REVIEW: Circus HAMLET Via The New York Circus Project at Chicago's Studebaker Theater Through August 18th, 2024

This Tragedy's a Triumph!

ChiIL Mama's Chi, IL Picks List

 

Circus meets Shakespeare in cutting-edge production 

Geared toward adults but recommended for all ages 4+

90 minutes/no intermission

REVIEW

By Bonnie Kenaz-Mara

A 90 minute circus arts filled Hamlet?! Yes please! Last night I had the pleasure of ChiILin’ at New York Circus Project’s Hamlet, at Studebaker Theater, and I was absolutely gobsmacked by this powerful production. This is the first Chicago visit for The New York Circus Project, and we fervently hope it won't be the last! I belatedly found out about the production, and I'm so happy they were able to squeeze me in to review on this short run. Get thee to the Studebaker. Fans of Circus Arts, Shakespeare, and actors performing super human feats, don't miss this! Highly recommended. ★★★★ Four out of four stars.

Here at ChiIL Mama, we're no strangers to circus arts or Shakespeare. Since 2008, we've been covering Cirque du Soleil, Ringling, and other modern and traditional circuses from around the world, and right here at home. In fact, my son and daughter were cast in numerous youth circus arts show at Chicago's Actors Gymnasium, and were on the circus performance team at Circesteem. They also took classes at MSA and Aloft. So, I can attest to the talent and skills of this company. I've also been a theatre critic for 16 years, reviewing a plethora of professional productions of The Bard's works, including multiple Hamlets. This one is completely unique, highly entertaining, and a must see!

 

We were wowed by the aerial arts, partner acro, and sheer variety of circus skills rolled into this fast paced production. The hour and a half flew by. Everything was stellar from the actors, to the set, choreography, lighting, and song choices. The music spanned decades, from classics to contemporary, and added much. I want the playlist! 

My only criticism is that I wish the dialogue was as loud as the music. We were about halfway back on the main floor, and when the actors were upstage or turned away, it was a struggle to hear all the lines. This may be a venue issue. As much as we adore the art deco charm of The Studebaker Theatre, it was built in 1898... Still, it seemed as if the actors were not wearing mics, or if they were, they need to be turned up. It's a cavernous space to project in with only stage amplification! 

Overall, this is an excellent pick for multigenerational fun. All the circus skills are hella impressive. And we were completely entranced by Ophelia’s gorgeous, water contortion death scene! This abridged version retains all the key plot points, famous lines, and favorite characters, while keeping the action flowing fast. Yes, everyone dies, so don't expect a lighthearted fluff piece of a circus show. Still, it's a great, fast paced, playful way to introduce the littles (and Bard-wary adults, too) to a love of Shakespeare. Flippin' fantastic! ★★★★ Four out of Four Stars 

Bonnie is a Chicago based writer, theatre critic, photographer, artist, and Mama to 2 amazing adults. She owns two websites where she publishes frequently: ChiILLiveShows.com (adult) & ChiILMama.com (family friendly).

“ …dramatizing the inner conflict of the characters through dance and circus created a fundamentally different viewing experience than most productions of the play…utterly creative and original” (Columbia Bwog)

“Breaking the boundaries of art forms and time, ‘Hamlet’ ultimately traversed the lines of what a Shakespeare play should look like—revealing an undiscovered terrain within the arts world waiting for interdisciplinary talents to fill it with color.” (Columbia Spectator)

“...immensely effective in forwarding the tense, psychological themes at the heart of Hamlet”(The Blue and White)

The New York Circus Project brings HAMLET, an innovative, circus-infused retelling of the Shakespearean classic to Chicago, IL as the final stop in its premier touring season.

HAMLET upends what audiences expect of Shakespeare by blending theater with circus arts to arrive at a unique iteration of a well-known tragedy. The production’s fast-paced, abbreviated script is balanced with circus acts that change the story’s tempo and allow for deeper exploration of the internal, emotional conflict at hand. 

Hamlet’s delirium materializes in an explosive group acrobatic tableau, Ophelia’s life flashes before her eyes during a last-breath contortion performance in a water filled basin, and the ghost of Hamlet’s father’s famous monologue is reimagined as a solo aerial dance act.

By oscillating between scenes with dialogue and circus performance, the lines between realism and internal monologue blur. Comparable to the use of song to emphasize emotional or narrative beats in musical theater, this interdisciplinary approach fills Shakespeare’s Hamlet with new color and life.

HAMLET opens at Studebaker Theater from August 15th to August 18th. 

Tickets are on sale now! Website: newyorkcircusproject.org

Evening performances are at 8pm, with matinees on Saturday and Sunday. 

Tickets are priced between $49 and $79.

New York Circus Project is a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to producing contemporary circus shows in New York City and the United States, using acrobatics as a medium for presenting classic texts in a visually striking and unique way. Additionally, New York Circus Project produces free-to-the-public, family friendly circus cabaret performances on the streets of New York City. 

Chicago Opera Theater Presents Freedom Ride With Chicago Sinfonietta at Studebaker Theater Through February 16, 2020

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

World Premiere

FREEDOM RIDE

Commissioned by Chicago Opera Theater

Music & Libretto by Dan Shore

Conducted by Lidiya Yankovskaya

Directed by Tazewell Thompson

I'm elated to spend Valentines Day reviewing the world premiere of Dan Shore’s Freedom Ride, based on the Civil Rights Movement in New Orleans, at the Studebaker Theater. Developed at Xavier University in collaboration with activists who lived the history, Freedom Ride explores themes with searing social relevance, via a score that draws from Louisiana’s rich musical traditions. A diverse cast of Chicago-based artists and internationally acclaimed talent join the Chicago Sinfonietta to bring this powerful work to life.

When the Congress of Racial Equality comes to New Orleans in the sweltering summer of 1961, Sylvie Davenport is torn. Handed a pamphlet and asked to board a Greyhound bus, Sylvie is forced to choose between her academic future and the future of the nation in a story that highlights how far we’ve come and how far we still have left to go.

Tazewell Thompson (Blue, Jubilee) directs this world premiere new work, developed at Xavier University with the activists who lived the history. Staley Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya conducts the critically acclaimed Chicago Sinfonietta.



Saturday, February 8, 2020 | 7:30 PM
Friday, February 14, 2020 | 7:30 PM
Sunday, February 16, 2020 | 3:00 PM

Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya
Director Tazewell Thompson
Scenic Design Donald Eastman
Costume Design Harry Nadal
Projection Design Rasean Davonte Johnson
Lighting Designer Robert Wierzel
Assistant Conductor Kedrick Armstrong
Chorus Master Adrian Dunn

CAST:
Sylvie Davenport Dara Rahming
Leonie Baker Whitney Morrison
Georgia Davenport Zoie Reams
Russell Davenport Tyrone Chambers
Rev. Mitchell Cornelius Johnson
Clayton Thomas Robert Sims
Ruby Kim Jones
Mae, Chorus Samantha Schmid*
Gloria, Chorus, Georgia (Cover) Leah Dexter
Frances, Chorus Morgan Middleton*
Marc, Chorus Blake Friedman
Tommie, Chorus, Clayton (Cover) Vince Wallace
Chorus, Leonie Baker (Cover) Joelle Lamarre
Chorus, Russell (Cover) Cameo Humes
Reverend Mitchell (Cover) Curtis Bannister
Chorus, Mae (Cover) Kristina Bachrach
Chorus, Marc (Cover) William Ottow*
Chorus, Tommie (Cover) Keanon Kyles
Chorus, Gloria (Cover), Francis (Cover) Beena David



COT is thrilled to partner with Chicago Sinfonietta for Freedom Ride.

Since 1987, Chicago Sinfonietta has been a defiantly different kind of orchestra. The orchestra was founded by Maestro Paul Freeman to address the disconnect between the utter lack of diversity in orchestras and the vibrant, nuanced, communities for which they play. For nearly 30 years, we have made it our mission to represent the city of Chicago, reflecting that vibrancy on stage and in our programming, making classical music accessible for anyone.

In everything we do, we are inspired by our founder Paul Freeman (1936-2015). From humble roots in Richmond, Virginia, he grew to become a passionate musician and ultimately a brilliant conductor equally respected for his knowledge of music as he was for his natural leadership and charming sense of humor. He was the first African American conductor on the podium of more than 50 orchestras worldwide and conducted more than 100 orchestras in 28 countries over the course of his career. He served as chief conductor of the Czech National Symphony Orchestra in Prague (1996-2007) and the music director of the Victoria Symphony in Canada (1979-1989). He made more than 200 recordings in his career (on par with mega maestros such as von Karajan and Bernstein) and highlighted prominent, but under-recorded, diverse composers at every turn.

And, so it goes. The accomplishments of Paul Freeman are startling in their magnitude.

The orchestra’s 29 years have been highlighted by six European tours, two Kennedy Center performances, two Millennium Park concerts attended by over 19,000 people, and 15 recordings. For nearly 30 years, diversity, inclusion and bold and dynamic programming has been at the center of what we do. Rarely performed music by composers of color are a Sinfonietta staple and often include almost entirely lost compositions that are carefully pieced together and preserved through recording and/or the production of sheet music. Unusual instruments and musical styles like the bagpipes, steel drums, sitar, Indian Ghazal music, hip hop, and yes, even cell phones have served as centerpieces for Sinfonietta programs – some of the most daring musical collaborations any orchestra is putting on stage.

In 2011, Maestro Mei-Ann Chen began her tenure with the orchestra (as only the second Music Director in the Sinfonietta’s history). In her first season, the Sinfonietta was named by ASCAP as the recipient of the 2011-12 Award for Adventurous Programming and in 2013 was dubbed, “The city’s hippest orchestra” by the Chicago Tribune. From a battle of the bands with Mucca Pazza to collaborations with Young Chicago Authors, FootworKINGZ, and bass virtuoso, Victor Wooten the Sinfonietta has embraced the daring programming that has always been part of its history. In turn, audience response over the last five seasons has been unprecedented.

The legacy passed to Maestro Chen and all of us at the Sinfonietta goes far beyond what you see on stage. Maestro Freeman was, throughout his lifetime, a fierce advocate for early career, diverse musicians. Many of the musicians you see on stage (including our Concert Master since 1993, Paul Zafer) are the direct beneficiaries of this vision and personal investment that Maestro Freeman made in so many people. In 2008, this practice was formalized to create our Project Inclusion Fellowship Program. In the 9 seasons since this program began, Project Inclusion has served 45 fellows – more than all other similar fellowship programs in the country combined according to a 2016 League of American Orchestras study.

Freedom Ride is a part of Chicago Theatre Week!

Theatre week tickets are currently SOLD OUT, but check back for updates.

Special thanks to our sponsors for Freedom Ride:

Season Sponsors | Julie & Roger Baskes
Production Sponsor | Virginia Tobiason
Robert Sims Sponsors | Enriqueta & Ronald Bauer

This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.

This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.
The More & Genius Operating Reserve Fund provided partial support for this project.

REVIEW: “THE SCARLET IBIS” at CHICAGO OPERA THEATER

CHICAGO OPERA THEATER PRESENTS 
“THE SCARLET IBIS” 
FEBRUARY 16, 21 AND 24 AT HISTORIC STUDEBAKER THEATER

Operatic Adaptation of James Hurst’s 1960 Short Story Premieres in Chicago Having Received Rave Reviews at 2015 Prototype Festival

Guest Review
By Catherine Hellmann

Oh, how I love this city! On my way to the Studebaker Studio in the Fine Arts Building the other night, a sweet violinist on the street helped steer me in the right direction on Michigan Avenue. “What show are you seeing? The symphony?” No, Chicago Opera Theater. She was in the orchestra at the Auditorium for the Joffrey Ballet and said it is an amazing show. Ahhhh...so much culture in our world-class town. We are so spoiled.

The Chicago premiere of the contemporary opera The Scarlet Ibis was composed by Stefan Weisman with a libretto by David Cote. According to their press release: “Chicago Opera Theater presents the first full production of this operatic adaptation of James Hurst’s 1960 short story (apart from its festival debut), featuring the artistry of stage director Elizabeth Margolius and conductor David Hanlon. The opera stars Annie Rosen (who also performed in COT’s season-opening production of “Iolanta”) as Brother and Jordan Rutter as Doodle.”

Annie Rosen, mezzo-soprano, is amazing in the trouser role of Brother. Big Brother is the one who gives baby William his new nickname of “Doodle,” short for “Doodle Bug,” since the baby moves backwards. The opera opens with the mom in childbirth; Quinn Middleman sings her shrieks as the contractions continue on. William is a difficult birth, a tiny baby, and handicapped. However, he is born with a caul, “which is cut from Jesus’ nightgown,” according to his superstitious aunt. (A sheer curtain falls from the ceiling during the childbirth scene, representing the caul, which is a clever bit of staging.) It is believed that the caul will give him special abilities. Auntie is sung by a true contralto, Sharmay Musacchio, who hits the lowest notes I have ever heard from a woman. There is a great line where she insists the baby will be a boy because the mom is “carrying low, low, looooww,” with her voice hitting descending notes, playing a musical joke, resonating in that deep register.   

Because he is a sickly child, William is not expected to live. In a heartbreaking scene, his father, played by Bill McMurray, mourns his newborn as he constructs a small coffin. McMurray is so affecting in the role that his grief really moved me.  

But Wiliam not only survives, he thrives, under the guidance of his big brother. Doodle initially seems cognitively impaired. Until the day he gives Brother a huge smile; then big brother joyfully realizes “he’s all there.” Doodle is sung by countertenor Jordan Rutter. His voice is so high, I assumed the singer must be another woman in a pants role. Then I squinted at my program and saw the head shot showed a man with a beard. Wow. Having the two extremes of vocal ranges is unusual. The composer explains in the program that he wanted Doodle’s voice to sound “otherworldly” and “the female voices would be set lower than Doodle’s to allow his lines to soar above them all.”

The relationship between the brothers is so love-hate and typical. Doodle adores Brother. There are times when Brother is so big-brother mean to little Doodle, like calling him a “crippled runt,”  that I wanted Doddle to thump her with his cane!

But Doodle has too pure a heart. And he is too good for this world.

My Best Pal Mary had her reservations about the show based on the premise, but she fell in love with this unique production, as did I.

We later ran into the singer who played Auntie on Michigan Avenue. (great place to find musicians, apparently) “Weren’t you the aunt in the opera?” I called out. “Yes, I was,” replied Ms. Musacchio. She was gracious enough to stop and chat a couple minutes. I told her that she had that incredible low voice. She thanked me and said audiences don’t get to hear contraltos very often...or countertenors, either.

“Oh, a countertenor is like a unicorn!” I gushed. She laughed and agreed. They are just so rare.

Ms. Musacchio said she is from California but likes Chicago. She also said the entire cast is very tight, and it is “like a family” with Chicago Opera Theater. She had never experienced that kind of a closeness before.

What can I say? We live in a world-class city with fabulous arts and friendly folks. I can't imagine being anywhere else.  


Catherine Hellmann usually wins at “Three Truths and a Lie” because she really did walk 60 miles in three days (Avon Breast Cancer Walk), met Senator-Elect Barack Obama in the park, and sang twice at Carnegie Hall. She is a teacher by day and theater junkie by night. Her favorite job ever was leading tours at Wrigley Field




Chicago Opera Theater (COT) continues its 2018/2019 season with the Chicago premiere of the contemporary opera “The Scarlet Ibis.” Composed by Stefan Weisman with libretto by David Cote, “The Scarlet Ibis” was declared an “outstanding new chamber opera” by David Allen of The New York Times upon its debut at the 2015 Prototype Festival. Chicago Opera Theater presents the first full production of this operatic adaptation of James Hurst’s 1960 short story (apart from its festival debut), featuring the artistry of stage director Elizabeth Margolius and conductor David Hanlon. The opera stars Annie Rosen (who also performed in COT’s season-opening production of “Iolanta”) as Brother and Jordan Rutter as Doodle. 

The opening night and press performance takes place Saturday, February 16 at 7:30 p.m. at the Studebaker Theater (410 S. Michigan Ave.) Additional performances will take place Thursday, February 21 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, February 24 at 3 p.m.  

That same week, COT will present a week-long workshop culminating in the first full concert performance of “The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing” by composer Justine F. Chen and librettist David Simpatico as part of Chicago Opera Theater’s Vanguard Initiative to promote the creation of new opera.

“COT’s mission to support the creation of new operatic work is exemplified in our February programming, with the first production of ‘The Scarlet Ibis’ since its debut at the 2015 Prototype Festival, and the first concert performance of ‘The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing’ as part of our Vanguard Initiative,” said Stefan Edlis and Gael Neeson General Director Douglas R. Clayton. “COT is proud to provide an opportunity for Chicago to see such new and exquisite operas for the first time.”

Based on James Hurst’s classic American short story, “The Scarlet Ibis” is a moving tale about brotherhood, nature and family, set in North Carolina against the backdrop of World War I. It tells the story of a young boy named Doodle and his relationship with his brother, exploring the ways people ‘other’ those who are different and questioning what it means to be ‘normal.’ The piece was commissioned and developed through the HERE Artist Residency Program (HARP) and Dream Music Puppetry Program and co-produced by Beth Morrison Projects, premiering at the Prototype Festival in January 2015 in New York City.

“It’s thrilling to see ‘The Scarlet Ibis’ picked up for a second production following its premiere at our Prototype Festival,” said co-producer Beth Morrison. “Chicago Opera Theater is a forward thinking opera company, truly embodying what a 21st century opera company should be.”

Composer Stefan Weisman spoke to the development process of the opera stating, “One element of creating this opera that felt really unique was that the two leads are a countertenor and mezzo-soprano, both high voices for male characters. And they are played by two different genders. We are playing around with traditional notions of gender and power—the weaker of the two is the male singer, and the stronger is the female singer.”

Librettist David Cote continued, “The story is very much in the tradition of Flannery O’Connor, Tennessee Williams, even William Faulkner. The language is lush and flowery, the emotions run high and the ending is both beautiful and tragic. I’m not a Southerner, I grew up in small-town New Hampshire, but I drew on memories of living near a lake and playing in the woods to create the sense of nature and wonder in the opera.”

In addition to Rosen and Rutter, “The Scarlet Ibis” cast includes Quinn Middleman as Mother, Sharmay Musacchio as Aunt Nicey, Bill McMurray as Father and dancer Ginny Ngo.



Creative Team for The Scarlet Ibis

Composer: Stefan Weisman

Librettist: David Cote

Conductor: David Hanlon

Stage Director: Elizabeth Margolius

Lighting Design: Charlie Cooper

Scenic Design: Jack Magaw

Costume Design: Brenda Winstead


About Stefan Weisman

Stefan Weisman’s music has been described as "personal, moody and skillfully wrought" (The New York Times). His compositions include chamber, orchestral, theater, dance and choral pieces, and he has specialized in vocal works that explore edgy and compelling topics. His operas include “Darkling” (American Opera Projects), “Fade” (Second Movement), and “The Scarlet Ibis” (produced by HERE and Beth Morrison Projects and premiered in the 2015 PROTOTYPE opera festival). He is a graduate of Bard College (BA), Yale University (MA), and Princeton University (PhD). Presently, he is on the faculty of the Bard High School Early College in Queens, New York. 


About David Cote

David Cote is a playwright, librettist and arts journalist based in New York City. His operas include “Three Way” with composer Robert Paterson (Nashville Opera and BAM); “The Scarlet Ibis” (Prototype Festival) and “Fade” with Stefan Weisman. Other works include his plays “Otherland” and “Fear of Art;” song cycle with Paterson, “In Real Life;” choral works with Paterson, “Did You Hear?” and “Snow Day.” Cote was born and adopted in New Hampshire and is a proud alum of Bard College. His fellowships include The MacDowell Colony, and he is a member of the New York Drama Critics Circle, ASCAP and the Dramatists Guild.



About David Hanlon

David Hanlon is a composer, conductor and pianist praised by Maestro Patrick Summers as “one of the major compositional voices of the young generation.” He has often written work for Houston Grand Opera, including his chamber opera “Past the Checkpoints” about undocumented immigrants, the chamber vocal piece “The Ninth November I Was Hiding,” about his grandfather's arrest during Kristallnacht and “Power,” based on a text by a high-schooler about bullying. Hanlon was recently commissioned by the Opera For All Voices consortium to write a new chamber opera with librettist Stephanie Fleischmann, and recently conducted the premiere of his and Fleischmann's chamber opera “After the Storm” at Houston Grand Opera.


About Elizabeth Margolius

Elizabeth Margolius is a Chicago-based Joseph Jefferson Award-nominated stage and movement director with a primary focus in developing and directing new and rarely produced music theater, operetta and opera. Margolius’ Chicago and regional stage and movement directorial credits include “Miss Holmes” for Peninsula Players, “Machinal” for Greenhouse Theater, “The Bridges of Madison County” for Peninsula Players, “The Boy Who Grew Too Fast” for SUNY/Albany Opera Program and “Uncle Philip’s Coat” for Greenhouse Theater. Margolius has been a guest director, master artist and guest/adjunct lecturer at numerous colleges, universities and festivals including the University of Nebraska, DePaul University and SUNY Albany.

About Chicago Opera Theater
Chicago Opera Theater (COT) is a nationally recognized opera company based in Chicago, now in its 45th season. COT expands the tradition of opera as a living art form, with an emphasis on Chicago premieres, including new contemporary operas for a 21st century audience.

In addition to its programmed mainstage season, COT is devoted to the development and production of new opera in the United States through the Vanguard Initiative, launched in the Spring of 2018. The Vanguard Initiative mentors emerging opera composers, invests time and talent in new opera at various stages of the creative process and presents the Living Opera Series to showcase new and developing work.

Since its founding in 1973 by Alan Stone, COT has staged more than 125 operas, including over 65 Chicago premieres and more than 35 operas by American composers.

COT is led by Stefan Edlis and Gael Neeson General Director Douglas R. Clayton and Orli and Bill Staley Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya. As of fall 2018, Maestro Yankovskaya is the only woman with the title Music Director at any of the top 50 opera companies in the United States. COT currently performs at the Studebaker Theater (Michigan & Congress) and the Harris Theater for Music & Dance (Michigan & Randolph).


For more information on the Chicago Opera Theater and its programs please visit chicagooperatheater.org.

REVIEW: “Iolanta” at Chicago Opera Theater

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar:

CHICAGO OPERA THEATER PRESENTS 

TCHAIKOVSKY’S “IOLANTA” 

IN SEASON-OPENING PERFORMANCES 

AT HISTORIC STUDEBAKER THEATER

Review of Opera “Iolanta” at Chicago Opera Theater
By Catherine Hellmann, guest critic

Chicago is blessed with two professional opera companies. Who knew? We are all familiar with the heralded Lyric Opera, and those accolades are very well deserved. But there is also a scrappy little opera company that has been around since 1973, Chicago Opera Theater. The singing of their principal players is just as exquisite, and their company is less pretentious and, therefore, more accessible.  

With a short season of three shows, there are still two more lesser-known shows to be produced by COT in the spring: The Scarlet Ibis on February 16, 21, and 24, 2019, and Moby-Dick on April 25 and 28, 2019. Chicago Opera Theater prides itself on featuring operas that are outside the traditional canon; they are to be commended for that. All three shows in their repertoire this season are Chicago premieres. The company brings in “new contemporary operas for a 21st century audience,” according to their website. The opening show of Iolanta was impressive.

It was a performance of “firsts,” as described by General Director Doug Clayton in his welcoming remarks. Iolanta marked the podium debut of Maestro Lidiya Yankovskaya, the only woman with the title Music Director at a top 50 opera company in the United States. (Wow. That is actually really impressive for COT, but sad throughout the music world.) Maestro Yankovskaya gave the pre-show talk, and her passion for this piece was evident. The performance marked the company debut of international stage director Paul Curran. And finally, Iolanta was the last operatic work by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, with a libretto by his brother Modest, and was being brought to life in our beloved Windy City 126 years after its debut.

With a mostly Chicago-based cast,  Iolanta is sung in the original Russian and stars Katherine Weber in the title role as a blind princess who isn’t aware that she’s blind. (Hey, it’s opera, which historically is goofy as hell in terms of plot.) Weber’s voice is stunning, as is Mikhail Svetlov as her father, King Rene, who has kept her blindness as a big secret. Chicago tenor John Irvin is wonderful as Duke Vaudemont who falls in love with Iolanta. She is betrothed to someone else, but fortunately, that dog Duke Robert, sung by Christopher Magiera, conveniently falls in love with another girl. Also of particular note is bass-baritone Bill McMurray as the physician Ibn-Hakia who advises the skeptical king that the only way to cure his daughter’s blindness is revealing to her that she is unable to see.

Chicago Opera Theater currently performs at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance at Michigan and Randolph. Iolanta was performed at the Studebaker Theater at Michigan and Congress in the old Fine Arts Building, built in 1898 to host vaudeville shows! (My pal Mary and I were amazed to discover this charming venue, recently restored, in such a historic facility.) Originally built in 1885 by architect Solon S. Beman (who designed Pullmantown for George Pullman) to house the Studebaker Corporation’s Midwest buggy sales and repair facility, the Fine Arts Building is worth the trip for exploring. And you can catch a great, under-appreciated opera in a fabulous setting as well.

This was my first Chicago Opera Theater performance. I was entranced. It won’t be my last.

Catherine Hellmann is a teacher, writer, and theater junkie. She has tried to inspire urban and rural middle schoolers for over twenty years. A mother of three, she is thrilled to once again claim Chicago as home.  

Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya Leads Chicago Premiere of Tchaikovsky’s Final Opera

Chicago Opera Theater (COT) will kick off the 2018/2019 season with “Iolanta,” a Chicago premiere of legendary composer P.I. Tchaikovsky’s final opera. Internationally renowned and award-winning conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya will make her conducting debut as Chicago Opera Theater’s Staley Music Director and set the tone for the season to come. Acclaimed stage director Paul Curran, known for his work at Santa Fe Opera, Lyric Opera Chicago and more, will shape the retelling of this joyous love-story, featuring an almost entirely Chicago-based cast including soprano Katherine Weber as Iolanta, and renowned Russian bass Mikhail Svetlov as Rene. The opening night and press performance takes place on Saturday, November 10 at 7:30 p.m. at the historic Studebaker Theater (410 S. Michigan Ave.) Additional performances will take place Thursday, November 15 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, November 18 at 3 p.m.  

“After 18 months of planning and preparation behind the scenes, I’m thrilled to finally be jumping into the COT orchestra pit,” said COT’s Staley Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya. “I’m particularly gratified to have the opportunity to bring the sounds of my homeland to my new home, as this opera – Tchaikovsky’s last – has never before been staged in Chicago. ‘Iolanta’ is a very personal work, written by Tchaikovsky at the height of his compositional powers, alongside the person closest to him – his brother Modest. Perhaps because it examines the transformed worldviews of characters in dramatically different life stages, I find that the work resonates in a new way each time I conduct it.”

“Iolanta” tells the story of a princess, with Weber starring in the titular role, who has been blind since birth. She is unaware of her condition and her privileged social status thanks to the actions of her overprotective father, King Rene. When the well-meaning Duke Vaudemont falls in love with her, she learns of her blindness and true love offers her a chance at a cure. Iolanta must choose between the life built for her and one she’s never seen.

The opera is based on the Danish play “Kong René Datter” by Henrik Hertz, a romanticized take on the life of Yolande de Bar. The opera premiered on December 18, 1892 at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, sharing a double bill with Tchaikovsky’s last ballet, “The Nutcracker.”

In addition to Weber and Svetlov, the cast includes John Irvin as Vaudemont, Christopher Magiera as Robert, Bill McMurray as Ibn-Hakia, Emma Ritter as Marta, Katherine Peterson as Brigitta, Annie Rosen as Laura, David Govertsen as Bertrand, and Kyle Knapp as Almeric.

Creative Team for Iolanta
Composer: P.I. Tchaikovsky
Librettist: Modest Tchaikovsky
Conductor: Lidiya Yankovskaya
Stage Director: Paul Curran
Lighting & Projection Designer: Driscoll Otto
Scenic Design: Alan Muraoka
Costume Design: Jenny Mannis

Performance Schedule
Saturday, November 10, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, November 15, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, November 18, 3 p.m.

Subscriptions to the 2018/2019 season of Chicago Opera Theater are on sale now for $95 - $435. Single show tickets for “Iolanta” are on sale now at chicagooperatheater.org for $45 - $145.

About Lidiya Yankovskaya
Russian-American conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya is a champion of Russian masterpieces, operatic rarities and contemporary works on the leading edge of classical music. This season, Yankovskaya conducts Heggie’s “Moby-Dick” at COT, Kamala Sankaram’s “Taking Up Serpents” at Washington National Opera, and Ricky Ian Gordon’s “Ellen West” at Opera Saratoga. She debuts with Mobile Symphony in “Carmina Burana,” leads Laura Schwendinger’s “Artemisia” at Trinity Wall Street, and returns to New York’s National Sawdust for its Hildegard Competition Concert.

As Music Director of Harvard’s Lowell House Opera, she conducted sold-out performances of repertoire rarely heard in Boston, including Tchaikovsky’s “Queen of Spades,” Britten’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” and the U.S. Russian-language premiere of Rimsky-Korsakov’s “The Snow Maiden.” Her commitment to exploring the breadth of symphonic and operatic repertoire has also been demonstrated in performances of Rachmaninoff’s “Aleko” and the American premieres of Donizetti’s “Pia de’ Tolomei,” Rubinshteyn’s “The Demon,” and Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Kashchej The Immortal” and Symphony No. 1. Yankovskaya is founder of the Refugee Orchestra Project, which performs this season at the United Nations. She has served as Artistic Director of the Boston New Music Festival and Juventas New Music Ensemble, where she led operatic experiments with puppetry, circus acts, and robotic instruments, as well as premieres by more than two dozen composers. A recipient of a 2018 Solti Foundation Career Assistance Award, Yankovskaya is also an alumna of the Dallas Opera’s Hart Institute for Women Conductors and Marin Alsop’s Taki Concordia Fellowship. She has been featured in the League of American Orchestras Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview and Cabrillo Festival for Contemporary Music, and will assist Vladimir Jurowski via a London Philharmonic fellowship this spring. Other future engagements include performances in Arizona, Chicago, New York, and Minneapolis.

About Paul Curran
Award winning Scottish director, Paul Curran, was born in Glasgow, Scotland and studied dance in London and Helsinki. After a serious injury stopped his career, he retrained as a director at the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney, graduating in 1992. His first job in opera was as assistant director to Baz Luhrmann, after which his own international career took off with productions at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, Teatro Dell’Opera Rome and the Covent Garden Festival, then directing Borodin’s “Prince Igor” with Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Theatre at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Curran has directed productions in many of the world’s leading opera houses and concert halls including ROH Covent Garden, Metropolitan Opera, La Scala Milan, Teatro La Fenice, Kennedy Centre Washington DC and Berlin Philharmonic. In addition to opera, Curran has also directed several musicals including “My Fair Lady,” “Man of La Mancha,” “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” and “A Little Night Music.” A keen linguist, Curran speaks 9 languages and has also translated several plays by Moliere, Chekhov and Ostrovsky.

About Katherine Weber
Described as “a confident singing actress with a magnetic stage presence” by Opera News, Katherine Weber is a rising star in the Chicago opera scene. She debuted for both the DuPage Opera and Boulder Symphony during the 2017/2018 season as Violetta in “La Traviata” and is set to return to DuPage Opera this season as Rosalinda in “Die Fledermaus.” She was a featured soloist with the Winona Oratorio Chorus and Orchestra in performances of Beethoven’s “Mass in C,” Vivaldi’s “Gloria” and Mozart’s “Requiem.” She also covered Nedda in Virginia Opera’s performance of “Pagliacci.” She has been a regional finalist at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 2015 and 2017.



About Chicago Opera Theater

Chicago Opera Theater (COT) is a nationally recognized opera company based in Chicago, now in its 45th season. COT expands the tradition of opera as a living art form, with an emphasis on Chicago premieres, including new contemporary operas for a 21st century audience.

In addition to its programmed mainstage season, COT is devoted to the development and production of new opera in the United States through the Vanguard Initiative, launched in the Spring of 2018. The Vanguard Initiative mentors emerging opera composers, invests time and talent in new opera at various stages of the creative process and presents the Living Opera Series to showcase new and developing work.

Since its founding in 1973 by Alan Stone, COT has staged more than 125 operas, including 66 Chicago premieres and 36 operas by American composers.

COT is led by Stefan Edlis and Gael Neeson General Director Douglas R. Clayton and Orli and Bill Staley Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya. As of fall 2017, Maestro Yankovskaya is the only woman with the title Music Director at any of the top 50 opera companies in the United States. COT currently performs at the Studebaker Theater (Michigan & Congress) and the Harris Theater for Music & Dance (Michigan & Randolph).

For more information on the Chicago Opera Theater and its programs please visit chicagooperatheater.org.

Celebrate Dizzy Gillespie Centennial One Night Only 5/20/17 With Chicago Jazz Orchestra

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

CHICAGO JAZZ ORCHESTRA CELEBRATES DIZZY GILLESPIE CENTENNIAL WITH DEFINITIVELY DIZZY, 

SATURDAY, MAY 20 

AT CHICAGO'S STUDEBAKER THEATER 

Dizzy Gillespie

The Chicago Jazz Orchestra, under the direction of Jeff Lindberg, will celebrate the centennial of Dizzy Gillespie with Definitively Dizzy, a live concert celebrating one of the greatest jazz trumpeters of all time. 

Definitively Dizzy is a one-night-only event, Saturday, May 20 at 7:30 p.m. at the newly renovated Studebaker Theater, 410 S. Michigan Ave. on the first floor of Chicago's historic Fine Arts Building. Tickets are $35 and $45. For tickets and information, visit chicagojazzorchestra.org or call (312) 753-3210.

Internationally known guest artists include two-time Grammy winner Roy Hargrove, one of the most innovative trumpeters in the world and a frequent performer at Chicago's Jazz Showcase. 

Marquis Hill, a rising young jazz star and winner of the 2014 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition, is returning to his hometown, Chicago, to perform with the CJO in Definitively Dizzy. 

Also on the program is Walter White, a powerhouse player from Detroit.

Add the CJO Trumpet section - Danny Barber, Art Davis, Victor Garcia and Doug Scharf - for a Dizzy celebration that promises to be uniquely CJO, highlighted by universally loved Dizzy classics.

"The CJO will present an exciting and explosive celebration of Dizzy Gillespie's 100th year, focusing on his formidable big band repertoire. The performance will include such Gillespie classics as 'Salt Peanuts,' 'Manteca,' 'Groovin' High,' 'A Night In Tunisia,' 'Cool Breeze,' 'Things To Come,' 'Tour de Force,' ''Round Midnight' and many more. With soloists Roy Hargrove, Marquis Hill and Walter White, along with the regular CJO trumpet section, Definitively Dizzy promises to be one of Chicago's top jazz events of 2017."

"We're thrilled to be one of first music ensembles to perform in the Fine Art's Building's recently refurbished Studebaker Theater," added Travis Rosenthal, Executive Director, Chicago Jazz Orchestra. "The Studebaker is truly a hidden gem, and the ideal setting for a musical salute to one of the jazz greats of all time."

The newly renovated Studebaker Theater is on the first floor of 

Chicago's historic Fine Arts Building, 410 S. Michigan Ave.

Founded in 1978, the 17-piece Chicago Jazz Orchestra is Chicago's oldest professional jazz orchestra in continuous operation and one of the oldest jazz repertory orchestras in the country. As recently as 2015, Howard Reich of the Chicago Tribune cited the CJO as "one of the best big bands in the country." 

For more information, visit chicagojazzorchestra.org.

The Chicago Jazz Orchestra's concert Definitively Dizzy is supported by an NEA Art Works grant, and sponsored by Chicago Jazz Magazine, WDCB 90.9 FM, the Oppenheimer Family Foundation and Ray and Ann Rusnak.

About Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (1917-1993), along with Charlie Parker, ushered in the era of Be-Bop in the American jazz tradition. He left a legacy of goodwill and good humor that infused musicians and fans throughout the world with the genuine sense of jazz's ability to transcend national and ethnic boundaries. For this reason, Gillespie was and is an international treasure. 

Gillespie was born 100 years ago in Cheraw, South Carolina, the youngest of nine children. He began playing piano at age four and received a music scholarship to the Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina. Most noted for his trademark "swollen cheeks," Gillespie admitted to copying the style of trumpeter Roy Eldridge early in his career. 

Gillespie replaced Eldridge in the 'Teddy Hill' Band after Eldridge's departure. He eventually began experimenting and creating his own style which would eventually come to the attention of Mario Bauza, the Godfather of Afro-Cuban jazz who was then a member of the Cap Calloway Orchestra. Gillespie joined Calloway's band in 1939, but was famously fired after two years when he cut a portion of Calloway's backside with a knife after Calloway accused him of throwing spitballs. The two men later became lifelong friends and often retold this story with great relish.

Although noted for his on and off-stage clowning, Gillespie endured as one of the founding fathers of the Afro-Cuban and Latin Jazz tradition. Influenced by Bauza, he was able to fuse Afro-American jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythms to form a burgeoning CuBop sound. Indeed, many Latin jazz classics such as "Manteca," "A Night in Tunisia" and "Guachi Guaro [Soul Sauce]" were composed by Gillespie and his musical collaborators. 

About Chicago Jazz Orchestra
The Chicago Jazz Orchestra (chicagojazzorchestra.org) strives to develop and promote an appreciation for and understanding of music for the American jazz orchestra as it was originally conceived, performed and recorded by jazz master composers and soloists. 

The CJO is Chicago's oldest professional jazz orchestra in continuous operation and one of the oldest jazz repertory orchestras in the country. When Jeff Lindberg and the late Steve Jensen first came up with their big band concept in 1978 (founded as the Jazz Members Big Band), they could not have predicted the remarkable metamorphosis that has turned a group of first-call musicians into what is now known as the Chicago Jazz Orchestra, a 17-piece premiere jazz ensemble that has garnered both national and international recognition.

Conductor and Artistic Director Jeff Lindberg is one of the foremost transcribers in jazz. As a result, the orchestra's repertoire draws upon his vast library, which includes the works of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Hampton, Benny Carter, Oliver Nelson, Ray Charles and many others. Because the CJO has its own transcriptions of the original recordings, much of the music presented in its concerts cannot be heard anywhere else. The CJO also performs compositions and arrangements by members of the CJO, including Associate Artistic Director Charles Harrison.

The CJO has served as the resident orchestra for the Kennedy Center Honors Supper Dance for more than 25 years. In 2006, the Orchestra performed before a sold-out audience at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina. The CJO has toured Europe twice, including performances in Italy, Spain, Denmark and Sweden. The Orchestra has performed with such artists as Dizzy Gillespie, Nancy Wilson, Louis Bellson, Herbie Hancock, Jon Faddis, Kurt Elling, Jack McDuff, Kenny Burrell, and many more.

The orchestra performs at a wide variety of top venues across the Chicago area, from City Winery to the Spertus Institute. Merit School of Music is the orchestra's educational partner, including day-long clinics that culminate with students performing alongside members of the CJO, master classes led by renowned guest artists and open rehearsals. The CJO also provides complimentary concert tickets to underserved public school students and their families.

The CJO's recordings include Clark Terry and Jeff Lindberg's Chicago Jazz Orchestra: George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess (Americana Music, 2004), nominated "Jazz Album of The Year" by the Jazz Journalist's Association, and a rare "Five Star" rating by DownBeat magazine, which also named it one of the top recordings of the previous decade. It also made the annual "top CD's" lists of Jazz at Lincoln Center, Jazz Times and Jazz Education Journal. 

To celebrate its 35th anniversary in 2013, the CJO released Burstin' Out with vocalist Cyrille Aimée performing classic and original jazz arrangements. 

The CJO's newest release is the 2017 compilation Live from Space, with live recordings from the summer of 2016.


The newly renovated Studebaker Theater is on the first floor of 
Chicago's historic Fine Arts Building, 410 S. Michigan Ave.