Celine Byrne’s recent surprise Covent Garden debut made headlines here in Ireland. Her successful short-notice performance of the lead-role in Dvorak’s Rusalka saw her performing on stage with YAA alumna Anna Devin, who plays a Nymph in this production, having made her ROH debut in the role of Papagena in Spring 2011’s run of The Magic Flute.

Anna Devin in ROH's Rusalka

Another Irish singer treading the boards at ROH Covent Garden is YAA alumna Martha Bredin. OTC audiences will have seen her most recently as a convincing, gawky, hormonal Cherubino in our hugely popular 2010 production of The Marriage of Figaro. She won the Gerard Arnhold Award at Wexford Festival Opera in 2011, which bursary allowed her to continue her opera studies. As cover for Apprentice in Wagner’s Die Meistersinger Von Nurnberg, she performed at Covent Garden in December 2011 & January 2012.

Also representing Ireland on opera stages abroad is Claudia Boyle – who recently had her own last-minute call to perform when she covered the role of our own Queen of the Night in our Valentine’s Day performance of The Magic Flute at The Civic Theatre in Tallaght. She will next be performing this same role for Chicago Opera Theater this Autumn, after a busy Summer performing in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Opera Roma and in the role of Konstanze in Die Entführung aus dem Serail with Komische Oper Berlin.

Claudia Boyle in OTC's Pasqual€

Naomi O'Connell will make her UK operatic debut this year in the title role of Garsington Opera's La Périchole, following her West End debut in the Tony Award winning play Master Class, for which she's receiving rave reviews.

Gavan Ring will be spending this Summer at Glyndebourne Festival Opera, singing in Purcell’s The Fairy Queen and Puccini’s La Bohème. In the latter, he covers the role of Marcello – will there be another exciting short-notice call to perform…..? He has been accepted as a Glyndebourne Jerwood Young Artist.

It is so heartening to see Irish singers performing at this level. It's always a thrill to see people you've heard and seen on your local stage going on to perform interntaionally. Supporting OTC’s YAAP is supporting the future of opera in Ireland and the future of singers who fly the Irish flag on stages all around the world. The simplest way to support our young singers is to buy tickets to their performances. If you can do more, please become a Patron of Opera Theatre Company.