Lyric Opera’s Apprentice Artist Program offers Kansas City-area graduate voice students valuable training in the opera industry. Students selected from partner universities gain performance experience through chorus work, comprimario and principal roles in mainstage productions, and involvement with education and community engagement initiatives. Many Lyric Opera Apprentice Artist alumni maintain professional careers in the industry.
To be considered for Lyric Opera’s Apprentice Artist Program, contact the voice department chairperson at your respective institution.
PArtner Universities
2024–2025 Apprentice ArtistS
Payton Boldt, Soprano (University of Missouri – Kansas City)
Soprano Payton Boldt holds a Master of Music from the University of Missouri–Kansas City, where she will begin studies for her Doctor of Musical Arts in Voice. Boldt has performed extensively in the United States and Italy, with roles including Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Pamina and Erste Dame in Die Zauberflöte, Adele in Die Fledermaus, and Adina in L’elisir d’amore.
In summer 2025, she will perform the roles of Cinderella in Into the Woods with Opera in the Ozarks and Laurette in Dr. Miracle with Lawrence Opera Theatre.
Madeline Friesen, Mezzo-Soprano (University of Missouri – Kansas City)
Mezzo-soprano Madeline Friesen will begin her second year as the Apprentice Artist Mezzo-Soprano at Lyric Opera of Kansas City during the 2025–2026 season. During the 2024–2025 season, she performed as the Clear String in The Haberdasher Prince and appeared in the ensemble of Turandot. Other recent roles include Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro and Le Prince Charmant in Massenet’s Cendrillon.
A native of Olathe, Kansas, Friesen earned her Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from the University of North Texas and is currently pursuing her Master of Music at the University of Missouri–Kansas City Conservatory, where she studies with Dr. Aidan Soder.
In summer 2025, she will perform the roles of the Baker’s Wife in Into the Woods and Olga in The Merry Widow with Opera in the Ozarks.
Samuel Enriquez, Baritone (University of Missouri – Kansas City)
Samuel Enriquez is a baritone from Houston, TX, who recently completed his Master of Music in Voice at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory. He recently performed roles such as Father in Hänsel und Gretel, Senator Potter in Fellow Travelers, Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Belcore in L’elisir d’amore, and Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro.
In summer 2025, he looks forward to returning to Charlottesville Opera, where he will sing the role of Morales in Bizet’s Carmen.
