On 21 November, the International Opera Awards will recognise the artists, productions and most innovative projects that marked the international opera scene in 2026. La Monnaie has received two nominations: the first for the opera Medusa and the second for the Green Opera project.
This year, the International Opera Awards ceremony – often referred to as the ‘Oscars of opera’ – will take place at the MusikTheater an der Wien in Vienna. It will be broadcast live on OperaVision. La Monnaie is delighted that its production of Iain Bell's opera Medusa, has been nominated for the Best World Premiere award. The production’s librettist and director, Lydia Steier, has been honoured with a nomination as Best Director of the year. La Monnaie has also received a nomination in the Sustainability category for its Green Opera project, as well as a second nomination as a member of the Collectif 17h25 for the creation of the MOD 200.
We would also like to congratulate Vasily Barkhatov, director of our forthcoming production of Boris Godunov (Mussorgsky), on his nomination in the Best Director category; as well as the creative teams behind Die Frau ohne Schatten, a co-production between La Monnaie and the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, for their nomination in the Best New Production category; and finally, the tenor John Osborn, unforgettable last season in the title role of our Benvenuto Cellini, who has been nominated among the Best Male Singers of the year.
In the passed editions, La Monnaie was proud to win the Award for Best New Production, with The Tale of Tsar Saltan and From the House of the Dead, for Best World Premiere with The Time of Our Singing, for Equal Opportunities & Impact with our social programme A bridge between two worlds, and last year Alain Altinoglu won the award for Best Opera Conductor.
See the full list of nominations here.
The former General and Artistic Director of La Monnaie will succeed Markus Hinterhäuser and take up his new position in Salzburg on 1 October, following the 2027 Festival edition.
This year, Mobility Week coincides with the celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the Brussels metro network. La Monnaie, which promotes sustainable mobility, has joined in the STIB’s celebrations by organising a pop-up fashion show at De Brouckère station on 15 September.
Next year, the non-profit association 'Mortier Awards' will present the Mortier Next Generation Award, for the fifth time. This prize, worth € 30,000, supports artistic projects of young artists in keeping with the spirit of Gerard Mortier, former La Monnaie director and great innovator of the art form opera.
