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Robert Lewis wins Nilsson honour as Operalia announces Shanghai results
Buialskyi and Marhefka lead the awards; Britain’s tenor receives $15,000.
British tenor Robert Lewis has won the men’s Birgit Nilsson Prize at Operalia 2026, receiving $15,000 for a category devoted to arias by Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner. American soprano Tessa McQueen took the equivalent women’s award, alongside a second prize in the main competition.
The final and awards concert took place on November 1 at Shanghai’s Shangyin Opera House. Fourteen finalists appeared with the Shanghai Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra, with Plácido Domingo among those conducting.
The principal $30,000 awards went to Ukrainian bass-baritone Vladyslav Buialskyi and American soprano Emma Marhefka. Both also won audience prizes, each receiving a Rolex watch. Their success brought the public ballot into alignment with the jury’s leading choices.
South Korean baritone Junhyeok Felix Park joined McQueen among the second-prize recipients, with each receiving $20,000. Ukrainian baritone Roman Chabaranok took the men’s third prize of $10,000; the announced results did not list a women’s third prize.
Marhefka added the $10,000 zarzuela award honouring Pepita Embil de Domingo. Cuban baritone Eleomar Cuello received the $10,000 award honouring Don Plácido Domingo. These prizes commemorate Domingo’s parents and encourage engagement with the Spanish-language theatre tradition associated with their careers.
Spanish soprano Sofía Esparza received the $10,000 CulturArte Prize, provided by Guillermo and Bertita Martínez. Finalists not otherwise awarded a prize received $5,000 encouragement payments.
The Shanghai jury included conservatory president Liao Changyong, an Operalia first-prize winner in 1997. His participation connected the current competition with its own history of recognising singers at an early stage of international visibility.
The final was transmitted by amadeus.tv and medici.tv, using audio and video produced by amadeus.tv. Alongside the main rankings, the specialist awards highlighted the breadth of repertoire represented, from Wagner and Strauss to zarzuela.