I know several people who have attended the Rome Festival in the past. The
general consensus is that there is not much instruction, and that the level
of singers varied from talented students with career potential to hobbyists
with not much formal operatic training. There were no coachings to speak of
and some roles were quadruple or even quintuple cast. (Meaning that each
person only got to do the role once in performance; the rest of the time
they were filling in in the chorus.) If your friend is cast in a role that
s/he really wants to do and can do without a lot of help, then this may be a
good opportunity. It will likely teach independence and tolerance as the
biggest lessons.
That said, spending a summer in Rome can't be too bad. The food is good,
the surrounding culture is amazing, and you can't beat the chance to work on
your Italian language skills.
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