Lauren Kelly
Lauren Kelly is an American mezzo-soprano celebrated for her expressive, grounded singing in baroque and contemporary repertoire. This season she performed the title role in Sarah Kirkland Snider's Penelope with the Portland Bach Experience, a landmark 60-minute mezzo song cycle reimagining Homer's Odyssey through the eyes of its women, and made her Carnegie Hall solo debut in Can We Know the Sound of Forgiveness by Gabriela Ortiz. She is thrilled to be a member of Lorelei Ensemble, Variant 6, Roots in the Sky, and the GRAMMY award–winning choir The Crossing. A passionate interpreter of Bach, she was a finalist in this year's National American Oratorio Competition, recently made her solo debut with the Colorado Bach Ensemble, and was the mezzo soloist for Christmas Oratorio and Easter Oratorio with Choral Arts Philadelphia and the St. Matthew Passion with Chicago's Calyx Ensemble. Lauren holds a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Westminster Choir College and a Master of Music in Voice and Opera from Northwestern University. When she's not singing, she's likely hiking with her rescue dog or tracking down her next roller coaster credit as a member of American Coaster Enthusiasts.