Kathryn Harsha
Artistic Director
Kathryn Harsha holds a Master of Music in Conducting from the Cleveland Institute of Music and a Bachelor of Arts in Piano Performance from Bluffton University. While studying at the Sorbonne in Paris, she served as Assistant Conductor of the Chorale des Étudiants Etrangères and studied conducting at the Conservatoire Messiaen in Saint-Maurice, France.
An active conductor in choral, opera, and orchestral music, Ms. Harsha has worked with ensembles across the country, conducting most recently in Severance Hall and the Kennedy Center, and in France, Italy, Austria, and Germany. Kathryn served for many years as Music Director and Conductor of the Lakeland Civic Orchestra in Cleveland, Ohio, and as the Music Director of Opera per Tutti, now the Cleveland Opera Theater. For more than 20 years, she was the Music Director of the Sing Out! for Cleveland Rape Crisis Center benefit concert, where the Visionary Voice Award was named in her honor in 2018.
Ms. Harsha enjoys working with musicians of all ages, including young people at the Peabody Children’s Chorus and Opus Community Music School, and mature singers at Encore Creativity for Older Adults, where she currently conducts multiple ensembles across the Washington metropolitan area.
Kathryn is honored to serve as the Artistic Director of Pro Coro Alexandria and the Alexandria Choral Society for its 55th season.
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Contact Kathryn: Kathryn@alexandriachoralsociety.org
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Victoria Benson
executive Director
At the beginning of the 2025-2026 season, we are delighted to introduce Victoria Benson as our new Executive Director. Victoria brings a unique and powerful blend of cross-functional private enterprise and arts management experience, poised to elevate the mission and values of the Alexandria Choral Society through musical excellence and robust community engagement. Eager to build on the successful tenure of outgoing Executive Director Megan Yingst, Victoria joins ACS with great admiration for the community the Board has created and looks forward to promoting Artistic Director Kathryn Harsha’s inspiring season.
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Victoria’s career includes hands-on experience as Board Chair, Producer, and Director at Fresh Squeezed Opera Company in New York City. In this capacity, she successfully produced dozens of musical events and significantly increased donor engagement and revenue streams. Her administrative and organizational skills were further honed through her operational leadership at Adams & Company Real Estate, where she managed daily operations for 16 commercial properties and oversaw multi-million-dollar budgets. This proven ability to take initiative in dynamic environments, combined with her strategic leadership, is a significant asset to the future of ACS.
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Beyond her professional roles, Victoria's deep personal commitment to choral music is a driving force. A classically trained musician and opera singer, she has performed masterworks in various cities up and down the East Coast, giving her a firsthand understanding of the choral community. Victoria’s dedication to making the vocal arts inclusive and accessible through her unique combination of operational acumen, fundraising success, and genuine passion for choral arts is poised to advance ACS throughout the season.
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Contact Victoria: Exec@alexandriachoralsociety.org
Justin streletz
Collaborative Pianist
Justin Streletz is excited to be returning to Alexandria Choral Society for the 2025-2026 Season! He is a local collaborative pianist who has worked with many school divisions for concerts and festivals in Northern Virginia. Justin is also a music director, including a pit conductor and vocal director. During the day he is an elementary music teacher in Prince William County, VA.