April 15, 16, 17
This is YOUR CHANCE to hear the world's rising opera stars!
Each Spring, we invite the world’s top young rising opera singers to compete for major cash prizes. Witness history as they compete in front of a live audience and perform their best arias in an elegant evening concert, with winners announced at the end.
VBHS Performing Arts Center
1707 16th Street, 32960
ON THE PULSE OF OPERA
Rising Stars Opera Festival
How do we find and bring in the best singers the world of opera has to offer?
We meet many of them at our own Rising Stars Vocal Competition which is part of our 3-Day Rising Stars Opera Festival.
2026 SCHEDULE
April 15 at 3 pm Competition Semifinals
April 16 at 3 pm Competition Finals
April 17 at 7 pm All Star Concert
at the VBHS Performing Arts Center, 1707 16th Street, 32960
YOUR SEAT AT THE COMPETITION IS ONLY $10 PER DAY!
Do you recognize them?
Several of our Rising Stars winners performed major roles for us the past several years!
Alexandra Razskazoff
2024 Vero Beach Opera Rising Stars First Prize Winner
Alexandra Razskazoff was the Grand Finals Winner in the 2022 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. She is pictured as Nedda in our 2025 I Pagliacci.
Meryl Dominguez
2021 Vero Beach Opera Rising Stars First Prize Winner
For the 2025 season, Meryl Dominguez made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in Strauss’ Die Frau Ohne Schatten singing Unborn 2 and covering The Falcon. She is pictured as Violetta in our 2025 La Traviata.
Matthew White
2019 Vero Beach Opera Rising Stars First Prize Winner
(previously the Deborah Voigt/VBO Foundation Competition)
Matthew White is a graduate of the Academy of Vocal Arts and has won such awards as the Grand Prize of the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition and Grand Prize in the Mario Lanza Vocal Competition. He is pictured as Alfredo in our 2025 La Traviata.
Eleomar Cuello
2023 Vero Beach Opera Rising Stars First Prize Winner
Eleomar Cuello was a 2023 MET Laffont Competition Finals Winner and made his MET Opera debut in 2023-24 season. He is pictured as Don Giovanni in our 2023 Don Giovanni.
2025 Rising Stars
2025 JURY
Román Ortega-Cowan
President of the Jury
Artistic Director, Vero Beach Opera
Gregory Buchalter
Music Director, Vero Beach Opera
Metropolitan Opera Assistant Conductor
Music Director and Conductor, Varna International
Susan Neves
Internationally acclaimed MET Opera soprano
Scott Guzielek
President and Artistic Director,
Academy of Vocal Arts (AVA)