Shayna Leahy currently serves as the Artistic Administrator for HPAF after spending two summers as the Director of Production. She most recently was the stage director for Wichita Grand Opera’s 2019 production of Carmen, having previously directed productions of Madama Butterfly, Turandot, Otello, Il Trovatore, and Aida for them. She made her directing debut with New York City Opera in September 2018, with a production of Il Barbiere di Siviglia in Bryant Park. Her productions are hailed as being “deeply felt, and deeply moving” with emphasis on “fine acting as well as strong singing” (Wichita Eagle). Her work has been featured on Kansas Public TV and her productions have been viewed on YouTube more than 1.2 million times. She has also served as Assistant Director of Martina Arroyo’s Prelude to Performance Program in New York, was faculty for the Opera Academy of the Midwest, and is currently the Director of Vocal Studies at Highland Community College, where she has led a nationally-recognized opera education initiative in collaboration with Wichita Grand Opera. Her productions at HCC have been Region V finalists in KCACTF, and she received the Region V KCACTF Outstanding Music Director award for her work on Rent. In addition, she has coached and music directed multiple students who have received national KCACTF awards for Distinguished Performance in a Musical.
