Nearly 300 opera singers from around the world set their sights on the McCammon Voice Competition, and now only ten incredible finalists remain. These rising stars are ready to take center stage, bringing their talent, passion, and artistry to the spotlight. Learn more about their backgrounds, achievements, and what makes them stand out in this prestigious competition.
Sarah Rachel Bacani, Soprano
Filipino-American soprano Sarah Rachel Bacani is currently the soprano Resident Artist at Toledo Opera, where she performs as Adèle / Spirit of the Rose in Grétry’s Beauty and the Beast and Liat in South Pacific. A former member of the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Artists Training Program at Central City Opera, she performed the roles of Juliette (Roméo et Juliette) and Mariola in Heggie’s Two Remain. While pursuing her master’s degree and Performer Diploma at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music under the tutelage of Jane Dutton, she performed the roles of Juliette (Roméo et Juliette), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) and Pamina (Die Zauberflöte).
An accomplished competitor, she has previously received awards from the Young Patronesses of the Opera / Florida Grand Opera National Voice Competition, the Luciano Pavarotti Foundation Opera Naples International Voice Competition, Shreveport Opera Mary Jacobs Smith Singer of the Year Competition and National Society of Arts and Letters Indiana Chapter Competition.
Elana Bell, Mezzo-Soprano
Elana Bell is a mezzo-soprano based in New York City. She recently appeared as a soloist with the
American Modern Opera Company in a workshop performance of Matthew Aucoin’s Music for New
Bodies, a role she also performed at the Aspen Music Festival. Her operatic credits include Cherubino (cover) in Le nozze di Figaro at Aspen, Der Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos, Isolier in Le Comte Ory, Female Chorus in The Rape of Lucretia, and Ruggiero in Alcina (all with Yale Opera). She has performed as a young artist with Sarasota Opera, Tanglewood Music Center, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Music
Academy of the West, and she looks forward to participating in Cincinnati Song Initiative’s Fellowship of the Song this May. She completed her graduate studies at the Yale School of Music and at the University of Cincinnati (CCM), and she holds both a BM and BA (in Art History) from Oberlin College and Conservatory.
Justin Burgess, Baritone
Justin Burgess returns to Washington National Opera in 2025 to sing the role of Paul Jobs in The
(R)evolution of Steve Jobs. In Fall 2024, he will debut with Opera Las Vegas as Adraste in the world premiere of Conrad Cummings and Mark Campbell's Again & Again & Again, performed Barber's Dover Beach with the Kennedy Center Chamber Players and the baritone soloist in Carmina Burana with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, and covered Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia at Lyric Opera of Kansas City.
In summer 2024, he joined Des Moines Metro Opera, covering Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia. Last season, as a Cafritz Young Artist at Washington National Opera (WNO), he was seen as Mercutio in Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette, Donkey in Jeanine Tesori’s The Lion, the Unicorn, and Me and A
Mobster/The Guide in Songbird.
Catherine Creed, Soprano
Soprano Catherine Creed is a 22-year-old first year graduate student at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University in the studio of Nova Thomas. In May 2024, she graduated from the Eastman School of Music and studied with Nicole Cabell. Recently, she was the First Prize winner of the Eastman Opera Voice Competition, which was judged by Christine Goerke. Next month she will sing the role of Florestine in The Ghosts of Versailles directed by Patricia Racette at Rice University. This summer she will be making her professional debut singing Barbarina in Le Nozze di Figaro and is covering the role of Soeur Constance in Dialogues des Carmélites at Wolf Trap Opera. She sang many roles with Eastman Opera Theater including Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos (Prologue) and was the soloist with the Eastman Philharmonia singing Poulenc’s Gloria.
Rolfe Dauz, Baritone
Filipino-American baritone Rolfe Dauz has garnered international acclaim for his "focused baritone, perfect diction, and dramatic acting” (Calgary Herald) and “warm, flexible singing made for rewarding listening” (Classical Voice North America). For the ‘24/’25 season, Mr. Dauz will be seen as Der Lautsprecher in Viktor Ullmann's Der Kaiser von Atlantis with New World Symphony, Escamillo in Bizet’s Carmen at both Virginia Opera and Florentine Opera, Trio Member in Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti with Annapolis Opera, Curio in Händel’s Giulio Cesare at the Hudson Valley Opera House, and Larry Itliong in the world premiere of Dolores with West Edge Opera and San Diego Opera. His vocal-piano duo with Lithuanian pianist Gabrielė Žemaitytė was awarded 2nd prize at the 2021 International Copenhagen Lied-Duo Competition, and he also performed a livestream recital in the Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ under the auspices of the Grote Zangers Recital Series.
Alexandra Henderson, Soprano
Soprano Alexandra Henderson is a versatile and experienced performing artist. As seen in the New York Times, Alexandra was featured in the world premiere of Robert Paterson’s operatic work New York Stories. Recently, Alexandra reprised her role of “The Governess” in Benjamin Britten’s Turn of the Screw with Opera Roanoke under Maestro Steven White, a role which she has previously performed with the Janiec Opera Company, and at the New England Conservatory. Alexandra is an avid performer of art song repertoire and is honored to be a recitalist for the Federation of the Art Song with her collaborator Sepehr Davallou. Alexandra is honored to have recently been named the first-place winner of the John Alexander National Vocal Competition and the winner of the Boston District of the Metropolitan Opera’s Laffont Competition. Alexandra holds a master’s degree in Vocal Performance from the New England Conservatory where she received the Douglas Smith Scholarship for Voice.
Julia Maria Johnson, Soprano
Julia Maria Johnson is a “standout” soprano praised for her “sparkling vocal agility and emotional sincerity.” (Stage and Cinema) In the 24/25 season, Ms. Johnson debuted the roles of Pamina with Genesis Opera, Musetta (cover) with Opera San Jose, and Ernestina in Salieri’s La Scuola de’ Gelosi with Pacific Opera Project. In 2024, at the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition she was a Washington State District Winner and Northwest Region Encouragement Winner, a semi-finalist in the Heartland Sings Vocal Competition, a top nine finalist in the Vienna Beethoven Competition in Austria, a 2nd Prize/Vítězslava Kaprálová Award winner at The American International Czech & Slovak Competition, and a semi-finalist in the Pasadena Vocal Competition 2025. As a 2024 Resident Artist with Opera Naples, she sang the roles of Phyllis (Iolanthe) and Kate Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly) and was selected for a Vocal Fellowship with The Castleton Festival. She earned her M.M. from The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music in 2021.
Winona Martin, Mezzo-Soprano
Winona Martin is an award-winning, multi-faceted mezzo-soprano from Dallas, Texas, who specializes in boot-stomping and cycling in her free time. The 2024/25 season will see her Washington National Opera lead role debut as Laurene Powell Jobs in Bates' The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, and a house debut with Annapolis Opera as Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia. In the summer of 2024, she had a successful turn in the role of Linfea in La Calisto at The Glimmerglass Festival. She joined Washington National Opera as a member of the Cafritz Young Artist Program in the 2023/2024 season, where she notably made her mainstage and role debut as Stéphano in Romèo et Juliette to rave reviews, appeared as Mary in The Lion, The Unicorn, and Me, and Rosmira in Partenope. She is the 1st Prize Winner of the 35th Annual Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition and was part of their Voices of Our Time recital series in Spring 2024. Ms. Martin is a Regional 3rd Place Award Winner and three-time Regional Finalist in The Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition.
Alexia Mate, Soprano
Alexia is a Greek-American soprano from New York, currently based in Arizona. She has received numerous accolades, including Third Place in the 2020 American Vocal Arts Collegiate Singing Championship and Grant Prize Winner of the 2019 Gerda Lissner Song/Lieder Competition. She was also named a finalist in the 2024-25 John Alexander and 2024 Opera Birmingham Vocal Competitions, as well as the 2020 NOA Carolyn Bailey and Dominic Argento Competition. Recently, Alexia performed selections as Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier for the Met Opera Guild’s Master Class Series and appeared in concert with the New York Chamber Music Festival. She holds a Master of Music degree from The Mannes School of Music and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Carnegie Mellon University. Notable roles include Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte, Jenny Slade in Roman Fever, Amy in Little Women, and Cunegonde in Candide. She has also performed as the soprano soloist in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with the Clinton Symphony Orchestra. Alexia is thrilled to be making her role debut as Frasquita in Carmen with the Chandler Opera Company and appearing in concert with Arizona Opera in 2025.
Margaret Tigue, Soprano
Praised by OperaWire for "a power and seeming effortlessness that [is] quite amazing...", Margaret Tigue is a soprano currently based in Boston and New York. Her current season includes participating in Carnegie Hall’s 2025 SongStudio workshop, the role of Florencia Grimaldi (Florencia en el Amazonas), and the title role in Suor Angelica. Margaret’s ‘23/’24 season included performances as Vitellia (La Clemenza di Tito) and Cendrillon (Cendrillon) with the Boston University Opera Institute, where she is currently in residence. Margaret also appeared with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchester as the soprano soloist in Stravinsky’s Pulcinella. She is a 2023 winner of the Boston district of the Metropolitan Opera’s Laffont Competition. Margaret has been a fellow at Music Academy of the West (2023) and the Tanglewood Music Center (2019 & 2022). She has also been a featured soloist with the Albany Symphony Orchestra, The Orchestra Now, and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra.