UK Presents Met District Auditions

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 4, 2015) — The Kentucky District Auditions of the Metropolitan (Met) Opera National Council Auditions will welcome the area's best collegiate vocal talents to the University of Kentucky's Singletary Center for the Arts stage this weekend. Auditions will begin 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7. The event is free and open to the public

The Met auditions, sponsored by OperaLex, will bring together 11 vocalists in competition who will be judged by a panel of distinguished judges from the opera world. This year's judges are: Jennifer Larmore, world-renowned mezzo-soprano; Marcus Kuchle, director of artistic operations at the Cincinnati Opera; and Dan Novak, director of Chicago Lyric Opera's Ryan Opera Center.

Cliff Jackson, associate professor of vocal coaching at UK Opera Theatre in UK School of Music, will serve as the official accompanist.

The following day, a master class will be conducted by Larmore. She began her career at the Opera de Nice in 1986 with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "La Clemenza di Tito" and has gone on to sing at almost every major opera house worldwide. With her frequent collaborator Antoine Palloc Larmore, she has done many international recital tours including appearances in Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid, Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo and many more venues. In 2002, Larmore was awarded the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres from the French government in recognition of her contributions to the world of music. In addition to her musical accomplishments, Larmore is an author who uses her work to help the public foster a wider love of opera. Larmore's master class will begin 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 8, at the Singletary Center.

The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions are a nation-wide vocal competition. In the 2015-16 season of auditions there are 42 district audition sites and 13 regional audition sites throughout the continental United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Winners at the district level advance to compete in their region finals.

In addition, the auditions serve to discover new participants in the Met's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, a program designed to nurture the most talented young artists through training and performance opportunities. The program also provides financial aid and supervised artistic direction for young artists.

UK Opera Theatre has been very successful sending singers to the "winners circle" at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. Most recently, Reginald Smith Jr., a 2013 music education and vocal performance graduate of UK, was among the winners of the 2015 National Council Auditions. Previously, one of the winners of the 1995 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions was UK alumnus Gregory Turay.

For more information on the Kentucky District Met auditions, contact Kris Gilbert at lexmetaudition@yahoo.com or visit online at

www.kydistrictauditions.org/currentseason.html.

MEDIA CONTACT: Whitney Hale, 859-257-8716; whitney.hale@uky.edu