Soprano Kate O’Connell is a Cedar Rapids native, currently pursuing Bachelor’s degrees in Vocal Performance and English at the University of Iowa, where she studies with mezzo-soprano Dr. Élise DesChamps. Recent credits include Fiordiligi in the University’s fall 2024 production of Così fan tutte, and Rumer in the Iowa premier of Fierce, written and directed by Iowa professor of jazz, Dr. William Menefield. Other opera and scene credits include Il matrimonio segreto (Elisetta), Don Giovanni (Donna Elvira), Die Zauberflöte (Pamina), Hansel und Gretel (Gretel), Hamlet (Ophélie), and La Traviata (chorus). Ms. O’Connell also frequently performs as a featured soloist; Schubert’s Mass in G and Mozart’s Laudate Dominum have been among her favorite works to perform.