The Royal Opera's Jette Parker Artists Programme Announce The 2022/23 Company

The Royal Opera has announced the Jette Parker Artists (JPA) for the 2022/23 Season. Committed to generating opportunities for the next generation of musical professionals, the JPA Programme offers apprenticeships for curious artists of exceptional talent looking to intensify their training and professional development. JPAs perform across the Royal Opera House - including on the Main Stage, in the Linbury Theatre and in front of house spaces.

Singers Sarah Dufresne (soprano), Gabrielė Kupšytė (mezzo soprano), Michael Gibson (tenor) and Josef Jeongmeen Ahn (baritone) will join conductors/répétiteurs André Callegaro and Edward Reeve, and stage directors Eleanor Burke, Harriet Taylor, and Mathilda du Tillieul McNicol. Conductor, composer, and pianist Edo Frenkel will return to continue working with the music staff of The Royal Ballet as the Jette Parker Artist Programme Ballet Conductor. Edo will also continue his involvement with Northern Ballet, where this Season he conducted two performances of the company's Casanova at Sadler's Wells and two at The Lowry in Salford.

The cohort will work alongside leading International Artists and experts in musical style and interpretation to prepare repertory for staged performances, concerts and recitals. Singers may also cover roles for more established cast members, stepping into another artist's shoes at short notice, and will receive coaching and mentoring to further their technical abilities and help evolve their artistic identity.

Head of JPA Elaine Kidd said: 'We are delighted to welcome this international group of extraordinary artists: our first auditioned cohort since pre-pandemic times. They arrive with some incredible experience under their belts and will spend the next year immersed in work across all the Royal Opera's stages. There should be no doubt about how central their talent is to the success of our productions.'

Established in 2001, the Programme provides a bridge to a career with the world's leading opera companies and gives the Artists first-hand experience of a major international producing house. For next season, the Programme rebrands as the Jette Parker Artists in order to acknowledge the Artists' work as company principals or as key members of The Royal Opera's music and directing staff. The word 'young' was understood differently by different people and so often the artists on the Programme already had significant experience. This inclusive reframing reflects the fact that the group are a vital part of the wider professional ROH teams.

Over the last two decades, the Programme has trained and supported 140 young singers, directors, conductors and pianists from across the globe, providing access to all areas of opera, music and theatre production. The JPA Programme also gives participants the opportunity to work with partner companies in the UK and elsewhere, preparing artists for global careers and encouraging international collaboration.

Public booking for the Artists' first performance of the Season - Meet the Jette Parker Artists Juke Box in the Linbury Theatre - opens on Wednesday 27 July 2022. In the meantime, the last opportunity to catch the outgoing Young Artists is the Programme's 20th Anniversary Summer Celebration with Antonio Pappano and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House on the Royal Opera's main stage on Saturday 23 July 2022 at 7pm. The performance will be semi-staged by incoming JPA director Mathilda du Tillieul-McNicol, who will also direct the JPA chamber production of Handel's Arminio next Spring.

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