Glyndebourne Opera Cup culminates in March 2018

Glyndebourne's new international singing competition crowns its first winner in March 2018.

The Glyndebourne Opera Cup - the international competition for opera singers is designed to discover and spotlight the best young singers from around the world, offering a top prize of £15,000 and a platform for launching an international opera career. The final stages of the competition take place at Glyndebourne in front of a live audience on 22 and 24 March 2018.

UK broadcaster Sky Arts will bring the competition to a wider audience with a dedicated TV series comprising of an hour-long documentary on 22 March, packaged highlights of the semi-finals on 23 March and a live broadcast of the final on 24 March. The coverage will be presented by actor and comedian Chris Addison and international soprano Danielle de Niese.

The competition's eight-strong panel of judges includes representatives from top international opera houses. Among them are Barrie Kosky, Artistic Director of Komische Oper Berlin, Sophie de Lint, Opera Director of Zurich Opera and Director designate of Dutch National Opera, David Devan, who runs Opera Philadelphia, and Fortunato Ortombina, Artistic Director of Teatro La Fenice in Venice.

Acting as honorary president will be Dame Janet Baker, whose own early career was fostered by Glyndebourne.

The biennial competition will focus on a different single composer or strand of the repertoire each time it is held - in 2018 the chosen composer is Mozart. Alongside prize money, the overall winner is guaranteed a role at one of the opera houses represented on the jury within five years of their victory.