The “Opera Italiana is in the Air” concert will be held next month in front of the Lincoln Memorial — an annual rite that sees a world class opera performance performed for free on the National Mall. As organizers get prepared for this year’s event, they’re still looking for one more person to kick off the performance. And maybe, it’s you. The D.C. Opera Challenge is now live on TikTok. Anyone who posts a minute-long submission with the hashtag #DCOperaChallenge will be judged by Maestro Alvise Casellati, and the winner will get $1,000 to travel to D.C. and sing the national anthem.
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If you’re only a Metro ride away, then feel free to keep the change. “My dream would be to discover somebody that does not maybe have a training and does not even know his or her potential,” said Casellati, who spoke to WTOP from Italy. “And maybe after this experience, you will consider this career. Who knows? It’s a challenge, and I don’t know what will come out of it. I’m very looking forward to reviewing the videos.” Casellati is looking for more than star power and a good voice. “Well, it will be clear once I feel the power of these videos,” he said. “The feelings that the artist will give me. And if the artist will give it to me, they will give it to all the people.” While a few submissions are already up online, he won’t look at any of them until after the deadline passes on Tuesday, May 27. Last year’s show included D.C.’s own Anthony Anderson, a graduate of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts. This year, the maestro is hopeful it’ll be someone else from the area, but the competition is up for anyone who wants to try. Long-term, Casellati is hoping this annual performance will revive opera in the mainstream and shed the elite label that’s prevented many people from falling in love with that particular artistry. “They can enjoy an experience and realize that opera is not outdated, is not part of the past,” he said. “It’s part of the present, is performed by young people, young singers and young musicians.” Last year’s concert drew thousands of people to the Lincoln Memorial. “Opera still gives a lot of emotions to people, and they can have an amazing time,” Casellati said. “And the attendance from last year proves that people really feel it.”
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