Leadership
Lakeside Pride leadership is divided up into two segments: Strategy and Artistry. Overall organizational strategical leadership is coordinated by the Board of Directors. Overall organizational artistic leadership is coordinated by the Artistic Directors. Each Artistic Director not only oversees their primary ensemble (Jazz Orchestra, Marching Band, Pops Ensemble, or Symphonic Band), but also each chamber ensemble that falls under their purview, each of which is outlined below.
Board of Directors
The Lakeside Pride Music Ensembles Board of Directors functions as the governing body of the organization.
These dedicated volunteer leaders help ensure the LGBTQ community continues to connect with audiences everywhere through music.
Brandon Strawn
(He/Him)
Board Chair
Aimee Faller
(She/her)
Vice Chair
TG Warford
(He/him)
Treasurer
Greer Anderson
(they/them)
Secretary
Emily dodd
(she/they)
Member Resources
Kaitlyn Nelson
(she/they)
Public Relations
adrienne price
(She/hER)
Operations
jordan franciso
(he/him)
Marketing
logan henderson
(he/they)
Development
francesca cardillo (she/her)
Member-at-Large
Michael ConnOrs (He/Him)
Member-at-Large
henry hamilton-clement (he/him)
Member-at-Large
elle jenceleski (sHe/her)
Member-at-Large
Tyler william johnson (he/him)
Member-at-Large
emmett o'brien (he/him)
Member-at-Large
Artistic Directors
The individual artistic directors help our ensemble members express themselves through music as members and friends of the LGBTQ+ community.
Jazz Orchestra
Scott Malinowski (He/Him) holds a Bachelor of Music from Millikin University with an emphasis in Commercial Music. He studied trumpet and jazz performance with Randall Reyman, Ronald Romm, Mark Hammelev, and Chip McNeil, as well as music composition and recording production with David Burdick and Mark Rubel. Scott is grateful for the opportunity to lead and perform with the jazz orchestra and chamber ensembles, sharing the vibrancy of the LGBTQ and allied community through music.
Artistic Director since Spring 2013.
Danny Kent (he/they) holds a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Eastern Illinois University and Master's Degree in Music Education from VanderCook College of Music in Chicago. While at Eastern, they played clarinet in the Wind Symphony, Symphony Orchestra, and Woodwind Quintet and alto saxophone in the Jazz Lab Band, University Band, and Panther Marching & Basketball Band. Danny has studied clarinet with Dr. Maggie Beck (Smith) and alto saxophone with Dr. Sam Fagaly and Mai Sugimoto. Danny has also studied flute with Mary Christine Stingley at VanderCook and Bassoon with Dianne Ryan at Elmhurst College. Conducting mentors are Dr. Milton Allen, Barry Houser, and Dr. Stacey Larson Dolan.
Latin Band
Kent Barnhart (He/Him)
Co-Artistic Director since Spring 2022.
Maxwell Dykla (He/Him) graduated from VanderCook College of Music with a Bachelors of Music Education degree in 2014. He teaches PreK-8th Grade Music in Chicago Public Schools and has served as an accompanist and Music Director for various churches, school groups, and theater organizations in the Chicagoland area. He also performs and serves as President and Assistant Director for the Chicago Bronze Handbell Choir.
With Lakeside Pride Music Ensembles, he accompanies monthly shows for the Wilde Cabaret alongside serving as Music Director for both the Latin Band and Saborcito ensembles.
Co-Artistic Director since Spring 2022.
Eliana Riley (She/Her) is a proud Latina musician and educator who holds a Bachelor of Music in Opera Performance from Michigan State University, a Master of Music in Opera Pedagogy/Performance from Oakland University, and a Master of Higher Education from Grand Valley State University. She performed at the Detroit Opera House, sang with the Warren Symphony and Verdi Opera Theatre, and served as a staff chorister in Michigan.
In addition to teaching piano, voice, saxophone, and violin at the Rochester Music Conservatory, she performed as an alto and baritone saxophonist with the Oakland University Jazz Orchestra. Though classically trained in opera, Eliana has always loved jazz and Latin music. After moving to Chicago in 2016, she shifted her focus from vocal performance to saxophone, fully embracing her passion for jazz and Latin genres.
It was always a dream of hers to play and lead a Latin Band. She loves sharing the Latin culture and music throughout Chicago. Through performance and leadership, she strives to honor the richness of Latin traditions while inspiring audiences and musicians.
Co-Artistic Director since Spring 2022.
Marching Band
Stephen Carey (He/Him) is a native of Northwest Pennsylvania and holds a degree in Hospitality Management from Mercyhurst University in Erie, PA. His music influence comes from Elementary, Middle, and High School Music Educators in the Wattsburg Area School District.
As a percussionist and section leader, Stephen performs regularly with the Lakeside Pride Symphonic Band, and has performed with the Blazing River Freedom Band, Lesbian and Gay Band Association, Cleveland State University Symphonic Band, Western Reserve Community Band, Erie Playhouse, and several high school orchestras in Northwest Pennsylvania. He has also had the opportunity to conduct the Erie Playhouse Orchestra for Fame! the Musical and A Night of Glee.
In addition to music, Stephen has non-profit experience with the Blazing River Arts Group, Inc. as a Member At-Large on the Board of Directors working on recruiting, fundraising, event planning, and communication. Professionally, he is a Revenue Optimization Manager for White Lodging Services in the hospitality industry.
Artistic Director since Spring 2017.
Travis Cuckler (He/Him) has been the Assistant Artistic Director since 2014. Travis is originally from Southern Ohio and moved to the Chicago area in 2008 to attend The VanderCook College of Music where he received his Bachelor's of Music Education. Travis has been the Director of Instrumental and Choral Music at Gallistel Language Academy on Chicago's Southeast Side since 2013 where he instructs the Band, Choral, Orchestral, General Music and Guitar programs and is currently enriching over 600 student's lives with a fully rounded music education. Travis has been the director of the Chicago Public School’s premier All-City Program’s Symphonic Band I, bringing together students from across the city into one ensemble.
Travis joined Lakeside Pride Music Ensembles Symphonic Band in 2012 and since has been a guest conductor for the Band on four occasions. He is an original member of the Brass Buttons Brass Quintet since 2014. Travis also serves as principal trumpet for the University of Chicago’s Wind Ensemble since 2021.
Assistant Artistic Director since Summer 2014.
Pops Ensemble
Manic Maxxie (She/Her) is the drag persona of classical musician Cleo Goldberg. Cleo (they/them/theirs) is regularly involved as a music educator, conductor and percussionist. They teach K-8 music at Alexander Graham Bell School and are also the founder and director of the Millennial Chamber Players. As a percussionist, they have performed at festivals and competitions across the United States as well as in the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Russia. They have studied conducting at the New York Conducting Workshop, the International Conducting Workshop & Festival (Lviv, Ukraine), the Pierre Monteux School, and the Juilliard Evening Division. They are also a published arranger through Keiser Southern Music. Cleo received their Bachelor of Music degree in percussion performance from Manhattan School of Music and their Master of Music Education and Certification degree from VanderCook College of Music.
Manic Maxxie was born in November 2019 and has been the Artistic Director of the Lakeside Pride Pops Ensemble since the spring of 2021. Her drag allows her to celebrate black artists and let out a type of energy that she rarely shows in her day-to-day life. Maxxie is Cleo in their boldest, wackiest, and most feminine form.
Artistic Director since Spring 2021.
Inga Augustaitis (She/He) has been the Assistant Artistic Director of the Lakeside Pride Pops Ensemble since November 2021. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
As a music educator, Inga enjoys working as a private horn instructor, a competitive marching band instructor, and an ISYM (Illinois Summer Youth Music) Hip Hop Camp instructor-volunteer.
Inga is the general music teacher at Grove Junior High School and loves teaching all students that anyone can be a musician, even if they did not previously consider themselves musicians. He sponsors the school's Music Club and SAGA (the Sexuality and Gender Alliance), which provides a safe space and a voice for the LGBTQ+ students of the school.
Assistant Artistic Director since Fall 2021.
Resonate
Alex Bravos (She/They) is a conductor, educator, and producer committed to fostering inclusive and affirming vocal spaces. A full-time Conductor with Uniting Voices Chicago, formerly Chicago Children’s Choir, she directs the Albany Park Neighborhood Choir and multiple school choirs throughout the city. The choir’s youthful makeup reflects Chicago’s multicultural, immigrant, and religious identities. Through their work, Alex builds musical bridges that celebrate heritage, likeness, and community.
With a Bachelor's in Vocal Music Education from Millikin University School of Music, Alex is an active performer and recording artist, frequenting world-class stages including the Chicago Symphony Center, Carnegie Hall, and Pritzker Pavilion. They have also performed in revolutionary spaces such as Santiago, Chile, and Prague, Czech Republic.
A producer and vocal arranger, her work can be found on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music under her surname. Alex is also a co-founder of The BravoStudio, a creative and educational hub for music production, collaboration, and artistry, which they operate with their three musically-minded siblings.
As a trans conductor, Alex is a vocal advocate for equity and representation in the choral landscape, championing the intersection of queerness and vocal music. Their work engages both historical and contemporary perspectives, reimagining the possibilities of voice and humanity. With expertise in jazz, a cappella, Byzantine chant, and cross-cultural musical traditions, she brings a dynamic and holistic approach to music-making.
Artistic Director Since Fall 2025
Alexis Enyart (She/Her) has been called “one of Chicago’s greatest operatic gifts” (Chicago Theatre Review) and “a podium talent to watch”(Chicago Classical Review). She is the Founding artistic director for Chicago City Opera and has performed with The Atlanta Opera, Australian Contemporary Opera Company, Opera Santa Barbara, and many others around the country and globe. She has served as a Chicago Sinfonietta Fellow and as a “Turn the Spotlight” fellow with Chicago Opera Theatre music director, Lidiya Yankovskaya. In 2017, Alexandra won the CODA conducting competition, and in 2018, she won CCM’s Mozart Overture Conducting Competition. Alexandra served as a panelist at the Opera America conference in 2021 and served on the Artistic Advisory Council for American Opera Projects from 2021 to 2024.
Career highlights for Alexandra include the L.A. premiere of Rusalka in 2024 and the Australian premiere of As One in 2020. Alexandra is as comfortable on the podium as she is in the pit, having made her international debut in 2016 in Tomsk, Russia, with the Tomsk Philharmonic Orchestra. Alexandra's training has included apprenticeships and assistantships with Kentucky Opera, the Louisville Orchestra, and the Louisville Youth Orchestra.
Artistic Director Since Fall 2025
Symphonic Band
Kyle Rhoades (He/Him) has been the Artistic Director of the Lakeside Pride Symphonic Band since 2008. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Master’s Degree in Music Education from VanderCook College of Music. His conducting influences and teachers include Professors Craig Kirchhoff, Mallory Thompson, Peter Griffin, H. Robert Reynolds, Charlie Menghini, and Joseph Manfredo.
As a trumpet player, Kyle performs regularly with the Northshore Concert Band, and has performed with the Wheaton Municipal Band, the Prairie Brass Band, and Mariachi Fenix of the University of Chicago. He is a high school band director, general music teacher, and musical producer in School District 401.
As a music arranger and chamber musician, Kyle has prepared more than sixty pieces for brass quintet. In addition to the concert and marching band arrangements he’s created for his own students, Kyle has been commissioned to arrange works for the West Towns Barbershop Chorus, Downers Grove North Bands, and the Chancel Ringers Handbell Choir.
Artistic Director since Fall 2008.
Jackie Fischer (She/Her) has been Assistant Artistic Director of the Lakeside Pride Symphonic Band since 2021. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from Northern Illinois University and a Master’s Degree in Teacher Leadership from Concordia University Chicago. Her musical influences and teachers include Maria Pahati, Michael McManis, Ronnie Wooten, Colin Holman, Greg Barrett, and her junior high and high school band teachers.
Prior to her work in edtech and current role at the Modern Classrooms Project, Jackie taught middle school and beginning band for twelve years in LaSalle, Westmont, and Naperville, Illinois. Jackie performs regularly as a clarinetist with the Naperville Winds and the Lakeside Pride Symphonic Band, where she also served as clarinet section leader from 2018 to 2021. She has previously performed with the Illinois Valley Community College Wind Ensemble, DeKalb Municipal Band, and Wheaton Municipal Band.
Assistant Artistic Director since Fall 2021.