Competitions

The NSAL National Annual Awards Competition offers young artists age 18-30 an exceptional opportunity to perform for a panel of top-ranked professional judges.  The area of the competition rotates among four fields: Drama, Musical Theater, Dance, and Instrumental Music. The competition for 2023 will be Drama.  The first round of competition takes place at the Chapter level, and all applicants must be available to participate in the Chapter Competition, which will be held on March 25, 2023, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.  The Chapter First Place Winner will receive financial support for participating in the National competition, at the NSAL Annual Meeting in Lexington, Kentucky.  All competitors must be present in Lexington throughout the entire Meeting, from May 18 through May 20, 2023. 

The First Place Chapter Winner receives $2,000, and will compete for several National prizes of up to $15,000.  The Second Place Chapter Winner receives $1,000 and the Third Place Chapter Winner receives $750. 

The St. Louis Chapter Competition is open to any U.S. citizen or legal resident living in the greater St. Louis NSAL region, including Missouri, southern Iowa, and southern Illinois.  Competition contestants must have reached the age of 18 but not yet reached the age of 30 as of May 19, 2023.  They must not have equity status or be under professional management as of the date of the competition, May 18-20, 2023. 

The 2023 Annual Awards Competition will be in Drama. Rules and application forms are posted as downloadable pdf files at the bottom of this webpage. Questions about the Drama Competition should be addressed to the Drama Chair, Adelia Parker-Castro, at adeliaparkercastro@gmail.com. The Chapter Application Deadline will be February 25, 2023.

The Dorothy Lincoln Smith Classical Voice Award Competition is open to singers age 23 through 31.  The Award grants up to $10,000 in prizes, and the maximum individual award is $5,000.  Chapter winners will also receive an award of $250.

The brochure and application for the 2023 DLS Competition are posted as downloadable pdf files at the bottom of this page.  Questions about the Competition should be addressed to the Dorothy Lincoln Smith Competition Chair, Linda Seibert, at lindajbseibert63@gmail.com. The Chapter Application Deadline is March 1, 2023.