West Edge Opera has announced the finalists for its Aperture Online Residency.

Out of a total of 22 semi-finalists, a total of eight proposals by composer/librettist teams were selected to move on to the final round. This final round includes two “Sprints,” in which four creative teams will develop their projects and submit weekly videos to update subscribers on their progress. Participating artists will be paid a monthly honorarium during this process.

The first “Sprint,” which takes place between Jan. 26-April 23, will feature “L’Autre Moi” by Matthew Reccio and Stephanie Fleischmann; “Shondj” by Djoré Nancé and Takesha Meshé Kirzart-Thomas; “Dolores” by Nicolas Lell Benavides and Marella Martin Koch; and “The School for Girls Who Lost Everything in the Fire” by Ryan Suleiman and Cristina Fríes.

The second “Sprint,” scheduled for May 1-July 30, will feature “My Country: Based on the Memoir by Dr. Abraham Verghese” by Mark Campbell and Kamala Sankaram; “The Battle of Atlanta” by Damien Geter and Lila Palmer; “Pale Courage” by Kyong Mee Choi and Dr. Timothy Ernest Johnson; and “Enclave” by Brian Lowdermilk and Liliana Padilla.

The winner, who will receive a $60,000 commission, will be announced in August 2021.

Subscribers to West Edge Opera will get varying levels of access to artists and their process.

“Audiences will witness the creative process while operas are literally being formed. They will see the emergence of ideas, the conversations between creators, perhaps even struggles and arguments, as the teams move from concept to reality,” Music Director Jonathan Khuner stated in a press release.