The part to be realized on the main stage of Schauspielhaus Graz at the competition final is the second act of “Don Giovanni”, the passage from Leoprello: “O statua gentilissima” to Leporello: “come mi fa terror”.
While the competition is open to various directorial approaches and scenic and musical experimentation (montage, cuts, external material) some regulations need to be observed: material from the original musical score must remain in the adapted version; the adaption needs to be performable on piano; generally the character of the competition opera must remain recognizable.
The competition is public and open to candidates from all countries. Directors and stage designers who can show proof of appropriate professional training or artistic experience and who have not yet staged an independent production at a major theatre are eligible to enter. Participants should not be more than 35 years of age (effective date is the submission deadline, 19 August 2019). All candidates are in principle required to form teams, each consisting of at least one director and one designer. A team can consist of more than two persons (additional costume designer, dramaturg, composer, musician, etc.). In any case of dispute as to eligibility to enter the competition the decision taken by the RING AWARD Jury shall be final.
The following condition is binding for a stage realisation of the given passage from the competiton opera at the competition finals: Strict compliance with the allotted budget of:
EUR 17.500 for the stage design
EUR 6.500 for the costumes
EUR 1.000 for makeup
All budgets include costs for materials, stage workshops (labour hours), and value-added tax (20 %).
Keeping within budget is an essential element of competition assessment. Budget overruns lead to disqualification. The set and costume designs are put into effect by the workshops of art + event in Graz. Calculations are also developed by the management of the respective workshops based on the submitted original set and costume designs. The performances in the finals take place at Schauspielhaus Graz, on whose stage preconditions calculations within the given budget need to be based.
Participants accept that submitted project data may be used for RING AWARD PR purposes after the submission deadline has passed. For organisational reasons, the submission material, or parts of it, cannot be returned.
Registration is exclusively possible by filling in the online form and contains the following data for each participating team member:
– personal data (name, nationality, date of birth, contact data)
– scan of official identification (i.e. passport)
– brief curriculum vitae (course of studies taken, previous artistic activities)
In addition, each team is required to attach the following:
– scan of receipt certifying payment of registration fee
– short text version of the director’s and designer’s conceptions for “Don Giovanni”
– a storyboard of the conceptions for the complete opera
– a draft of set and costume designs for the complete opera
A storyboard is expected to state clearly, step by step, what takes place in detail on the stage (stage directions and setting). This should be done for the complete competition opera and should necessarily incorporate references to the respective musical text.
For uploads the following file formats apply: .pdf, .jpg, .png, .gif. Maximum file size is 16 MB.
The bound portfolios are expected to be submitted by surface mail either in German or English to the following address:
Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst
Institut 11 Bühnengestaltung / RING AWARD 20
Leonhardstrasse 82-84
8010 Graz
AUSTRIA
When submitting, entrants must carefully make sure that their names and any other information which would enable their identification (institutions etc.) must not appear either on the cover of the portfolio or on any of the texts, pictures, etc. All entries are anonymized for the first assessment by the jury to avoid any prejudice or distortion of the competition.
Anyone not complying with this regulation will be excluded from the competition.
The portfolio, which must be bound (no loose sheets!), should contain the following items:
– description/presentation of the director’s and designer’s conceptions of the complete opera “Don Giovanni”. The material (folders etc.) must not exceed the measure of DIN A3.
– optional: a film file of five minutes’ length at most (CD-ROM, DVD, USB) of an already realised project (if available).
The conception must comply with the following condition: sketches compatible with the main stage of the Schauspielhaus Graz which strictly observe the technical preconditions at the site. Blueprints can be downloaded here.
In case of justified financial distress, the fee may be reduced. Informal applications including a brief description of the financial situation can be sent to the organisation address.
All payments must be free of charge to the recipient, i. e., entrants must ensure that they pay all bank charges of the remitting bank and those of the receiving bank:
Raiffeisenbank Graz-Andritz
IBAN: AT94 3837 7000 0204 0269
BIC: RZSTAT2G377
Make payable to: »RING AWARD 20«
Each semifinal team receives a recognition fee of EUR 2.500 for participating in the semifinal. This fee covers all costs for travel and accommodation
Each final team will receive a recognition fee of EUR 7.000 for participating in the final. This fee covers all costs for travel and accommodation.
All candidates who are accepted as competitors will receive confirmation of their acceptance by e-mail.
Download the Competition Folder here.
The competition participant guarantees that all submitted content does not infringe any currently effective law, in particular competition law or copyright law, and is free from any third-party rights.
Each participant in the competition explicitly consents to the collection, processing, storage on media and use of their personal data by the competition organizer, for the purposes of implementation and follow-up processing of the RING AWARD competition.
Any further questions? Please consult our FAQ!