2025 Beverly Sills Artist Award Winner
The Metropolitan Opera has named soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen the winner of the 2025 Beverly Sills Artist Award. The annual $50,000 award recognizes extraordinarily gifted singers with rising Met careers.
Established in 2006 by an endowment gift from the late Agnes Varis, a former Met board member, the award is given in honor of the legendary American soprano Beverly Sills. Willis-Sørensen made her Met debut as the Countess in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro in 2014, returning to the role in the 2015–16 and 2017–2018 seasons. Her other Met role includes Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni. During the 2024–25 season, she sang the principal role of Leonora in Verdi’s Il Trovatore. She is scheduled to perform the title role in Strauss’s Arabella next season.
“As a young singer, I dreamed of singing at the Metropolitan Opera, and remember the joy of singing for the first time on this stage as a Laffont Competition finalist in 2010. I feel incredibly grateful that my dream of performing here has come true, and to receive this recognition for my work is an honor that I truly treasure—one that encourages me to continue pushing my limits and further developing my artistry.” Willis-Sørensen said. “Beverly Sills has always been an inspiration to me, with incredible artistry, masterful technique, breadth of repertoire, promotion of opera in popular culture, and her devotion to charity. It is an honor to be associated with her in some small way, and to continue her work in promoting opera.”
Additional performance highlights include the title role in Bellini’s Norma at the Staatsoper Berlin; Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni at Covent Garden, Lyric Opera of Chicago, The Vienna State Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Santa Fe Opera, and in Dresden; Antonia in Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann at the Paris Opera; the Marschallin in Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier at the Glyndebourne Festival, in Dresden, Santa Fe Opera, and Covent Garden; Violetta in Verdi’s La Traviata at Opéra national de Bordeaux, LA Opera, and the Bavarian State Opera; Marguerite in Gounod’s Faust as part of the Royal Opera House’s tour of Japan; Elsa in Wagner’s Lohengrin at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, in Zürich, Bavarian State Opera, and Oper Frankfurt; Ariadne in Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos on tour to Hong Kong with the Bavarian State Opera; Eva in Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at the San Francisco Opera and Covent Garden; Ellen Orford in Britten’s Peter Grimes at the Bavarian State Opera; and Desdemona in Verdi’s Otello at the Vienna State Opera, LA Opera, and the Bavarian State Opera.
Sills, who died in 2007, was well known as a supporter and friend to developing young artists, and this award continues her legacy as an advocate for important emerging singers. The award has been presented to an outstanding roster of previous winners: baritone Nathan Gunn in 2006; mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato in 2007; tenor Matthew Polenzani in 2008; bass John Relyea in 2009; soprano Susanna Phillips in 2010; mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard in 2011; soprano Angela Meade in 2012; tenor Bryan Hymel in 2013; tenor Michael Fabiano in 2014; baritone Quinn Kelsey in 2015; soprano Ailyn Pérez in 2016; mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton in 2017; soprano Nadine Sierra in 2018; soprano Lisette Oropesa in 2019; and soprano Angel Blue in 2020.