Lyric Opera of Chicago Announces Virtual Fall Programming
By Logan MartellWhile ongoing health regulations have forced Lyric Opera of Chicago to cancel its mainstage productions through 2020, the company has announced a reimagined programming for its fall season.
A highlight of the season will be “Twilight: Gods,” a restaging of Wagner’s “Gotterdammerung” which will take place across multiple levels of an industrial parking garage. The work will be sung in English, with new texts to be performed by interdisciplinary artist avery r. young.
The company will be offering a number of virtual events as well, such as ”Breaking Down the Score: Atilla with Maestro Enrique Mazzola.” LOC’s music director designate will host this series, with each episode exploring one of twelve musical numbers from Verdi’s “Atilla.”
In October, there will be a series of Master Classes with Sir Andrew Davis, as he works with artists of the Ryan Opera Center Ensemble on excerpts from “The Marriage of Figaro,” which Davis is scheduled to conduct at LOC in the spring of 2021.
On December 13, Mazzola will also lead “Attila Highlights in Concert,” featuring prominent artists such as Tamara Wilson as Odabella, Matthew Polenzani as Foresto, Quinn Kelsey as Ezio, and Christian Van Horn in the title role.
Finally, there will be “Creating The Factotum,” an inside look on a reimagining of “The Barber of Seville,” done by alumnus Will Liverman and recording artist K. Rico. This new version places the events in a present-day Chicago barbershop, combining elements of hip-hop, barbershop, gospel, funk, neo soul, and R&B music. The workshop will be held in December, with the behind-the-scenes video coming at a later date.
“Our mission has been clear, given the current public-health crisis,” says General Director Anthony Freud. “We have needed to harness all of the company’s creative and artistic forces to create original projects and productions designed specifically for digital platforms and reinvent how an immersive live-performance event could be possible. I’m proud to say that our upcoming slate of programming brings exciting, fresh, and experimental new takes on our art form to life and also provides some new approaches to the core repertoire.”
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