Emerging Artists Takes the Stage

Opera is descending on Steamboat Springs this month as Opera Steamboat brings two shows to town, the fruit of their Emerging Artists program. In the past, artists have paid tuition to be part of the program, but now, the program is free to participating artists, thanks to the Steamboat Springs art community.

“Essentially, individual donors, most of whom had been giving to Opera Steamboat for years, all agreed to add to their gift and sponsor a young artist,” explains Thea Wigglesworth, operations manager at Opera Steamboat. “We are thrilled by the outpouring of community support. It really illustrates how important it is to our community in Steamboat to support young artists.”

The nine emerging artists showcased this summer were hand-picked from a pool of 489 applicants by Ben Robinson, Opera Steamboat’s artistic director. Through the program, they will get invaluable experience performing and practicing, as well as masterclasses, the chance to participate in a workshop on a newly commissioned opera, and sessions on career and audition preparation.

“Opera is a practice. You only get better by practicing in front of other people,” Thea says. “So part of the training of any young singer is getting as much experience performing and preparing a role as possible.”