Studio Cabaret

Sam Krausz is quickly gaining notice as a young tenor with “shining security” (Opera Today). Most recently engaged as a young artist at Des Moines Metro Opera and Wolf Trap Opera, Krausz’s professional work includes performing the Fourth Jew in Strauss’s Salome (DMMO), and covering Don Ottavio in Mozart’s Don Giovanni (WTO). Competition credits include a 2023 Regional Encouragement Award at the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition, as well as the 2023 national semi-finals of the Lotte Lenya Competition. After his undergraduate work at CCM, graduate roles at Northwestern University include Tamino (The Magic Flute), Oronte (Alcina), and David (Jake Heggie’s If I Were You).

Originally from St Louis, MO, Krausz aspires to be a champion of acoustic storytelling throughout his career. His most recent young artist credits include the Fourth Jew in Strauss’s Salome with Des Moines Metro Opera, and Apollo in Händel’s Semele at Wolf Trap Opera, where he also covered the role of Don Ottavio in their Filene Center production of Don Giovanni. Krausz made his concert debut singing Mozart’s Requiem in 2022 with the Berkshire Lyric Chorus and Orchestra, and he has also appeared before the Apollo Chorus of Chicago and the Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble. Competition credits include a 2023 Central Region Encouragement Award in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition, participation in the semi-finals of the 2023 Lotte Lenya Competition, and the finals of the National Opera Association Argento Competition. He was trained at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (BM) and Northwestern University (MM), where his graduate roles included Tamino (The Magic Flute), Oronte (Alcina), and David (Jake Heggie’s If I Were You). A pianist from a young age, Krausz has become a sought-after vocal coach for young singers while living in the Cincinnati area, even co-directing one of the nation’s only high school opera scenes programs.

Ava Linvog is a sought-after collaborator known for her sensitive, dynamic playing and for bringing warmth and candor to the rehearsal room. Linvog works as a repetiteur across the country, appearing regularly with Opera Omaha, North Carolina Opera, and the Janiec Opera Company at Brevard Music Center. In 2022, she was an apprentice artist with Sarasota Opera. In her hometown of Seattle, Linvog worked with Lowbrow Opera Collective to premiere the new opera Adulting and performed with Northwest Opera in Schools etc., bringing opera to schools throughout the Puget Sound. The 2024/25 Season will see Linvog join the Marion Roose Pullin Opera Studio at Arizona Opera, in addition to returning to Opera Omaha (Don Giovanni) and North Carolina Opera (Ernani, The Marriage of Figaro).

Currently based in New York City, Linvog is in demand as a vocal coach and recitalist. Recent performances include Awakening, a recital sponsored by City Lyric Opera which featured three world premieres in a program combining art song, chamber works, and spoken poetry to explore the meaning of freedom. Linvog was featured alongside soprano Jazmine Saunders in the young artist showcase of Eastman School of Music at WQXR’s Greene Space in Manhattan, sponsored by the Gerda Lissner Foundation. Glyndebourne America also engaged Linvog at their annual fundraising event, where she performed arias and art songs by Rachmaninoff and Strauss with soprano Alexandra Kzeski.

Linvog completed her graduate studies at the Eastman School of Music, where she studied under Andrew Harley, Timothy Long, and Russell Miller. Throughout her time at Eastman she held an assistantship with Eastman Opera Theatre, playing a diverse range of repertoire including Argento’s Postcard from Morocco, Cavalli’s La Calisto, and Puts’ Elizabeth Cree. Upon graduating, she received the Jean Barr Award for excellence in accompanying. Linvog holds a Bachelor’s degree from Vassar College, where she studied music and mathematics. At Vassar she studied piano under Todd Crow and Thomas Sauer, and assisted Dr. Kathryn Libin in musicological studies at the Lobkowicz Collections.

Madeleine Snow is a director and creative collaborator who is passionate about reimagining ways for contemporary audiences to engage with classical music. She has enjoyed directing site-specific performances and collaborating with composers including Ricky Ian Gordon and Ben Moore. She directed the World Premiere of Joshua Hershfield’s critically acclaimed rock musical Rise and won second place of the 2023 American Prize in Directing for her inventive production of La Calisto with Eastman Opera Theatre. A 2024 Festival Artist at Central City Opera, Snow has recently worked as a director at PAC NYC, Palm Beach Opera, Boulder Opera, Loveland Opera Theatre, Rochester Philharmonic, Boston Youth Symphony, and Harvard College Opera.