OPEN CALL FOR THE FOURTH EDITION
The Fundació Castell de Peralada has announced the call for applications of the fourth edition of the Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award, Opera and Dance, with the aim of promoting young artists. The fourth edition of the award is aimed at the OPERA category, specifically the ARTISTIC-EDUCATIONAL PROJECT.
Participants are asked to present a multidisciplinary educational project, suitable for different venues, auditoriums or unique spaces, with a clear focus: THE OPERA IS FOR YOU aimed at teenagers.
This award and its resulting new creation aim to bring the opera genre closer to young people, thereby fostering new audiences for opera and the performing arts as a contemporary creation that connects with younger generations. With the aim of engaging and drawing young audiences from increasingly diverse and complex age groups to theatre, music, dance, and the world of opera through the use of new languages.
The award, established in 2019 with the goal of supporting the creation of emerging artists in the fields of dance and opera, also aims to perpetuate the memory and legacy of Carmen Mateu, patron and alma mater of the Peralada Festival.
The Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award is a unique multidisciplinary award that is given annually, alternating between the two main categories of the Festival, which are dance and opera. The submission of applications for the fourth call begins today, 28th April, and remains open until 10th July 2025. The winner of the new edition will be announced this December.
In the first edition, dedicated to dance, in the category of classical or neoclassical dancer, the award went to the ballerina Maria Khoreva, first soloist of the Mariinsky Theatre Ballet in Saint Petersburg; in the second edition, dedicated to opera in the category of composition, the accolade was received by Helena Cànovas; and the third edition awarded the British choreographer, Botis Seva.
Open call for young artists of European nationality or who have developed their career in one of the member countries of the Council of Europe on the date of submission of the application.
The fourth edition of the Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award opens today the application process for candidates of up to 35 years of age on the date of submission of their application, and applications can be submitted individually or in groups. All members must be up to 35 years old and have European nationality or reside in Europe, understanding Europe as the member states of the Council of Europe at the time of submitting the application.
In the first phase, which will end on 10 July, a dossier will be submitted outlining the idea for an educational project of a newly created opera for teenagers, featuring a diverse creative team (composer, set designer, lighting designer, choreographer, librettist, etc.). A multidisciplinary project for unique spaces with a clear focus: THE OPERA IS FOR YOU. Based on the submitted applications, a committee of experts consisting of Monica Fracassetti, head of the education department at La Fenice Theatre; the actress and soprano Ruth González; the baritone, artistic director and cultural manager Enric Martínez-Castignani; and the head of the Community and Outreach department of the Vienna Opera and vice-president of RESEO, Krysztina Winkel, will select 12 applications.
If one of the 12 projects is selected by the committee of experts, the second phase will involve submitting part of the libretto, a sketch of the stage design, and between 3 and 5 minutes of music. The music may or may not be original. The 12 selected projects, to be announced at the end of September, will progress to a second phase, where they will need to submit part of the libretto, a sketch of the stage design, and between 3 and 5 minutes of music. The second phase will end on 15 September 2025 at 11:59 p.m. (GMT).
At this point, the jury will include the participation of Richard Brunel, artistic and general director of the Opéra de Lyon; Vania Cauzillo, president of RESEO and stage director, documentarian and researcher-doctor-artist in the field of community opera; and Barbara Minghetti, programming director of the Teatro Sociale in Como, curator of the Verdi Off Festival and also curator director of operatic education at the Teatro Sociale in Como. The jury, which will decide the winner this December, will be completed by the stage director Rafael R. Villalobos.
The winner will receive €40,000 as a commission for a newly created educational opera project aimed at teenagers and an award created by the artist Santi Moix and crafted by the prestigious creative jewellery company Bagués Masriera.
This work will be presented in the 2026 edition of the Peralada Festival or in subsequent programmes, with the possibility of the show touring various locations across the country.
The financial endowment of the prize will be distributed as follows: 50% of the prize (€20,000) will be given directly to the creative team, according to this payment schedule: The first €10,000 at the time of the award ceremony and the remaining €10,000 at the premiere of the project at the Peralada Festival. The other 50% of the prize (€20,000) will be used to cover the production costs to produce the project, including scenery, costumes, performers, copyright and technical specifications. Therefore, the winner will have to submit a detailed budget for the project. The winners and the Foundation will determine the project's production and implementation model.
The Castell de Peralada Foundation counts on the collaboration of the institutions Opera Europa, the European Festivals Association (EFA), and RESEO, the European network for arts education and creative learning focused on opera, music, and dance, for the dissemination of the award.
All information and submissions at carmenmateuaward.com