Slate of Nominees

Jennifer Conrad-Proulx, President

A native of Milwaukee, Jennifer Conrad-Proulx opened her studio in 2001 and has since served on the voice faculty at the Community Music School in Buffalo, NY and the All Newton Music School in Newton, MA before returning to Milwaukee in 2013 to open an independent studio.
Her students have been seen singing backup on tour with folk legend Joan Baez and opening for artists such as The Indigo Girls and Rusted Root. Studio alumni have been seen Off-Broadway and touring in National Broadway Tours in addition to many local performance organizations such as First Stage Theater (Milwaukee, WI), Milwaukee Children's Choir (Milwaukee, WI), Boston Children's Theater (Boston, MA) and Boston Children's Chorus (Boston, MA).
A member of NATS since 2007, Jennifer was one of fourteen national award winners of the 2016 Joan Frey Boytim Award for Independent Teachers.

Performing credits include Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro, Annina in Der Rosenkavalier and the North American Premiere of Oedipe as Merope with Sinfonia da Camera. In recital, Jennifer remains a champion of contemporary song and women composers. She has premiered works of local and regional composers throughout her career. A winner of the Wisconsin Public Radio’s Neale-Silva Competition, she appeared on Wisconsin Public Radio’s Live from the Elvejem in recital. Jennifer may be heard on Albany Records recording of George Enescu 's opera Oedipe.

Jennifer holds a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana and BFA from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, with additional studies at La Musica Lirica and La Scuola Italia in Italy.  
 

Cayla Rosché,
​Vice President

Dr. Cayla Rosché recently completed her tenure as a Fulbright Scholar in Reykjavík teaching phonetics and continuing her research on Icelandic art song at Listaháskoli/Iceland University of the Arts, culminating in a full recital of this repertory. She is a former American-Scandinavian Foundation recipient and has presented her research at the Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies conference, the Sam Houston Art Song Festival, and the Arctic Circle Conference. Dr. Rosché holds a DMA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Voice Performance and Vocal Pedagogy where her doctoral project, supported by the Foreign Language Area Studies grant, included one of the first guides to Icelandic Singing Diction. She additionally was recently selected as a member of the highly competitive National Association of Teachers of Singing Intern Program. She has had success teaching contemporary to classical voice in both a private and collegiate studio and enjoys teaching a wide range of styles. Her journal article Icelandic Art Song Lyric Diction and Repertoire: A Comprehensive Guide for Teachers and Singers is forthcoming in the Journal of Singing November/December 2025 volume 82. Currently she is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Music teaching voice at Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton, WI.  

J. Adam Shelton, 
​Treasurer

An opera singer by trade and a country singer by heart, J. Adam Shelton is at home in multiple genres with career highlights that include operatic roles, musicals, drag, tuxedos, and cowboy boots.  A graduate from UW- Madison, this DMA in vocal performance has a killer sweet tea recipe and unique perspective on queer voices in country music.  Reviewers and fans alike note his “fine tenor flamboyance” and how he is "effortlessly hilarious… like Harvey Feirstein with pitch.”  As a pedagogue, he teaches at the collegiate level (Edgewood University) and maintains the Shelton Private Voice Studio in Madison, WI.  Upcoming:  Little Women (2025; MD; UW Theatre), Spitfire Grill (2026; MD; Edgewood University), Horse Thieves and Carny Folk (2026; EP). FB:  @SPVSLLC  IG:  sheltonprivatevoice

Jennifer Casten,
Corresponding Secretary

Jennifer Kasten is a vocal performer and teacher who is passionate about helping her students grow in both confidence and ability through science-based teaching.
She earned her BA in Music - Voice Performance from DePauw University in 1990. Over the next 15 years, she focused on her performing career with regional companies including: Chicago Opera Theater, Columbus Light Opera, Dayton Opera, Milwaukee Opera Theater, Circa 21 Dinner Theater, Bowen Park Opera, in such roles as: Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi, Casilda in The Gondoliers, Monica in The Medium, Anne in A Little Night Music, Christine in Phantom, Gretel in Hansel & Gretel, Marion in The Music Man.
From 1996-1999 Jennifer joined the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Chorus as a Professional Soprano. She has performed as a soloist with such groups as Dayton Philharmonic, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Lake Forest Symphony, Antioch Festival of the Arts, Lakeshore Big Band and Wind Ensemble and Manitowoc Symphony Orchestra.
Aside from her performing career, Jennifer has operated a private voice studio since 1991. She also taught as a vocal instructor at the College of Lake County from 1996-1999 and at UW Manitowoc from 2007- 2010. Jennifer has been a NATS member in the Central District and is now with the North Central District. She has continued her training as a singer and teacher through Estill Voice training, private voice study, various online workshops, and Tom Burke Studios. Jennifer has a passion for science informed teaching.
While in the Chicago area, she worked with CYT, (Christian Youth Theatre) as an instructor and music director. When Jennifer moved to Two Rivers in 2004, she music directed with Dare to Dream Theater and was involved in the startup of Treehouse Theater as the Artistic Director. She also directed the Manitowoc Symphony Community Chorus for two years, working alongside Maestro Wayne Wildman.

Megan Besley, 
Recording Secretary

Kenneth J. Pereira, 
​Member at Large

Dr. Megan Besley, Madison-based soprano, has been a voice teacher for more than 20 years, working both privately and at the collegiate level. She has taught at institutions including New York University, the University of Michigan, Roosevelt University, City Colleges of Chicago, and Montclair State University. She is currently focused on developing the voices and artistry of Madison-area high school singers in both classical and musical theatre styles.
As a performer, Dr. Besley’s career has spanned opera, art song, pops concerts, and jazz. She has appeared with opera companies such as Glimmerglass Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Opera Omaha, and the Aix-en-Provence Festival in France. She has also been featured as a soloist with the Rockford Symphony, Miami Symphony, Palm Beach Symphony, Omaha Symphony, Chorus of Westerly, and Waterbury Symphony.
An accomplished recitalist, she has presented art song programs with the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago, Glimmerglass Opera’s Recital Series, Florida Grand Opera’s Recital Series, the Freeport Community Concert Series, and the Palm Beach Symphony.
Dr. Besley’s passion for performance, her dedication to helping students discover their own creative voices, and her lifelong commitment to learning have inspired her active participation in NATS events. She is honored to be nominated for the Wisconsin NATS Board.

​Kenneth J. Pereira, baritone, enjoys an active career on the operatic, concert, and recital stages. His operatic roles include Puccini's Marcello in La Bohème, Sharpless in Madama Butterfly, the title role in Gianni Schicchi, and Mozart's Il Conte Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro and Guglielmo in Così fan tutte among others. Internationally, he has appeared as the baritone soloist in numerous opera gala performances in both Italy and Mexico in works by Verdi, Puccini, and Donizetti. Recently, he has performed with the Chippewa Valley Symphony Orchestra in works by Beethoven and Mahler. Dr. Pereira also has been a soloist with the Eau Claire Chamber in works by Bach, Handel, and Mozart. Prior to his arrival in the Chippewa Valley, Dr. Pereira appeared regularly as a soloist with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Raymond Leppard in works by Beethoven and Haydn. He is also a featured soloist on the orchestra's 2008 recording of classical and traditional Christmas music.
Born and raised in northern California, Dr. Pereira graduated Magna cum Laude from California State University, Stanislaus. He holds a Doctor of Music in Voice Performance and Literature from Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, where he also completed a Master of Music Degree in Voice. Dr. Pereira is a Professor of Music at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire, where he teaches applied voice, diction opera and musical theatre workshop, and directs main stage opera and musical theatre productions.