Prestigious bursary award for soprano Aimee

A young opera singer from Lucan has been awarded a prestigious bursary for emerging operatic talent.

Soprano Aimee Kearney is one of two new recipients of the Blackwater Valley Opera Festival 2025 Bursary Awards.

The €5,000 bursary will support Aimee’s professional development and musical career.

A graduate of the Royal Irish Academy of Music, the Lucan native is currently based in Amsterdam, where she studies with the Dutch National Opera Academy under the tutelage of soprano Hanneke de Wit.

Aimee’s journey with BVOF began last summer when she performed in Handel’s Giulio Cesare as part of the chorus, as well as in the open-air concerts.

“The support and encouragement that BVOF provides to Irish talent is so unique and important, and indeed very pivotal for emerging artists,” she said.

“I am currently pursuing my Masters in Opera Performance and this bursary will allow me to focus wholeheartedly on my studies for the next two years.

“Having had so much fun performing at last year’s festival and having learnt a lot during the rehearsals from the astounding lead singers and creative team, I am really looking forward to this year’s festival.”

As part of Blackwater Valley Opera Festival 2025, taking place from May 27 to June 2 in Lismore, county Waterford, Aimee Kearney and her fellow bursary recipient Georgina Cassidy will perform a special BVOF Bursary Recital at Tourin House during the festival – a performance that has already sold out.

The pair will also serve as ambassadors for Blackwater Valley Opera Festival 2025.

The annual BVOF bursary award, established in 2020 thanks to a generous private donor and supported since 2023 by Conor and Mareta Doyle, has provided vital financial and performance support to six young artists over the last two years and will continue until 2027.

With over 100 performers across 23 events at 12 venues, Blackwater Valley Opera Festival (BVOF) will deliver an ambitious and artistically rich programme in 2025, featuring performances from some of Ireland’s most internationally acclaimed artists.

Tickets are now on sale at blackwatervalleyopera.ie with concession rates available for senior citizens, students, the unwaged, and disabled visitors.