2025-2026 Emerging Artists
Janaki Butterworth
Stage director
Janaki Butterworth, mezzo-soprano and multifaceted creative, has been praised for her strong acting and “comedic skills” (Opera Canada). She caught the performance bug young, performing in her first musical, Cats, at the age of seven. She hasn’t stopped performing since. Her undergraduate studies at Western University led her to solo concert opportunities performing early music, ensemble roles in various musicals, and performing as a soloist in Western’s 2022 Opera Gala. While completing her Masters in Music, also at Western, she expanded her musical horizons further, developing a passion for the art songs of Dutch composers alongside her love of opera, musical theatre, and early music. In recent years she has begun to transfer her onstage experience into work behind the wings. She has spent many years running theatre and dance programs for kids, served as the choreographer for Opera at Western’s 2025 production of The Magic Flute, and as Stage Manager/Assistant Director for an artist-led production of Gisela in her Bathtub and City Workers in Love (2026). She couldn’t be more excited to dive into the world of directing with the premiere of The Innkeeper. Recent opera and theater roles include: Vera Boronel in The Consul, Alyson in Rogers & Hammerstein’s A Grand Night for Singing, and ensemble/Adult Winnie in Tuck Everlasting (NUOVA Vocal Arts); Bavolet in the Canadian premiere of La Jolie Parfumeuse (Halifax Summer Opera Festival); and Nancy in Albert Herring (Opera at Western).
Máiri Demings
Mezzo-soprano
Máiri Demings (she/her) is a Toronto-based mezzo-soprano and arts administrator. She received her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Acadia University in her home province of Nova Scotia. She then went on to complete her Master of Music in Vocal Literature and Performance from Western University. Recently she has appeared in productions with Toronto Operetta Theatre, VOICEBOX: Opera in Concert, Tapestry Opera, Good Mess Opera Theatre, Confluence Concerts and Apocryphonia Concert Series. She is also one half of classical music duo mezzopiano with pianist Zain Solinski. In 2024 their film project, Histories Naturelles: An Animated Adaptation, was a finalist in the Opera America Digital Excellence in Opera Awards.
Janelle Hutten
Mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano Janelle Hutten grew up with the music of Bach and Handel playing in her family’s home and has had a lifelong connection with music. She desires to share it with others and especially enjoys performing oratorio, opera, and chamber music. She is a proud graduate of the master’s program in early music voice performance at McGill University, where she studied with Dominique Labelle. Janelle is the recipient of the Mary McLaughlin Memorial Prize, given yearly to a Schulich student with an interest in Early Music.
In addition to her training as a singer, Janelle holds a master’s degree and an undergraduate degree in piano performance from the University of Western Ontario, where she studied with Leslie Kinton and Stéphan Sylvestre. She has worked as a vocal coach and opera repetiteur and has extensive piano teaching experience.
Complementing her music training, Janelle holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from Lakehead University and has substantial experience working in law enforcement. She is the grateful recipient of a prestigious Canada Graduate Scholarship through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), which funded her project to bring concerts to people with justice involvement. Janelle is passionate about music’s capacity to heal and bring communities together and is dedicated to continuing this work.
Cameron Mazzei
Tenor
Cameron Mazzei is an Italian-Canadian tenor from Toronto, Ontario. He a recent graduate of the University of Toronto’s esteemed Opera School, receiving his Diploma in Operatic Performance, studying under the tutelage of tenor Dr. Darryl Edwards. Cameron holds both a Masters in Music Literature & Performance and Bachelors of Music Performance degree from Western University, studying with Dr. Sophie Roland and Theodore Baerg respectively.
In addition, Cameron has worked with several notable artists across Canada and the United States, including Allan Glassman, Russell Braun, Tracy Dhal, Colin Ainsworth, and Judith Forst. An active performer in the GTA opera scene, some of Cameron’s recent performance highlights include Beppe in I Pagliacci (Toronto City Opera), Ferrando in Così fan tutte (Opera York, UofT Opera), Nemorino in L’elisir d’Amore (North York Concert Orchestra), Le Remendado in Carmen (Chicago Summer Opera), the Narrator in Bach’s Coffee Cantata (Opera by Request), The Magician in The Consul and Lucano/Primi Soldati in L’incoronazione di Poppea, (NUOVA Vocal Arts).
Sarah Storms
Soprano
Sarah Storms is a “remarkable” and “captivating” (Opera Canada) soprano who steals hearts on and off stage. Recent roles include Juliette (The First Wrinkle), La Haine (Armide), Hansel (Hansel and Gretel), The Witch (Into the Woods), and Alice Beane (Titanic). She has graced the concert stage as Ruth in Ron Beckett’s Ruth and as a soloist in Mozart’s Vesperae solennes de confessore and Charpentier’s Messe de minuit pour Noël. This season Sarah joins Arcady Ensemble as a RBC Emerging Artist and Grand River Chorus as a Next Generation Emerging Artist. She has worked with NUMUS Concerts and Open Ears Festival to enliven new music by Canadian composers as well as co-creating an entirely improvised opera in collaboration with Wilfrid Laurier’s Improvisation Convergence Ensemble. Sarah holds a Diploma in Opera from Wilfrid Laurier University and an Honours Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Western University. She is currently living and working in Kitchener-Waterloo as an active performer, teacher, choir director, and social media manager.