Molly Symmonds, mezzo-soprano, is from Kansas City, Missouri, and is currently a senior at the University of Missouri studying voice with Christina Ray. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a Bachelor of Science in Business Management. Ms. Symmonds is a member of Mizzou’s University Singers, Show-Me Opera, Mizzou SNATS and Canticum Novum. Most recently, she performed the role of Phoebe in Show-Me Opera’s production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Yeomen of the Guard. She previously covered the role of Polinesso in Show-Me Opera’s production of Handel’s Ariodante, and performed in the chorus of their productions of Ariodante and Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Under Show-Me Opera’s opera scenes programs, Ms. Symmonds has prepared select songs from the roles of Cenerentola from Rossini’s La Cenerentola and Dorabella and Despina from Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte. In May 2025, Molly traveled to Italy with University Singers for a performance tour through Rome, Venice, and Assisi. Coming up, she will be performing as Hansel in Humperdinck’s Hansel & Gretel with Show-Me Opera. She is looking forward to being involved with Landlocked as Amahl!

Memphis Eckert is a senior at Jefferson City High School and is thrilled to make her operatic debut. A passionate performer, she has appeared in numerous stage productions, with recent roles including Cherry in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Karen in Mean Girls, Audrey in Descendants, and Ermengarde in Hello, Dolly!. This fall, Memphis will continue pursuing her love of music and performance at Central Methodist University, where she plans to major in vocal performance.

Kennedy Kinnick, mezzo-soprano, is from Raymore, Missouri USA. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance at the University of Missouri (2026). Kennedy is studying voice with Christina Ray. Throughout her academic career, Kennedy has performed in various National Association of Teachers of Singing competitions and has placed in both classical and musical theatre categories. 

In the 2022-2023 season, Kennedy made her operatic debut as Hippolyta in Mizzou Opera's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream by Benjamin Britten. The following summer, Kennedy appeared as Cornelia in Opera Semes production of Handels Giulio Cesare in Arezzo, Italy. 

In the 2023-2024 season, Kennedy made a company debut as a Flower Girl and studied the role of Cherubino in Landlocked Opera's production of Mozarts Le Nozze di Figaro. In the spring 2024, Kennedy performed the role of Polinesso in Mizzou Opera's production of Handel's Ariodante. 

In the 2024-2025 season, Kennedy performed in Landlocked Opera's production of L’elisir d’amore by Donizetti. In March 2025, Kennedy performed in Mizzou's Opera's production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Yeomen of The Guard as Dame Carruthers. In July 2025, she made a role and company debut as Cherubino in The Lyric Opera Studios production of Mozarts Le nozze di Figaro in Weimar, Germany. 

In the upcoming 2025–2026 season, Kennedy performed as a soloist with the Mizzou Symphonic Orchestra, as a winner of the university’s Soloist Competition. In December, she will sing The Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors by Menotti with Landlocked Opera. In spring 2026, she will perform as Hansel in Mizzou Show-Me Operas production of Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel

Christina Bonsall is a versatile soprano who has performed on opera, musical theatre, and concert stages throughout the United States. Her recent notable roles include Mrs. Teevee in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the Dowager Empress in Anastasia, and the Mother Abbess in The Sound of Music. Her operatic credits feature leading roles such as La Contessa Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro, Hanna Glawari in The Merry Widow, and Blanche de la Force in Dialogues of the Carmelites. Christina holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Missouri–Columbia, a Performer’s Diploma in Opera from Indiana University, and a Master of Science in Education from Northwest Missouri State University. She currently teaches elementary music, maintains a private voice studio, and serves as Executive Director of a thriving children’s theatre program.

2025 Landlocked Young Artist

Aidan Gildehaus (he/him), tenor, is from St. Louis, Missouri. He is currently an undergraduate at the University of Missouri, where he studies Vocal Performance under Dr. Alexandra Schoney.  Previous credits include Dame Carruthers (The Yeomen of the Guard, Show-Me Opera), The Baker (Into the Woods, FHS), Sheriff Schmid/Preacher u/s (Bonnie and Clyde, GCPA),and as a chorus member in Landlocked Opera’s production of Donizetti’s L'elisir d'amore. He has previously served as the Assistant Music Director of GCPA’s production of Alice By Heart, and as the Stage Manager of Show-Me Opera’s Fall 2024 Scenes Production, and as the stage manager of the 2025 Spring Staged Arias Program at MU. Aidan will next be seen as The Witch in Show-Me Opera’s production of Hansel und Gretel. Aidan is a member of University Singers, MU’s premier choral ensemble, conducted by Dr. Brandon Boyd. Additionally, he is the President of the Zeta chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. Aidan serves as Tenor Section Leader at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Columbia, MO.

Sam Romine, baritone, is a recent graduate of University of Missouri from Dallas, Texas. He is a life-long performer, having performed in the children’s chorus for the Dallas Opera’s production of “Carmen” and more recently the role of Wilfred Shadbolt in Show-Me Opera’s “Yeomen of the Guard.” Sam is excited to play the role of Melchior in his debut with Landlocked Opera.

Local professional opera singer

2025 Landlocked Opera Young Artist

Artistic Director, Landlocked Opera

Stefan Freund received a BM with High Distinction from the Indiana University School of Music and an MM and DMA from Eastman School of Music. His primary composition teachers included Pulitzer Prize winners Christopher Rouse and Joseph Schwantner, as well as Augusta Read Thomas, Frederick Fox, Claude Baker, David Dzubay, and Don Freund, his father. He studied cello with Steven Doane, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, and Peter Spurbeck, among others. He is presently Associate Professor of Composition and Music Theory at the University of Missouri. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Composition at Eastman School of Music.

Freund is the recipient of two William Schuman Prizes and the Boudleaux Bryant Prize from BMI, five ASCAP Morton Gould Grants, ten ASCAP Plus Awards, a Music Merit Award from the National Society of Arts and Letters, and the Howard Hanson Prize. He was selected as the 2004 Music Teachers National Association-Shepherd Distinguished Composer of the Year. In 2006 he was awarded the MU Provost’s Outstanding Junior Faculty Research and Creative Activity Award. Freund has received commissions from the New Spectrum Foundation, Carnegie Hall Corporation, Phoenix Symphony, New York Youth Symphony, Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, Verdehr Trio, Seattle Town Hall, Louisville String Quartet, and SCI/ASCAP. His music has been performed at such venues as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, Weill Recital Hall, NPR's St. Paul Sunday Morning, the National Gallery of Art, Aspen Music Festival, and the Art Institute of Chicago. International performances include the Berliner Philharmonie, International Performing Arts Center (Moscow), Glinka Hall (St. Petersburg), Queen's Hall (DK), the Bank of Ireland Arts Centre, and other concert halls in Europe. His works have been recorded on the Innova, Crystal, and Centaur labels.

Active as a performer and producer of new music, Freund is the founding cellist of the new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound. His cello performances include Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Merkin Hall, Hermitage Theatre (RU), the Muzikgebouw (ND), and the World Financial Center. He has recorded on the Nonesuch, Cantaloupe, and I Virtuosi labels, as well as Sweetspot Music DVD. In addition, Freund is the director of Mizzou’s Creating Original Music Project and co-directs the Mizzou New Music Initiative. Since 2003 Freund has directed the Columbia Civic Orchestra.

2025 Collaborative Pianist Young Artist