real, Spain; soloist in the Schubert Mass in G Major in Nairobi, Kenya with masterclasses at Kenyatta University and Technical University of Kenya; a recital and masterclass for the Rhea Concert Series at Saginaw Valley State University, Conte Almaviva in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro for the Baroque on Beaver Island Music Festival, and Escamillo in Bizet’s Carmen at the Center for Performing Arts in Gainesville, FL. This summer he premiered Traci Mendel’s Evening Ponte al Mar in Bogotà, Colombia for the CMS International Conference and presented research on neuroplasticity in vocal training at the International Congress of Voice Teachers in Toronto, Canada with Dr. Brenda Smith. His previous faculty appointments include the University of Florida, Troy University, Butler University, Earlham College, and the University of Connecticut.

ELIZABETH GOODENOUGH

Elizabeth Goodenough is a collaborative pianist with over 20 years of experience in collegiate, church, and community settings. She is passionate about supporting singers and fostering an environment where musical expression feels natural and free. Her opera coaching experience includes serving as the 2016 Indianapolis Opera Resident Artist pianist, as well as apprenticing with other summer opera programs. She looks forward to the joy of collaborating this summer. Elizabeth maintains a studio of 70 piano students and works as a freelance accompanist at Butler University and throughout the surrounding area. In her free time, she enjoys biking country roads and studying German.

SARAH TEWES Choreography Assistant

Sarah Tewes is a Butler University alumna and an Indianapolis local. She is happy to return to the Indianapolis Opera for summer camp after performing in West Side Story last spring. Her other favorite credits include Dance (Yuletide Celebration), Kristine (A Chorus Line), ChaCha (Grease), and ensemble/ tap-dancing egg (Something Rotten). Additionally, she shares her love for dance by choreographing musicals and summer camps around the central Indiana area. She continues to serve as an assistant choreographer for Mt. Vernon High School’s theatre program and last fall choreographed Herron High School’s fall musical. She thanks her parents for all of their love and endless support!