Camila Mandillo - ECHO Rising Star

“… And now for something slightly different.” This Monty Python phrase is emblazoned across ECHO Rising Star Camila Mandillo’s programme. The Portuguese soprano takes to the stage with a smile. Over four centuries of music, composers have turned to humour, irony and wit. Not to distract from seriousness, but as a way of confronting life’s complexities. From sly parody to theatrical exaggeration, from playful mischief to biting absurdity: laughter has always had a place on the concert stage. Surprises, transformations and contrasts guide the listener through a kaleidoscope of styles, from Monteverdi and Rossini to Berio, Satie, Ligeti and more. Bushra El-Turk has written a new work, especially for Mandillo, based on poetry by the Palestinian poet Asmaa Azaizeh (on 4 November at Bozar).

Camila Mandillo has been named a ‘Rising Star’ for the 2026–2027 season by the Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon, Casa da Música in Porto and Bozar as part of the European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO) network. During her European tour, the artist has been invited to perform at Bozar and to give a private concert for the residents of the Petit-Château (Refugee Reception Centre), in collaboration with the organisations Fedasil and Orfeo.