FILIPEMANU

New Zealand-raised Tongan tenor Filipe Manu is one of the most exciting young talents to emerge from the world-renowned Jette Parker Young Artist Programme at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. His numerous accolades include first prize at the 61st Tenor Viñas Competition at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, the New Zealand Performer of the Year Award, and first prize in both the IFAC Handa Singing Competition and the Lexus Song Quest, two of Australia’s most prestigious singing competitions. Manu is rapidly establishing himself on the world’s leading operatic stages, having already made debuts at the Opéra National de Paris, Wiener Staatsoper, Gran Teatre del Liceu, and Staatsoper Hamburg. Future seasons include returns to Wiener Staatsoper, the Royal Opera House, and Gran Teatre del Liceu, further cementing his presence on the international stage. In the 2024/25 season, he makes role debuts as Fenton (Falstaff) at Glyndebourne Festival and Paris (La Belle Hélène) at Opéra de Toulon. He also reprises Ernesto (Don Pasquale) with Scottish Opera and performs Handel’s Messiah with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. The 2023/24 season marked pivotal moments in his career, including Ferrando in a highly anticipated new production of Così fan tutte by Barrie Kosky at Wiener Staatsoper, Eduardo in Thomas Adès’ The Exterminating Angel at Opéra National de Paris, Ernesto (Don Pasquale) at Staatsoper Hamburg, and Nemorino (L’elisir d’amore) at Glyndebourne. Further recent engagements include Ferrando (Così fan tutte) at Staatsoper Hamburg and Opera Australia, and Tamino (Die Zauberflöte) in David McVicar’s production at the Royal Opera House. From 2021 to 2023, Manu was a member of the ensemble at Bühnen Bern, where his roles included Tamino (Die Zauberflöte), Ruodi (Guillaume Tell), Arbace (Idomeneo), Tebaldo (I Capuleti e i Montecchi), and Froh (Das Rheingold). During his time with the Royal Opera House, his performances included Gastone (La Traviata), Erster Gefangener (Fidelio), and Father/Charlie in The Seven Deadly Sins/Mahagonny Songspiel. Equally at home on the concert platform, Manu has appeared as the tenor soloist in Stravinsky’s Pulcinella at the Edinburgh International Festival Opening Concert, conducted by Dalia Stasevska, and as the Officer in Ariadne auf Naxos, conducted by Lothar Koenigs. He has performed Handel’s Messiah with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, at the Royal Albert Hall, and in recital at Wigmore Hall. Other concert highlights include performances at the Royal Opera House Stars Gala, where he sang alongside Lisette Oropesa and Gerald Finley, conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano, a Christmas Gala Concert conducted by Mark Wigglesworth, and an intimate recital of songs and arias with Sir Antonio Pappano. His formative training was gained at the University of Waikato, where he completed a Bachelor of Music and Postgraduate Diploma, and through the Dame Malvina Major Young Artist Programme with New Zealand Opera. He is a former member of the New Zealand Opera School, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Opera School, and both the inaugural opera programmes for the Dame Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation and the Dame Malvina Major Foundation.