The Middle Atlantic Region encompasses key local districts, including Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Philadelphia, and serves as an important pathway to the Metropolitan Opera’s national semifinals and grand finals in New York. Following a brief hiatus prompted by operational changes, the regional finals officially returned to the active competition schedule at venues such as the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater. Participants from the region have frequently earned top national honors.
In the 2025 -2026 mezzo-soprano Julianna Smith and soprano Anna Thompson were both named winners in the Middle Atlantic Region,
Both were national semi-finalist. Anna went on to be a 2026 Grand Finals Winner.
Anna is currently a member of The Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program.
Julianna is currently a member of the Wiener Staatsoper Opernstudio.
The Met’s Laffont Competition—previously known as the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions—is designed to discover promising young opera singers and assist in the development of their careers and is sponsored by hundreds of donors and volunteers from across North and South America. Some of today’s greatest singers got their starts in the competition, including Jamie Barton, Stephanie Blythe, Lawrence Brownlee, Anthony Roth Costanzo, Emily D’Angelo, Michael Fabiano, Renée Fleming, Susan Graham, Ryan Speedo Green, Lisette Oropesa, Eric Owens, and Nadine Sierra.
This year's competition will be held at the Wolf Trap Barnes on February 7.
For more information: https://www.wolftrap.org/show/2627barns/020727/
