Just like the crystal that a traditional 15th-anniversary gift symbolises, an intimate celebration of Australian Contemporary Opera Company’s (ACOCo) successes over the 15 years since its inception sparkled on Saturday evening at Melbourne Recital Centre’s Primrose Potter Salon.

At the heart of the concert, the pure joy of sharing the beauty and power of singing resonated. Featuring Australian-Mauritian soprano Stacey Alleaume and New Zealand baritone Hadleigh Adams — along with stellar accompaniment by brilliant Australian pianist Coady Green — the combined musical chemistry in the room warmed, ignited and thrilled.

Coady Green and Stacey Alleaume. Nicholas Krizmanic (@mannixmedia)

Alleaume and Adams hold a special place in ACOCo’s history as beacons of the company’s professional talent development program, beginning as young artists taking on meaty operatic principal roles as part of ACOCo’s inaugural production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute in 2009. With both artists making increasingly widespread impact on the opera scene and firmly secured on exciting career paths, witnessing their artistry near on at arm’s reach proved an experience to relish.

Not to be forgotten, among heroes there is Linda Thompson. Not only as ACOCo’s founding artistic director, but as producer, accomplished soprano and...