LA Opera Chairman of the Board of Directors Marc Stern and his wife Eva have created a $ 50,000 annual award to support extremely talented artists in opera. The award will also help with major career expenses, including language studies, travel, training, and preparation.

The Eva and Marc Stern Artist Award will recognize one or two artists each year, but this year the $ 50,000 will be shared equally among five outstanding singers, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nominations for the award were selected by members of La Opera’s artistic staff and those selected include soprano Angel Blue, soprano Janai Brugger, bass-baritone Craig Colclough, tenor Joshua Guerrero, and mezzo-soprano Kate Lindsey.

“Eva and I cherish our memories of experiencing the creativity and talent of the wonderful opera artists appearing at LA Opera,” said Marc Stern in a press release. “This award is our way of drawing attention to those special performers with deep connections to the company, especially those artists who began their careers in Los Angeles. People often think of opera as incredibly glamorous, but there are many elements that are anything but glamorous, and it can even be downright lonely, so Eva and I have always done whatever we can to make artists’ experiences in Los Angeles as friendly and welcoming as possible.

“This award is a natural extension of that. We are humbled to be able to reward and support these distinguished honorees, and I hope they will continue to share their truly special gifts in Los Angeles.”