The Sullivan Foundation seeks talented early career opera singers with professional experience who show significant promise.
Sullivan Award winners receive initial prizes of $10,000 and then are eligible for continuing grants to learn new roles, a unique aspect of the Foundation’s commitment to early career artists. Nearly 1,100 singers have earned Sullivan funding since 1957. Artists call the support “life-changing.” The Foundation was the Philanthropy winner at the 2023 International Opera Awards.
2024 auditions will be held in New York on October 17 and 18. Applications are due August 6. Learn more, view the brochure, and apply on the Foundation's website.
Applicants should have finished their academic training and sung at least one professional engagement with orchestra. There is no age limit, but singers should not yet be well-established solo artists. (See guideline #5.)
Application requirements include two video recordings with piano, a letter from a music professional, and a documented professional solo engagement with orchestra that opens after April 16, 2024.
There are no application or audition fees. Travel reimbursement assistance is available for singers traveling to New York. Singers invited for a live audition must be available at least one of the two audition dates. There are no callbacks or finals.
The Foundation encourages singers to review the application details and allow sufficient time to request and prepare the supporting materials. Applicants are welcome to send questions to info@sullivanfoundation.org.