Congratulations to two of our own: soprano Xi Wang and mezzo-soprano Audrey Walstrom, both of whom have advanced to the next round in the Metropolitan Opera National Council (MONC) Auditions!
Amongst stiff competition, Wang and Walstrom were singled out by the judges and now move on to the Central Region Finals in Chicago. Also receiving accolades was mezzo-soprano Deborah Nansteel, who was given an encouragement award by the judges.
MONC is a program designed to discover promising young opera singers and assist in the development of their careers. Many of the world’s foremost singers, including Renée Fleming, Susan Graham, Thomas Hampson, Ben Heppner, Jessye Norman, Samuel Ramey, Frederica von Stade, Deborah Voigt and Dolora Zajick have received awards from the National Council. Annually, approximately 100 former auditioners appear in Metropolitan Opera productions.
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