Jane Barry-Shaw, President and Human Resources Management
president@singingout.com
Jane has been a member of Singing Out since January 2017. Following a successful year heading up the all-important Ministry of Snacks, Jane was elected to the Board and served as Vice-President for the fall 2019 term. She is very honoured to be taking on her latest role as the President of Singing Out in January 2020. Jane is originally from Montreal, and was a member of Choeur Maha from 2011-2016, an auditioned, feminist choir featuring music in a wide variety of languages and musical styles. (Oui, je parle aussi francais!)
Jane loves her career as a registered nurse and earned a Master’s degree in Nursing from McGill University in 2007. She currently spends her non-choir time shaping young minds as an undergraduate nursing instructor at Ryerson University and caring for brand-new families in the postpartum unit at North York General Hospital. Jane also enjoys fitness training, travel, cooking, exploring the arts and restaurant scenes, and on occasion, busting out some breakdance moves from her bygone days as a b-girl.
Cynda Ashton, Vice President and Policy
vicepresident@singingout.com
Eileen Liu, Treasurer
treasurer@singingout.com
Joanna Rowe, Secretary and Venues
secretary@singingout.com
Joanna joined Singing Out in September, 2018, in the alto section. She has a long history of choir membership in various provinces, and is excited to participate in leadership through the Board of Directors. Joanna works in education. She has particular passions in mental health, learning disabilities, and advocacy for LGBTQ students and staff. She plays the flute well and the piano badly.
Michelle Veronesi, Music Advisory and Artistic Co-Chair
music@singingout.com
Michelle has been a member of Singing Out since 2017. Since then, she has performed at the UNISON festival in 2018, five Singing Out Concerts and three cabarets. She became the Alto Section Leader in September 2017, Cabaret Co-Chair in December 2018, and is now the Co-Chair of the Music Advisory Committee. Michelle was a member of the Canadian Children’s Opera Company, attended Etobicoke School of the Arts for their music program, and was the Concert Manager and an active board member for Hart House Chorus. Michelle is thrilled to be a member of the Singing Out board and choir and feels as if the choir is a second home to her. When not in rehearsals for Singing Out, Michelle enjoys reading fantasy novels and trying new restaurants with her partner Alison.
Byron Elzinga, Fundraising
fundraising@singingout.com
Byron joined Singing Out in January 2019, after watching choirs on various talent TV shows. As he watched, he thought back and remembered the enjoyment he experienced as part of his high school choir, so he started to search for local choirs he could join and found Singing Out. Byron fell in love with the passion and dedication he found within the Singing Out community and looks forward to singing in future concerts with Singing Out.
Byron is a huge Come From Away fan, (ask him about it – he never tires of talking about that musical), and can often be found in one of the Mirvish theatres catching a show as part of his season subscription or through organizing a group event with friends, family and coworkers.
Catherine Caza, Membership/Accessibility and Inclusion
membership@singingout.com
Alison Mann, Production
production@singingout.com
Alison has been a member of Singing Out since January 2018. She became Cabaret Co-Chair in December 2018 and is now Chair of Production on the Board of Directors. Alison has been involved in the performing arts all her life, from dance to competitive figure skating. She majored in dance at Rosedale Heights School of the Arts and attended Opera Atelier’s School of Atelier Ballet, where she received instruction from Marshall Pynkoski, Jeannette Lajeunesse Zingg, Vicki St. Pierre, and more. She performed in the SAB’s Making of an Opera program, Dance Through Time, as well as Opera Atelier’s Gala at The Elgin Theatre.
On the academic side, Alison majored in Sexual Diversity Studies at the University of Toronto, St. George Campus, and is thrilled to be able to merge her artistic and academic lives with Singing Out. She has a passion for feminist and LGBT culture and history, and couldn’t be happier to put them to use for the community. When not rehearsing she is a writer, avid home cook, and home fermentation enthusiast. Ask to try a bottle of kombucha or jar of kimchi and sauerkraut and she’ll happily share, but her partner Michelle always gets the first taste.