WINNING PROJECT – 4TH EDITION
The Fundació Privada Castell de Peralada has announced that A Bathroom Opera is the winning project of the fourth edition of the Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award, Opera and Dance, dedicated this year to the opera category in the artistic-educational project modality.
The jury awarded this project conceived and directed by Franciska Éry, with music and sound design by Natalie Szende, set design by Basia Bińkowska and visuals and projection design by Kati Katona.
An innovative project to connect with young audiences
The jury, made up of Richard Brunel, Vania Cauzillo, Barbara Minghetti, Rafael R. Villalobos and Oriol Aguilà, highlighted the artistic quality of the project and assessed that it “offers an innovative, multidisciplinary and surprising vision of operatic theatre, guaranteeing a strong connection with each and every spectator and, at the same time, generating a shared experience within its community.”
They also stressed that the proposal “opens the world of opera to today's young audiences, directly involving them in issues of identity central to their generation and allowing them to become an active part of the performance.”
According to the verdict, the format “offers many opportunities for replicability and adaptation beyond the traditional theatre space, not only for young audiences but also in intergenerational contexts,” and “guarantees an accessible entry point” for people with no previous contact with opera, both inside and outside conventional spaces and digital platforms.
Prize money and premiere at the Peralada Festival
With this award, A Bathroom Opera will receive 40,000 euros in the form of a commission for a newly created educational opera project aimed at teenagers, as well as an award created by the artist Santi Moix and made by the creative jewelry company Bagués Masriera.
The proposal will premiere in future editions of the Peralada Festival and is designed to travel around the Empordà, and at the same time to reach different points of the country.
An award with an educational and European vocation
“The Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award was born from the love for music and dance that my mother, Carmen Mateu, always transmitted. Every year it is a pleasure to discover young talent with an innovative project that contributes to bringing the performing arts closer to new audiences,” said Isabel Suqué, president of the Castell de Peralada Foundation.
According to the president, “this winning project, a pioneer in the Empordà, will not only enrich the Peralada Festival, but also opens a new path in the field of artistic education. Its formative vocation is the best reminder that talent must be supported from training, generating opportunities for everyone and sowing the seeds of the future of the performing arts in Europe. The creativity and commitment of these young artists are the best tribute to the memory of my mother and to the legacy that we continue to build at the Foundation.”
For his part, Oriol Aguilà, artistic director of the Peralada Festival, has declared: “The Peralada Festival's vocation to support music and the performing arts is manifested in this transformative project, which will not only come to life in Peralada, but will also be projected on tour throughout the territory. Its mission is to offer young people a revealing taste of opera, sowing the seeds so that they can discover this art in all its dimensions, with a renewed and contemporary perspective. At the same time, it contributes to breaking down clichés, taboos and prejudices, opening new paths to understanding and enjoying opera in the 21st century.”
A Bathroom Opera: an intimate and immersive experience
A Bathroom Opera is an interactive opera conceived as a brief and intimate experience that proposes a very close approach between the story and the spectator, in an everyday space - a bathroom - that is transformed into a stage.
The proposal combines music, image and participation to generate a personal and at the same time shared experience. Designed especially to connect with teenagers, it explores issues related to identity and the experience of "self" in a contemporary way.
The project was born with a clear vocation for flexibility and adaptation, so that it can be presented in diverse contexts and spaces, beyond traditional theater.
The artistic team
The project is driven by a collective of female artists with an international career that combines stage direction, composition and sound art, scenography and visual creation.
Franciska Éry (direction and concept), 32 years old and trained in London, has worked in European theaters and institutions. She has received, among others, the OffWestend Award in the United Kingdom, a nomination for the FEDORA (Digital Opera) and, in 2025, the Bühnen Graz Prize and the Audience Award at the RING AWARD (Graz). She has also been a finalist for the European Opera Directing Prize.
Natalie Szende, a composer and sound artist specializing in electronic composition and media arts, was awarded a scholarship in 2025 by the IRCAM Academy through the Ulysses Network.
In the visual field, Basia Bińkowska brings a solid and international scenographic perspective. In 2017, she was awarded the Linbury Prize for Stage Design from the National Theatre in London.
Kati Katona, a new media artist, has presented her work at international festivals such as Vivid Sydney and Shining Shanghai.
THE OPERA IS FOR YOU
The fourth edition of the Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award, Opera and Dance, has focused on the opera category with a clear focus: THE OPERA IS FOR YOU. The call sought multidisciplinary educational opera projects, newly created, specifically designed for adolescents and adaptable to different spaces, with a clear pedagogical methodology and a contemporary perspective.
The call, open from 28 April to 10 July 2025, has received 40 applications from 15 nationalities, with a notable international participation, including Germany, China, Italy, France and Spain, thanks to the collaboration and dissemination of institutions such as Opera Europa, the European Festival Association (EFA) and RESEO, the European network of ballet and opera for education.
Some of the requirements for submitting a candidacy in this fourth edition include being no older than 35 years old on the date of submission (whether the candidacy is individual or presented as a team, since all members must meet this age limit); having the nationality of a member country of the Council of Europe or, in the case of candidates from other countries, proving residence and professional career in a Council of Europe country.
From these, a committee of experts selected 12 finalist projects, which went into greater depth in the artistic and educational proposal in a second phase. The process has allowed the jury to assess the dramaturgical, musical and scenic coherence, as well as the viability and potential for connection with the adolescent audience.
The jury for the 4th edition was formed by Richard Brunel, artistic and general director of the Lyon Opera; Vania Cauzillo, president of RESEO and stage director; Barbara Minghetti, director of programming at the Teatro Sociale in Como and head of operatic education at the same theatre; stage director Rafael R. Villalobos; and Oriol Aguilà, vice-president of the Carmen Mateu Award, Opera and Dance.
Aguilà explains that throughout the deliberation process, “the trajectory of the teams and the artistic quality of the project have been thoroughly assessed, in the mission of bringing opera closer to the public and specifically to young people, which is the objective of the award, in a segment that generally does not feel challenged by the genre.”Also that “the contemporaneity and connection of the proposals with young generations, beyond the theatrical space,” as well as “the practicability of the proposals, their replicability and versatility in terms of itinerancy and sustainability” have been taken into account.
An award with a long history
With this award, Franciska Éry joins the list of winners of the Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award, alongside Maria Khoreva (dance), Helena Cánovas (opera) and Botis Seva (dance), winners of previous editions.
This year, the award has a total endowment of 40,000 euros, which is distributed as follows: 20,000 euros given directly to the creative team: 10,000 euros at the time of the award ceremony and 10,000 euros at the time of the project's premiere. The remaining 20,000 euros will be used to cover production costs (scenography, costumes, performers, copyright and technical sheet), based on a detailed budget that must be provided by the winning candidacy.
The Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award, Opera and Dance
Established by the Castell de Peralada Foundation in 2019, the Carmen Mateu Young Artist European Award is a multidisciplinary award with a particular stamp that is awarded annually alternating the two main categories of the Peralada Festival: dance and opera. The award aims to keep alive the legacy and love for music and dance of Carmen Mateu, perpetuating her memory and giving continuity to the tenacious patronage activity and determined commitment to excellence of this patron. With the vocation of being a leader and cultural reference in the promotion and prestige of the disciplines of opera and dance in the European sphere, the Carmen Mateu Award recognizes the career of emerging artists to contribute to the development of their professional careers.
The Castell de Peralada Foundation works in collaboration with Opera Europa and the European Festival Association (EFA) in the dissemination of the award.