2026-27 Season Auditions

Applications are open for our 9th season Opera Readings!

Applicants will be considered for one of two opera reading opportunities that will take place in Winter and Spring 2027. Specific repertoire under consideration includes The Telephone (Menotti), A Hand of Bridge (Barber), Il matrimonio segreto (Cimarosa), Dialogues des Carmélites (Poulenc), L’elisir d’amore (Donizetti), and Seed (Cohen).

Our readings this season will feature two different kinds of opportunities:

  • The Tuition Role Development Opportunity will be process-oriented and will put a greater focus on singer education, growth, and experience, with more rehearsal time and space for exploration; it will also include individual coachings for named roles and a cast diction class. The process will conclude with a concert-style public performance as an opportunity to put into practice what has been explored in the rehearsal process.

  • The Paid Performance Opportunity will feature outward-facing performances focused on opera education outreach and community building, with a shorter, performance-oriented rehearsal process and focus on skill refinement and public-facing career building.

Both opportunities support collaboration and the development of professional connections. Auditionees will have the opportunity to select which opportunities you are interested in being considered for in the application form.

We highly encourage you to audition live, though a video submission option is available to those who cannot make either of the two audition dates (see below). Applications for in-person auditions will be accepted up through the second audition date.

We are asking all applicants this season (new and returning) to complete a live or video audition for our new artistic leadership.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS: Please carefully read and complete the Audition Application Google Form (linked here or see below), and then separately sign up for an audition slot here.

LIVE AUDITIONS: Sunday 10/18 2-5 p.m. & Monday 10/19 6-9 p.m. @ MN Opera Center in Minneapolis.

VIDEO SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Sunday 10/18 by 2 p.m. Please email your two video selections to operareadingproject@gmail.com.

REPERTOIRE REQUIREMENTS: Please bring one aria or art song in English and a second aria in Italian or French. You may choose what you’d like to start with, and we’ll hear a portion or the entirety of your second selection as time allows. A pianist will be provided, though you are free to separately arrange for your own pianist if you prefer.

Please note: Opera Reading Project is a professional career development tool for singers. These auditions are not casting for fully produced and staged operas. Singers who are cast in an opera reading role must individually prepare such that they can musically polish the role during rehearsals and sing through the complete opera for an audience during the final reading. 

Scroll further down this page for FAQs. Additional details about our projects can be found in the 2026-2027 Opera Reading Project Rate and Participation Guidelines document.

Diversity Statement: Opera Reading Project is dedicated to creating equitable and inclusive opportunities in our company that reflect the diversity of Minnesota. We affirm applicants from all racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds. Opera Reading Project stands strong in its commitment to equity for all applicants, regardless of race, gender, religion, age, marital or veteran’s status, national origin, disability, sexual orientation or any other basis prohibited by local, state or federal law.

  • Rehearsals and the final reading are generally held in the evening between 6 - 10 pm  and on weekend afternoons and/or evenings. Most rehearsals occur at the MN Opera Center, 620 N. 1st St. in Minneapolis, MN. Singers must be locally based during the reading time period as ORP does not offer housing.

  • Opera Reading Project uses a flexible rehearsal model: the number of rehearsals during a reading period time window will vary by work and will be determined by what is appropriate to the duration, cast size and difficulty of the repertoire. Not everyone will be called to all rehearsals or all parts of rehearsals. The amount of rehearsals one is called to and time spent at rehearsal will depend on role size. 5-7 rehearsals will generally take place over the course of 2-3 weeks per reading. Specific rehearsal calls will go out several weeks prior to the final reading.

  • As is standard at a professional company, singers are expected to fully prepare the role (notes, rhythms, translations, and background character development) prior to their first rehearsal. This allows for meaningful and detailed work throughout the rehearsal process. Preparation affects the efficiency of the role reading process for everyone. If lack of musical preparation of these elements is present at the first rehearsal, you will be asked to step back from singing the role with the available cover singing for the remainder of the rehearsal period and final reading.

  • ORP utilizes a sliding-scale tuition model with several levels of financial contribution. Our tuition levels are already very reasonable, offering excellent value for the high quality MN-based experience that singers currently get in the reading process, but we also know that we can’t make assumptions about where singers’ financial needs truly lie. As such, we would like to put the decision in your hands and trust you to make the most informed decision for yourself and your finances.

    You can learn more about our tuition rates by reading the 2026-27 Rate and Participation Guidelines, which is linked above.