Irish National Opera's Trade/Mary Motorhead earns Grammy nomination

Irish National Opera have been nominated for the Beast Opera Recording Grammy for their digital recording of Trade/Mary Motorhead.

The news makes composer Emma O’Halloran the first Irish female composer to receive a Grammy nomination in the classical field.

“I am shocked and delighted by the nomination," said O’Halloran. "I feel so lucky to have been able to collaborate with an incredible team of artists and it means the world to me that our work is being recognised internationally at such a prestigious event.”

The opera double bill is based on Mark O’Halloran's original plays, with Mary Motorhead centred around an imprisoned woman who has just stabbed her husband in the head and Trade following a young rent boy and a middle-aged client.

“It’s about people being vulnerable – sharing things that are important to them, and things that have hurt them,” O’Halloran said of her work in a 2024 Hot Press interview.

“Even though I personally haven’t committed a violent crime, I can still connect with the disappointments Mary Motorhead might have had, or the dreams she hoped would come true, but didn’t. A lot of people would connect with those feelings."

“I don’t really want to tell stories about kings and queens – but about random people, who are very special too,” she continued.

The show toured across Ireland from August-October, 2024, to critical acclaim, making its debut at Kilkenny's Arts Festival on August 8.

"Trade/Mary Motorhead is my favourite kind of work: it dives deep, it’s honest, and is exhilarating to perform—which happens to be true of all Emma’s work," said Mary Motorhead singer Naomi Louisa O’Connell.

“It’s a really outstanding achievement for a recording of two operas by Emma O’Halloran to have attracted so much international attention," added Irish National Opera Artistic Director Fergus Sheil.

"We are honoured to have presented the operas to audiences around Ireland, and to have made this world premiere recording. This achievement is a testament to the outstanding talent of all of the creative team, cast and orchestra of Irish National Opera. It’s a great example of Irish opera having an outsized international impact."

The winner will be annocuned at the 68th annual Grammy Awards, set for Sunday, February 1, 2026 in Los Angeles.