Abby Kurth, a senior vocal performance major and theatre minor in the Glenn Korff School of Music from Bettendorf, Iowa, was awarded 2nd place in the 2019 North American Vocal Competition sponsored by music publisher Hal Leonard.
More than 1,000 student entries were received in this year’s annual competition. Kurth’s award was in the collegiate music theatre category for male and female young adult voices, and she was judged the highest-scoring female singer in the competition.
“I was absolutely elated to receive the news that I had been awarded 2nd place in the Hal Leonard competition, as I’ve submitted videos for this competition every year, and this was the highest award I’ve achieved,” Kurth said. “It felt extremely validating that this would happen as a senior. I view it as a sign that I’m ready to graduate and work professionally in the field I love—music theatre.”
The annual Hal Leonard Vocal Competition was founded in 2011 to encourage young singers from all over North America, from children through college undergraduates. It is one of the first music competitions held entirely on YouTube.
“Watching Abby Kurth grow academically and artistically has been a true pleasure,” said her vocal professor Alisa Belflower, who is coordinator of musical theatre studies in the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts. “She will certainly be missed next year, but her future is bright and filled with promise. She is well-prepared and ready to graduate. I look forward to all the art she will create on stages in the future.”
One or more of Belflower’s students have won awards in this competition annually since they began entering in 2012.
Kurth will be featured in the title role in the upcoming Tony-award-winning composer Jeanine Tesori’s musical, “Violet.” The musical, produced by UNL Opera, will be performed April 12 and 14 in Westbrook Music Building Rm. 130. The performance is free and open to the public, though tickets are required and available at https://go.unl.edu/p35q beginning April 1 at noon.
Winner of the Drama Critics’ Circle Award and Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical when it premiered Off-Broadway in 1997, and then revived on Broadway in 2014 to critical acclaim, “Violet” is based on the short story “The Ugliest Pilgrim” by Doris Betts.
“It’s a beautiful show that isn’t produced as often as it should be, so I can’t wait to help bring it to audiences in Lincoln,” Kurth said. “I love the music—it’s a joy to both sing and listen to. Everyone can relate to the show and the struggle of Violet in some way, as most of us have probably wished we could change something about ourselves. To see the journey of a woman doing everything she can to actually realize that wish—as well as experiencing what she learns along the way—is so powerful.”
Kurth has been involved in several UNL Opera productions, including Monteverdi’s The Return of Ulysses and Adamo’s Little Women. She also sings with the UNL Vocal Jazz Ensemble and works as an education and events intern at the Lied Center for Performing Arts.
This past summer, she was a member of the 2018 Ohio Light Opera Company and performed in six different productions during the summer, including Candide, The Pajama Game and Fifty Million Frenchmen. Following graduation in May, Kurth will return to perform with the Ohio Light Opera Company this summer. She plans to move to New York City to explore opportunities in the arts, either as a performer, administration or education.