As in the past two years, the competition jury will assess not only singers' voices, but their talents as performers.
"The winner will not be the young talent with the most exquisite vocal capabilities or the most beautiful singing voice; he or she will be the "best performer", who meets the all-round requirements of the genre, which includes not only singing, but also stage movement and acting, all to the highest standard," says production office Armel.
The finalists will compete for 14 spots in productions by the Josef Kajetán Tyl Theatre of Pilsen, the Opera Krakowska from Krakow, Den Nye Opera of Bergen, the Dicapo Opera Theatre from New York and the Csokonai Theatre from the Hungarian city of Debrecen.
The second-round results will be announced at the Reök Palace in Szeged at 8pm on Sunday.
Szeged will host the final round of the competition in November.
