OPERA MISSISSIPPI ANNOUNCES VIBRATIONS CONCERT FEATURING NATIONAL COMPETITION FINALISTS

The Finalists for the 10th Annual John Alexander National Vocal Competition that will be performing on February 19, 2023.

2022 Finalist & Soprano Yvette Keong performs with Maestro Jay Dean and The Opera Mississppi Chamber Orchestra on February 13, 2022.

2022 Finalist & Tenor Amaan Atkins sings on February 13, 2022 during last season’s JANVC Winners Concert.

2022 Finalist & Tenor Wayd Odle speaks with St. Andrew’s Episcopal students during a Lunch & Learn Q&A/Outreach session on February 13, 2022.

MS Arts Commission Exe. Director David Lewis emcees the annual winners concert for the John Alexander National on Monday, February 19, 2023.

JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI, UNITED STATES, January 26, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ — Opera Mississippi is proud to announce that eight national finalists for the 10th annual John Alexander National Vocal Competition will perform live in “Vibrations“, part of the Celebrating Connections Series, on Monday, February 19, 2024. The performance will be at 7:00 p.m. at St Andrew’s Episcopal School Center for Performing Arts, located on Highland Colony Parkway directly across from the Starbucks at Renaissance Mall, 990 Highland Colony Parkway, Ridgeland, MS. Join Opera Mississippi to celebrate the brightest, most talented young Operatic and Musical Theatre singers from across the country.

While the eight John Alexander finalists are in the Jackson Metro area, they will also be presenting lunchtime Q & A sessions for young music students at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School and Power APC as part of the opera’s ongoing Outreach Programs. In this free session, the students will be invited to listen and talk with our finalists, learn about their professional singing careers and how they got there.

Chosen from over 300 applicants around the United States, this year’s finalists are Anna Aistova of Sunnyside, New York, Lucy Joy Altus of New York, New York, Jessica Graves of Brookline, Massachusetts, Emilie Kealani of San Francisco, California, Garrett McCord of Athens, Georgia, Quinn Middleman of Chicago, Illinois, Gavin Standish of Vicksburg, Mississippi, and Kaitlyn Tierney of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Singers competed in the following categories: Professional Artist Opera, Professional Artist Musical Theatre, Young Artist Opera, and Young Artist Musical Theatre. The winners for each category will be chosen in a live finalist concert on February 19, 2024, by a panel of national judges including Executive Artistic Director of Marble City Opera and the General Director of Opéra Louisiane, Kathryn Frady; nationally recognized tenor, stage director, educator, and producer, Carroll Freeman; Artistic Director of Red Mountain Theatre in Birmingham Alabama, Roy Lightner; and Artistic Director of New Stage Theatre, Francine Reynolds. All winners receive a designated monetary award.

The concert will be emceed by David Lewis, Executive Director of the Mississippi Arts Commission, and will feature members of the Opera Mississippi Chamber Orchestra conducted by Artistic Director Jay Dean.

The competition is named in memory of famed operatic tenor and Mississippi native, John Alexander, who was born in Meridian, Mississippi, and whose illustrious career took him from Meridian to performing at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where he sang over four hundred performances between 1961 and 1987. This competition and concert are graciously sponsored by the Robert M. Hearin Support Foundation.

This project is sponsored in part by funding from the Mississippi Arts Commission, a state agency, and in part from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. This season is also sponsored in part by a grant from Visit Mississippi.

Admission is $38 each and students are free with I.D. For more information or tickets, visit www.operams.org/vibrations

Opera Mississippi, founded in 1945, is the ninth oldest continuously operating opera company in the United States, and Mississippi’s only professional opera company. Opera Mississippi’s mission is to entertain, educate, and enlighten Mississippi audiences through opera, musical theatre, and popular music experiences; to enhance Mississippi’s cultural and economic landscape by presenting accessible, high-quality performances; to identify and develop regional operatic and singing artists; and to promote the understanding and appreciation of opera through education, outreach, and audience development that reflects community awareness, connection, and culture.

Dr. Nick Perna
Opera Mississippi
+1 601-960-2300
nick@operams.org
Visit us on social media:
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube