Lyric Opera of Chicago has announced that Craig C. Martin, Chair-Elect and a longtime business and philanthropic leader in Chicago, will be its new Board Chair. He was elected during a meeting of Lyric’s Board of Directors on Oct. 15, 2025, and will assume the position of Board Chair at Lyric’s Annual Meeting on May 20, 2026. Martin, Chairman, Americas {…}
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Opera in the Neighborhoods program will tour “Katie: The Strongest of the Strong,” a bold new opera for young audiences celebrating the life of circus strongwoman Katie Sandwina. The production will visit schools and community groups across Chicago and the suburbs throughout October and November, with nine student performances and one public performance, reaching thousands of {…}
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Ryan Opera Center has unveiled the singers selected for the 2026-27 ensemble. The newcomers include sopranos Kylie Kreucher and Josie Larsen, baritone Adam Partridge, and bass-baritones Matthew Dexter and Lin Fan. Meanwhile, the returning Ensemble members are mezzo-sopranos Alexis Peart and Camille Robles, tenor Daniel Luis Espinal, baritone Sihao Hu, and bass-baritone Benjamin R. Sokol. The new members, selected from a pool {…}
Lyric Opera of Chicago is set to showcase “Sunday in the Park With Lyric” on Sept. 7, 2025. The outdoor performance at Millennium Park will be led by Enrique Mazzola and Chi-Yuan Lin, the Lyric Opera’s Music Director and the Ryan Opera Center’s Conductor, respectively. The performance will feature highlights from the forthcoming 2025-26 season. “After completing my debut season {…}
Lyric Opera of Chicago and Black Leadership Arts Collective (B.L.A.C.) are joining forces to present the “Echoes of Excellence” Recital on Nov. 8, 2025. The program will feature such artists as sopranos Angela Brown, Alyson Cambridge, Laquita Mitchell, and Jacqueline Echols; mezzo-sopranos Lucia Bradford and J’Nai Bridges, an alumna of Lyric’s Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center; tenors {…}
Mary Stowell is set to join the Board of Directors of the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Stowell is a founding partner and was counsel of Stowell & Friedman, which focuses on civil and workers’ rights. She was also Assistant United States Attorney in the Criminal Division of the Northern Disstrict of Illinois. Additionally, Stowell has been a Lyric Opera of {…}
Pene Pati is having a breakout season, making important debuts at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Metropolitan Opera. The tenor has been hailed for his “extraordinary gift for producing a golden thread of sound” and his “round and sunshine-filled voice.” He has won numerous awards around the world including the Opus Klassik Newcomer of the Year Award, Best {…}
The Lyric Opera of Chicago has received a historic gift from longtime supporter and Vice Chair of its Board of Directors Penelope Steiner. The gift of $25 million represents one of the largest, one-time, individual contributions in the company’s history and marks a defining moment for Lyric as it embarks on a new chapter under the leadership of General Director, {…}
The Lyric Opera of Chicago has announced its 2025-26 season. The company will open with the Lyric Opening Concert & Gala. Performance Date: Oct. 10, 2025 The first production of the season will be Cherubini’s “Medea“ starring Sondra Radvanovsky in Sir. David McVicar’s production. She will be joined by Matthew Polenzani, Elena Villalón, Zoie Reams, and Alfred Walker. Enrique Mazzola {…}
The year is at an end. But a new year brings new opera experiences and here at OperaWire, we are pumped for the potential of numerous performances. Here are the 10 productions we are most excited for in the first half of the 2025, in alphabetical order (and each company is limited to a single production on the list). Die {…}
(Photo by Todd Rosenberg Photography) Lyric Opera of Chicago’s first season without erstwhile General Director Anthony Freud began as his last concluded: with Verdi. Lyric opened 2024-25 and John Mangum’s tenure far more successfully than last season’s dispiriting staging of “Aida,” with Verdi’s indestructible mid-career masterpiece “Rigoletto.” On opening nights, Lyric usually mounts either a new production or one new-to-Chicago, {…}