WFMT to Re-Broadcast Lyric Opera's 2016/17 Season

Beginning on Saturday, May 20, and continuing every Saturday through July 22, The Lyric Opera Broadcasts of the 2016/17 Lyric Opera of Chicago season will air nationally and internationally by The WFMT Radio Network and locally on 98.7WFMT. The opera broadcasts may also be streamed on WFMT.com.

Lyric Opera of Chicago's dramaturg Roger Pines and WFMT's Lisa Flynn host the performance broadcasts of the 2016/17 season. Two archival broadcasts from Lyric's 60th-anniversary season will also be heard: Mozart's Don Giovanni and Wagner's Tannhäuser - the latter in memory of tenor Johan Botha (1965-2016), who sang the title role in his final Lyric performances.

Chicago-area broadcasts on 98.7WFMT begin at 12 noon CDT on the following Saturdays:

May 20: Das Rheingold/Wagner
(in German)

May 27: Lucia di Lammermoor/Donizetti
(in Italian)

June 3: Les Troyens/Berlioz
(in French)

June 10: Don Quichotte/Massenet
(in French)

June 17: The Magic Flute/Mozart
(in German)

June 24: Norma/Bellini
(in Italian)

July 1: Carmen/Bizet
(in French)

July 8: Eugene Onegin/Tchaikovsky
(in Russian)

July 15: Don Giovanni/Mozart
(in Italian, archival rebroadcast from 2014/15)

July 22: Tannhäuser/Wagner
(in German, archival rebroadcast from 2014/15)

Broadcast times and dates outside the Chicago area may vary; check local listings for your area. The broadcasts can also be heard anywhere in the world on WFMT.com.

Daniel Goldberg is the producer for The Lyric Opera of Chicago Broadcasts. David Polk is the executive producer.

Live opening-performance broadcasts of Lyric's 2017/18 season on 98.7WFMT and WFMT.com will commence Saturday, September 23 at 6:30pm with the opening performance of Gluck's Orphée et Eurydice.

About Lyric Opera of Chicago

Lyric Opera of Chicago's mission is to express and promote the life-changing, transformational, revelatory power of great opera. Lyric exists to provide a broad, deep, and relevant cultural service to Chicago and the nation, and to advance the development of the art form.

Founded in 1954, Lyric is dedicated to producing and performing consistently thrilling, entertaining, and thought-provoking opera with a balanced repertoire of core classics, lesser-known masterpieces, and new works; to creating an innovative and wide-ranging program of community engagement and educational activities; and to developing exceptional emerging operatic talent.

Under the leadership of General Director, President & CEO Anthony Freud, Music Director Sir Andrew Davis, and Creative Consultant Renée Fleming, Lyric strives to become The Great North American Opera Company for the 21st century: a globally significant arts organization embodying the core values of excellence, relevance, and fiscal responsibility.

To learn more about Lyric, go to lyricopera.org. You can also join the conversation with @LyricOpera on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. #LongLivePassion

About WFMT

WFMT is one of the nation's most respected classical music radio stations, available on-air at 98.7WFMT, online at wfmt.com/streaming, and via app on Apple and Android mobile devices. WFMT showcases superlative programs, concerts, and live events you cannot hear anywhere else - broadcasts from Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera, the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, and many more. The WFMT Radio Network is a leading producer and syndicator of a diverse selection of outstanding musical series, including Exploring Music with Bill McGlaughlin, the Beethoven Network, and the Jazz Network. Connect with WFMT on Facebook and Twitter.

The Lyric Opera of Chicago Broadcasts are generously sponsored by the Caerus Foundation, Inc., with matching funding provided by The Matthew and Kay Bucksbaum Family, The John and Jacolyn Bucksbaum Foundation, and The Richard P. and Susan Kiphart Family.