Soprano awarded Dame Malvina prize

Soprano Madison Nonoa, pictured, has been awarded the prestigious $50,000 Dame Malvina Major Award, which she says will be pivotal in enabling her to continue developing her career in Europe.

It would help her grasp opportunities that would not have been possible without the financial backing, she said.

Dame Malvina Major said that as well as having a beautiful voice, Nonoa’s drive, determination and love for the craft continually impressed the Foundation. “Her star is rising quickly.”

Nonoa, of Samoan, Niuean and Pākehā heritage, is a graduate of both the University of Auckland and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. She has previously won aria competitions throughout New Zealand and was a semi-finalist in the London Bach Singing competition and the International Handel Singing Competition and a finalist in the 2016 Lexus Song Quest.

Currently based in Portugal, Nonoa’s most recent highlights include her debut at the Salzburg Festival as Amore in Orfeo ed Euridice, as well as a house and role debut as the title role in Dido and Aeneas for the Ustinov Studio at the Theatre Royal Bath. In 2023 she returned to New Zealand Opera in the role of Amor in (m)Orpheus.

The Dame Malvina Major Award supports the career development of talented young opera singers. Tenor Amitai Pati won the inaugural award in 2020, followed by soprano Natasha Te Rupe Wilson in 2021 and tenor Oliver Sewell in 2022. Last year’s award was granted to baritone Moses MacKay.

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