Placido Domingo, the iconic Spanish tenor and conductor, was the guest of honour at a media conference at Artscape to launch the ‘World Cup’ of opera, the 30th edition of Operalia. The competition began on Monday afternoon.
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Operalia was founded in 1993 and has helped establish the careers of many singers like Yende, Sekgapane and Metropolitan Opera star Sonya Yoncheva.
Each year the competition is hosted in a different city, and this year Cape Town joins the world’s cultural capitals, such as London, Paris, Madrid, Hamburg, Tokyo, and Milan as a host city.
The competition, with total prize money of more than $200 000, presents the perfect platform to promote Cape Town as a tourist and cultural destination. The hosts provide the orchestra, the venue, logistical support and accommodation, catering for the competitors, jurors, and a small administrative team.
The first quarter-final, in which half the 34 contestants will sing arias accompanied by piano, will be adjudicated by a panel of casting directors and opera luminaries from all over the world.
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Domingo and the Operalia team were officially welcomed to the city at a press conference held at Artscape by the executive mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis.
Alvaro Domingo, vice president of Operalia and son of the famous maestro, says that a very important drawcard is that five of the 34 are from South Africa and all studied at Opera UCT in Cape Town.
All five also have links to the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO) and Cape Town Opera (CTO). They are Nombulelo Yende (soprano), Siphokazi Molteno (mezzo soprano), Luvo Maranti (tenor), Thando Mjandana (tenor) and Sakhiwe Mkosana (baritone).
‘In making the decision where to host the 30th anniversary competition, we took into account that South Africa has an international reputation for the quality of its singers such as previous Operalia winners, Pretty Yende and Levy Sekgapane,’ explained Alvaro Domingo.
‘The reputation and quality of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra, the body of work of Cape Town Opera and the versatility of the venue within the Artscape Theatre Centre, as well as the inherent beauty of the city of Cape Town were also taken into account.’
‘When we discussed the details with the CPO’s CEO, Louis Heyneman, we got his buy-in immediately since he sensed how important a distinguished competition, such as Operalia, would be to reinforce the city as an international cultural force.’
Heyneman added that the CPO had jumped at the opportunity to host the world’s foremost opera competition.
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‘We knew we could offer what Operalia needs and in our case, a first-class orchestra, one of the main reasons we were involved in the first place, he said.
‘Several meetings later and a year down the line, the Operalia team is finally here. The last week has been a frenetic round of activity in which all logistics came together – local transport and catering for more than 50 people almost around the clock and, liaising with the media who have been very supportive of this incredible journey which will catapult more singers to international stardom.’
On hearing that Operalia was headed to the city, Geordin Hill-Lewis, executive mayor of Cape Town, was also quick to come on board, saying in September that Cape Town is the perfect destination thanks to its accent on culture and its gorgeous location.
‘We look forward to welcoming the organizers, candidates and international visitors who have already made arrangements to come to Cape Town and thank Rolex and Operalia for their understanding of the fact that we can stage this foremost opera event with panache and efficiency.’
Tickets for the preliminary rounds are available at Computicket.
The final round of the competition will be live-streamed by medici.tv free of charge and the semi-finals on Operalia’s Facebook page.
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Picture: Supplied
