Wexford is going to the Oscars - of the opera world; which is still very damn cool news in our book. Even cooler, Wexford Festival Opera has received not one, or two or even three but FOUR nominations in the 2nd Annual International Opera Awards. They were the only company to receive that many nods except for, oh, only the New York Met.
The festival has been shortlisted in the Best Festival category (for the second year running), Best Chorus and Best Re-Discovered Work - for Cristina, regina de Svezia. Soprano Helena Dix, who hails from Oz, has been nominated for Best Young Singer for her performance as Cristina.
The nominations for the International Opera Awards were announced at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Upon hearing the news, Wexford Festival Opera chairman Ger Lawlor said, '2013 was a vintage year at Wexford and these nominations confirm that. We are delighted that the International reputation of the festival under the stewardship of David Agler, our Artistic Director, continues to flourish and has been recognised by these prestigious awards.'
Whenever anyone speaks about opera in Ireland, the word Wexford will more than likely be in the same sentence. It's fantastic news for the Festival, Wexford and for Ireland and we wish them the best of luck at the awards.
The winners will be announced on Monday, April 7th in London.
