The Operalia final round takes place at the Teatro alla Scala, on Sunday, May 2, 2010. It will consist in live auditions accompanied by full orchestra. The 10 finalists will each choose 1 aria to sing from among the prepared arias and 1 optional Zarzuela aria.
Under the leadership of Plácido Domingo, a panel of distinguished international judges (directors of the world's great opera houses) will select the winners of the Operalia 2010 Competition.
Most important, Plácido Domingo is in a sense a patron not only of the winners but of many of the competitors, whether engaging them for his own companies and projects, or recommending them for other engagements around the world.
THE PRIZES
The prizes are awarded in the following categories:
- Two First Prizes
- Two Second Prizes
- Two Third Prizes
- Two Birgit Nilsson Prizes
- The Pepita Embil Domingo Prize of Zarzuela
- The Don Plácido Domingo Sr. Prize of Zarzuela
- Two Rolex Audience Prizes
- The Culturarte Prize
- Ex æquo prizes.
Zarzuela Prizes:
Plácido Domingo was born in Madrid and he had the luck to have parents who were musicians and theater people. His father Plácido Domingo Sr. and his mother Pepita Embil were stars of the zarzuela, the Spanish form of operetta. In 1949, when he was eight, they created a company of their own in Mexico, and his younger sister and he joined them there. The "Zarzuela Prizes" are in honour of Plácido Domingo's parents.
The Rolex Audience Prizes
Two Rolex Audience Prizes, one for the best Female Singer and one for the best Male Singer, awarded by the audience attending the Final Competition – a watch offered by Rolex.
The members of the jury:
- Jean-Luc Choplin: Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris, France – General Director;
- Marta Domingo: Stage Director;
- Thierry Fouquet : Opéra National de Bordeaux, France – General Director;
- Jonathan Friend : The Metropolitan Opera, New York, USA – Artistic Administrator;
- Jean-Louis Grinda : Opéra de Monte Carlo, Monaco – General Director;
- Ioan Holender : Vienna State Opera, Austria – Director;
- Peter Katona : Royal Opera House, London, United Kingdom – Director of Casting;
- Grégoire Legendre : Opéra de Québéc, Canada – General Director;
- Stéphane Lissner : Teatro alla Scala di Milano, Italy – Intendant and Artistic Director;
- Joan Matabosch : Gran Teatro del Liceu, Barcelona, Spain – Artistic Director;
- Antonio Moral : Teatro Real de Madrid, Spain – Artistic Director;
- Jean-Louis Pichon : Stage Director;
- Andrés Rodriguez : Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Chile – General Director;
- Helga Schmidt : Palau de les Arts, Valencia, Spain – Intendant and Artistic Director;
- Ilias Tzempetonidis : Teatro alla Scala di Milano, Italy – Director of Casting;
- Eva Wagner-Pasquier : Bayreuth Festival, Germany – Co-director.
The Finalists
Opera Finalists
- Dinara Alieva, soprano – Russia;
- Andrei Bondarenko , baritone – Ukraine;
- Sarah-Jane Brandon , soprano – South Africa;
- Rosa Feola , soprano – Italy;
- Margarita Gritskova , mezzo-soprano – Russia;
- Emilia Ivanova , soprano – Bulgaria;
- Giordano Luca , tenor – Italy;
- Chae Jun Lim , bass – South Korea;
- Ryan McKinny , bass-baritone – USA;
- Ievgen Orlov , bass – Ukraine;
- Nathaniel Peake , tenor – USA;
- Stefan Pop , tenor – Romania;
- Sonya Yoncheva , soprano – Bulgaria.
Zarzuela Finalists
- Rosa Feola , soprano – Italy;
- Ryan McKinny , bass-baritone – USA;
- Nathaniel Peake , tenor – USA.
