Agorà Lyric World Opens Third Edition with 22,500 Euro Prizes

Agorà Lyric World will hold the third edition of its International Competition in Verona from March 1 to 6, 2027, with 22,500 euro in awards and a finals round at the Sala Maffeiana. Soprano Maria José Siri, to whom the edition is dedicated, will preside over the jury.

Registrations open on October 15 and close on January 31, 2027. The competition has run since its founding in 2025.

What does the competition actually do?

Agorà positions itself less as a prize contest than as a connector. In a statement, Agorà President Federico Residori said, "Agorà Lyric World was created first and foremost to serve as a bridge: between those who are studying and those who select artists, and between Verona and Italian and international theaters."

That structure explains the numbers. Since 2025, the competition has drawn 400 candidates from 30 countries, with 20 theaters and institutions involved.

The 2026 results show the mechanism at work. Nine artists won contracts that year at five Italian houses:

• Teatro La Fenice di Venezia
• Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova
• Teatro Lirico di Cagliari
• Trentino Opera Festival
• Teatro Municipale di Piacenza

What does this change for young singers?

The practical value sits in that contract pipeline. A singer who reaches the final rounds isn't only competing for the 22,500 euro in prize money — they're auditioning, in effect, for casting decision-makers from some of Italy's main opera houses. For a conservatory student or early-career artist, that's a direct line from study to employment.

Siri's role as jury president adds weight. The Argentine-born soprano is a fixture at major Italian houses, and her presence signals the competition is courting serious operatic talent, not showcase-level participants.

The Sala Maffeiana, the finals venue, sits inside Verona's Palazzo Barbieri — the city's opera heartland, steps from the Arena where Siri has herself sung. Holding finals there keeps the event tied to Verona's operatic identity, which is part of Residori's stated mission of linking the city to theaters at home and abroad.

With a month-long registration window and a March finals date, the 2027 edition gives candidates a clear runway. If it repeats the 2026 contract rate, Verona will remain a place where careers, not just prizes, get decided.