Winona Berry continues to seduce

The young mezzo-soprano's string of successes continues to grow. At the age of 24, after winning the Michèle Herbé young hope prize last August at the Nuits Lyriques de Marmande, Winona Berry's talent has once again won over a jury. From October 30 to November 2, the artist took part in the eighth Raymond Duffaut "Opéra jeunes espoirs" competition in Avignon. One of the most important events on the opera scene, this competition honors young talent between the ages of 16 and 26. At this event, Winona Berry was awarded the Soroptimist International Grand Prize in the "revelation" category.
I had already taken part in this competition two years ago, in another category, and it was my second real competition after the Voix des outre-mer," explains Winona. I was delighted to return. The level was really high and the tests weren't easy. "However, the talented competition didn't stop the mezzo-soprano from making it through the elimination rounds and on to the final.
To do so, she sang "L'invocation à Venus" from Offenbach's La Belle Hélène, followed by "Must the winter come so soon", an aria from Barber's opera Vanessa. In the final, Winona performed two pieces. One was imposed by the jury (an excerpt from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte), the other proposed by the artist herself. "We had to sing a French aria, so I chose the 'Chanson Bohème' from Bizet's Carmen," she explains. It was really intense, because they're both very lively pieces. One tells the story of a very capricious girl who learns that her lover is going off to war, the other requires a lot of energy during each verse. I'm very happy to have been able to perform them, but they're so demanding that I fell ill after the competition! That often happens after competitions, because the body is so much in demand. "
A short break allowed Winona to rest up before embarking on a week's residency with musicians and other singers. This was in preparation for the Opéra Lacmé, a production she will present in February with the Académie de Bordeaux.