Meet the Staff

Shelley Quiala is an executive in the performing arts and humanities and a lifelong advocate for arts and culture access and equity. She is excited to join Cantus as the new Executive Director, bringing a deep commitment to community engagement, capacity building, and innovative artistic programming.  Shelley is excited to collaborate with the staff, board, and singers to grow the impact of the organization’s work through expansive programming, increased touring, and deepened philanthropic engagement.

 Previously, Shelley served as Executive Director of the International Festival of Arts & Ideas in New Haven, Connecticut, from August 2020 to October 2024. During her tenure, the Festival presented hundreds of artists and speakers annually, including Wynton Marsalis, Angelique Kidjo, Brooklyn Rider, Amy Tan, and Dolores Huerta. Under her leadership, the Festival launched programming in Spanish, built a full-time staff and board more closely aligned with New Haven’s racial diversity, and increased contributed revenue by 50%. Her work was recognized with honors from the Greater New Haven Chapter of the NAACP, Gateway Community College Foundation, New Haven’s Freddy Fixer Parade Committee, and the Jamaican American Connection.

Prior to her work in Connecticut, Shelley served as Vice President of Programming, Education, and Community Engagement at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where concerts, comedy, dance, and educational programs reached over 150,000 people annually.

 Shelley’s national leadership includes service on the boards of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters (APAP) and previous service with the Theater for Young Audiences (TYA USA), and as a mentor with Dance USA in the Dance Institute for Leadership.

In Connecticut, she served on the boards of the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce and the Connecticut Tourism Coalition, and actively lobbied for public investment in the arts. In 2021 and 2022, she led cultural and humanitarian delegations from Connecticut to Havana, Cuba for the Havana Jazz Festival.

Her recent accolades include a Spotlight Award from the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame (2024). She also recently completed the Women’s Leadership Program at the Yale University School of Management.

Shelley graduated summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, with a double major in Spanish and Performance as a Medium for Social Change. She and her husband Tony reside in Edina, Minnesota, with their children.

Zachary Colby joined Cantus to work in development in May 2022. Zachary sang tenor with Cantus from 2014-2019, with passions in helping to connect Cantus with the community through local partnerships and championing narrative programming. He left the ensemble to pursue a career in academia, teaching voice and related courses at the University of Nebraska Omaha for three years. Desperately missing his Twin Cities community and eager to reengage with Cantus, he is thrilled to have the opportunity to serve in this role. Zachary earned a master’s and doctorate in voice from the University of Minnesota and a bachelor’s in music education from Butler University.

Anne Todey, a native of Iowa, joined Cantus in October of 2019 as the Box Office Coordinator, and in May 2021 became the Concert and Operations Manager. Anne attended Iowa State University and Michigan State University earning her Bachelors and Masters of Music in Vocal Performance. After a brief stint in Florida, she moved to Minneapolis to join the Minnesota Opera Chorus, and has fully embraced Minnesota living. When not creating spreadsheets for Cantus or singing with the opera chorus, Anne enjoys being active outside and collecting hobbies.

Originally from Northeast Wisconsin, Rob first moved to Minnesota in 2012 to pursue dual undergraduate degrees in business and music. After graduating from the University of Minnesota, he briefly moved to Kansas City for grad school before returning to Minnesota to settle down with his husband and three rescue pups. As a classical singer, he has performed with companies such as Minnesota Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Finger Lakes Opera, Lyric Opera of the North, Rochester Symphony, and Aspen Music Festival. When not in the office he runs half marathons, reads approximately 150 books a year, hikes with his dogs, and bakes dairy-free treats.