Божидар Божкилов

Bozhidar Bozhkilov studied at the Pipkov school in Sofia with the baritone Stoyan Popov, earned a law degree from New Bulgarian University and a singing degree from the Pancho Vladigerov National Academy of Music with Niko Isakov, and completed his training at the Accademia Teatro alla Scala in 2021. He later studied in Modena with Raina Kabaivanska. Born in Sofia in 1993, he won first prize at the Stojan Stojanov Gančev competition in Zagreb in 2023 and competed at Operalia in Sofia in October 2025. His roles include Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia, with which he made his Florence debut in 2024, Ramfis in Aida at the Sofia Opera the same year, Angelotti in a Tosca at the ancient theatre in Plovdiv, and the Bonze in Madama Butterfly for the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. He was announced as Simone in Gianni Schicchi at the Mascagni Festival for the 2024/25 season. He has sung with the Plovdiv State Opera and has appeared at the Teatro Regio di Torino and the Royal Opera House Muscat. He made his stage debut at nineteen in Italian productions of Il barbiere di Siviglia, Madama Butterfly and La traviata, and specialised further in Sulmona, at the Boris Christoff Academy in Rome and at the academy of the Aix-en-Provence festival. Sonya Yoncheva chose him for the Plovdiv gala Return and, in 2024, for Colline in La Bohème at the Sofia Opera. The Ministry of Culture gave him its Gold Medal for the Boris Christoff centenary, and he holds the first national Pancho Vladigerov award for classical singing.