BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
This August, operatic soprano Louise Keast was awarded one of the biggest achievements in her artform: the 2026 Sydney Eisteddfod Opera Scholarship. Now valued at $43,000, the scholarship is close to a century old and has been given to the likes of Dame Joan Sutherland, Warwick Fyfe, and Stuart Skelton. When Louise found out her name would be added to this legacy, she “burst into tears”.
It was an expression of how far she’d come, and how hard she’d worked for her chance at the scholarship in the months-long process leading up to the public performance.
In May, she submitted two video recordings of herself singing arias. Then, when she became one of 12 artists to take part in the semi-final, she performed live before the public as well as her adjudicators, selecting ‘Depuis le jour’ from Gustave Charpentier’s Louise, and ‘The Csárdás (‘Klänge der Heimat’)’ from Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss II.
We sat down with Louise to talk more about the opportunity, and what it means for her career. She has spent five years as a full-time chorister with Opera Australia, and has big plans for what’s next on the international stage, thanks to her scholarship.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.
Louise, a huge congratulations on your success in this scholarship! What was your first reaction when you learned the news?
Thank you! The scholarship win was announced at the end of a public concert for the Finals of the Sydney Eisteddfod Opera Scholarship in August, so it was incredibly thrilling to learn of the news with my family, friends, singing teacher, and even my gym trainer in the audience!
The standard of singing from all of the competitors was seriously impressive, with singers travelling from New Zealand and interstate for the competition. Each singer showed a great passion and dedication in their performance, and one of the highlights of the competition has been meeting and making friends with these talented singers who I am sure the next time I share the stage with them, it will be in production somewhere around the world.
I rarely have nerves these days on stage, but I did find that on the evening of the Final, I had to just take some deep breaths and centre myself so I could really perform at my best. When it was announced that my performance earned me the $43,000 scholarship, it felt quite surreal! I actually burst into tears — the recognition really did mean so much to me. A wave of emotion came over me because it really has been many, many years of hard work, training, and gaining experience leading to this point.
Tell us a bit about how you got there. Which music did you prepare, and how did you find the experience of taking part in this enormous and high-stakes career opportunity?
Preparing for a competition can be a really challenging process — not in regard to the singing, that’s the fun part. But preparing yourself to be open to criticism takes a lot of resilience and vulnerability.
I have had competition experiences in the past where the feedback received felt jarring to what I personally believe about my talent, potential, and ability. But it is important to remember that competitions are subjective, and you will never be absolutely everybody’s cup of tea.
When the competition outcome doesn’t go your way, I think it is a good opportunity to reflect and hone — what are the extra-special unique things that only I can do with my voice? — and make sure that next time, these things are displayed to the very best of my ability.
I have unique ease when floating high notes, especially at soft dynamics or to messa di voce in my top register. This special technical feat is something that I always display in my competition repertoire. For the Sydney Eisteddfod Opera Scholarship Final, I felt extremely at home in my repertoire.
After the performance [of ‘The Csárdás’ from Die Fledermaus], at the Sydney Eisteddfod Opera Scholarship Final, adjudicator Stuart Maunder AM told me, ‘It’s the best Csárdás I’ve ever heard’. I knew in that moment that I had communicated the character; that instead of witnessing a competition, the audience had been invited into the world of Die Fledermaus.
This award is significant; its history spans decades, and includes some of the biggest talents in the industry. How does it feel to know that your career now shares a milestone with the likes of Dame Joan Sutherland, Warwick Fyfe, and Stacey Alleaume among others?
It really is surreal and inspiring! Warwick Fyfe and Stacey Alleaume have been colleagues of mine for quite some time. One of my very first roles was Marzelline in Beethoven’s opera Fidelio alongside Warwick as Pizarro with Melbourne Opera in 2020. I have shared the stage with him many times since, but I remember as a young artist that it was particularly insightful to work with someone whose knowledge of the repertoire is encyclopaedic. I felt like I had so much to learn!
Stacey is another inspiring colleague who has become a close friend through our shared passion for parkrun. I have often chatted with Stacey about how physical the career of opera singing is, especially in the weeks of long rehearsals before the production even opens to an audience. […] I work closely with a trainer at the gym. It requires a lot of strength to support a voice of my size, as well as stamina to sing professionally daily, and it meant a lot to me to have my trainer Sam Wibowo in the audience at the Sydney Eisteddfod Opera Scholarship Final when I won.
How do you believe this scholarship will impact your future, and propel you closer towards your career goal or dream?
It is honestly true when I say that winning the Sydney Eisteddfod Opera Scholarship Final has changed my life.
I am incredibly gratfeul to the John Lamble Foundation for this financial support. For the first time, an international career as a principal artist feels tangible to me. A few years ago, I was working towards relocating to Germany and in a strange turn of events, I was offered a contract to relocate to Sydney and join the Opera Australia Chorus full time. I don’t come from a wealthy background, and at the time when that job offer came up I was working in public liability insurance!
It has taken me many years to not feel like I was a fraud doing this job, as I actually dropped out of my Bachelor of Music and pursued study in a different field. But what I now know, and find extremely encouraging, is that this is an artform that you learn on the job. What matters above anything else is the ability to reliably turn up to work and sing/perform/do what is required with a voice that is competent and healthy so that you can turn up the next day and perform to that high standard again.
I have now performed in over 30 operas at Opera Australia, and I feel like it is time to take everything that I have learnt at Opera Australia and share it with the world, and now with the financial support of this scholarship, I can!
In an unusual coincidence, you share an origin story with the former winner from 1950, June Gough (Bronhill), having both grown up in Broken Hill. What did a regional childhood instil in you, which you carry with you today as you venture into your international career?
June Bronhill’s legacy is very inspiring to me. A mining-town in the New South Wales outback was a very creative place to grow up, and certainly learning of a local woman who had an international operatic career instilled in me a belief that we are unlimited in our ability to pursue a passion.
What advice would you give to the next round of artists who dream of entering and winning this scholarship?
Take that innate special skill that you have, and share it in your repertoire choice and performance.
Louise Keast performs in her concert Verdi in the City, 5pm October 18 in the grand dining room at the Castlereagh Boutique Hotel, Sydney. Visit the website for bookings and the full artist line-up.
Images supplied. Headshot by Jolanta Morgan and scholarship photos by Winkipop Media.
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