Navasard Hakobyan wins Dallas Opera’s National Vocal Competition
Posted on March. 23. 2024
DALLAS (Opera Wire) — The Dallas Opera announced the winners of its National Vocal Competition this week.
Taking home first place was baritone Navasard Hakobyan. The Armenian singer is a second-year artists of Houston Grand Opera’s Butler Studio and won first prize at the 2022 Eleanor McCollum Competition Concert of Arias. He has performed at the Houston Grand Opera in “Madama Butterfly,” “La Traviata,” and “The Marriage of Figaro,” among others.
In second place was bass-baritone Jongwon Hon, who joined Santa Fe Opera as a 2022 Apprentice Artist. He then went to San Francisco Opera to become a part of the Adler Fellowship Program.
There was tie for third featuring sopranos Elisa Sunshine and Katerina Burton. Sunshine is a recent graduate of the Adler Fellow Ship Program and performed at the San Francisco Opera in “Die Frau ohne Schatten.” Burton graduated from the Cafritz Young Artist Program has debuted in “Carmen” at the Washington National Opera.
The Jonathan Pell People’s Choice Award was given to Lisa Marie Rogali. The mezzo has performed with such companies as Detroit Opera, Minnesota Opera, the Glimmerglass Festival, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, North Carolina Opera, and Opera Saratoga, among others.
The finals took place on March 8, 2024.