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.
Laura Fleming
Alto, cellist
Laura Fleming is an undergraduate student at the University of Guelph where she is majoring in music and minoring in theatre. She was a member of the Guelph Youth Singers for more than 10 years where she was a mentor for several years and also worked at their summer camps. Laura has played cello since the age of four at the Suzuki String School of Guelph, having studied privately with David Evenchick and Andrea Cook. She also studied the trombone for 10 years under the direction of Katie Nichol and Dorothy Vreeswyk-Kidd. She began studying voice privately with Vocal Pedagogue Marion Samuel-Stevens at the age of 7 and continues to study with her at U of G. Laura has competed in the Kiwanis Music Festival of Guelph for many years and has competed in Musical Theatre at the OMFA Provincials four times, earning an honourable mention in 2019 and placing 2nd in 2025. She is currently serving as a Choral Scholar at St. Georges Anglican Church where she has been singing soprano for the past 4 years. Last year she was an Emerging Artist with the Guelph Chamber Choir and continues to sing in the alto section. Laura has been involved in a variety of productions with the ensemble Arcady for as long as she can remember and is thrilled to be chosen as an Emerging Artist this year.
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).
Christopher Pitre-McBride
Baritone
Christopher Pitre-McBride is a Canadian baritone from Eden, Ontario, currently pursuing a Master of Music at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music, where he studies with baritone Brett Polegato and Stephen Hargreaves. He previously earned a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Western University. Originally trained in musical theatre and dance, Christopher’s early artistic experiences included a brief appearance on Broadway, an experience that helped shape his strong sense of movement, storytelling, and theatrical expression.
Christopher has developed a growing operatic repertoire that includes Sam in Leonard Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti, Oroveso in Bellini’s Norma, Tarquinius in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, and Giuseppe in Adam Guettel’s The Light in the Piazza. In 2026, he was named a semifinalist in McGill’s Wirth Vocal Prize and appeared as Marco in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi with Opera 5.
With a particular interest in storytelling and character-driven performance, Christopher brings his background in theatre, dance, and opera together in an approach grounded in musicality, movement, and human connection. He continues to develop as a versatile young artist while building a career in opera and concert performance. He has enjoyed premiering the role of Albert in Benjamin Gabbay’s The Scholars on March 16, 2026 as part of Arcady’s Opera Showcase. Albert is a restless university student who questions the purpose of endless learning, one of four students debating knowledge, education, and human progress during a late-night study session.
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.