COT Announces 2012 Cast and Artistic Teams

Chicago Opera Theater (COT) announces the final artistic teams for their upcoming 2012 Season.  The season opens April 14 with Shostakovich's Moscow, Cheryomushki, followed by the concluding opera in COT's "Medea" trilogy, Handel's Teseo; and in September COT will present a new production of Mozart's The Magic Flute.  Chicago Opera Theater's 2012 Season will be presented at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance in Millennium Park. 

Since the season was originally announced last March, Michael Beattie has replaced Christian Curnyn as conductor for Teseo, due to conflicts with Christian's schedule.  Michael, making hisChicago conducting debut, will conduct from the harpsichord.  He is a regular guest conductor atBoston's Emmanuel Music, and has appeared at Glimmerglass Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, and American Repertory Theatre. 

Also changed from last March, is the replacement of the Diane Paulus/Jane Glover production ofThe Magic Flute from Canadian Opera Company with a new production by Michael Gieleta for Chicago Opera Theater.  The opera will be conducted by Steuart Bedford. 

Steuart has worked with all of the great opera companies of the world including Metropolitan Opera, the Royal Opera Covent Garden and Opéra de Paris.  He returns to Chicago Opera Theater after leading the highly-acclaimed production of Britten's Owen Wingrave in 2009.  Michael Gieleta, a theatre and opera director, has worked at Wexford Festival Opera, Glyndebourne Festival, and Capetown Opera, and directed a new Peter Nichols's play Lingua Franca for the 2010 Brits Off-Broadway series at 59E59 Theatres in New York.

Season Subscriptions are on sale now for the 2012 Season, which include a ticket to all three operas.  This season, Chicago Opera Theater is offering 50% off subscriptions to new COT Subscribers.  Tickets to individual shows of the 2012 Season go on-sale February 29, 2012.

Tickets available at 312.704.8414 or online ChicagoOperaTheater.org. 

The complete cast and artistic team for all three 2012 operas follows.

2012 Season 

Dimitri Shostakovich

MOSCOW, CHERYOMUSHKI

April 14, 20, 25 at 7:30pm; April 22 at 3pm

 

Conductor:                                        ALEXANDER PLATT

Director:                                            MIKE DONAHUE

Set & Costume Designer:               ANYA KLEPIKOV

Lighting Designer:                           JULIAN PIKE

Choreographer:                                Eric Sean Fogel

New English Adaptation:                Meg Miroshnik

 

Sung in English with English supertitles.

 

Role                                                    Cast (Alphabetical)                                    

Sergei (Tenor)                             DOMINIC ARMSTRONG

Drebednev (Bass)                         MATT BOEHLER

Barabashkin (Bass-Baritone) PAUL CORONA                               

Masha (Mezzo)                            EMILY FONS 

Liusia (Soprano)                           SOPHIE GORDELADZE                

Lidochka (Soprano)                       SARA HEATON        

Sasha (Baritone)                          ADRIAN KRAMER    

Boris (Baritone)                            PAUL LAROSA                           

Baburov (Bass)                            PAUL SCHOLTEN                

Vava (Soprano)                           ASHLEIGH SEMKIW

         

 

COT Young Artists Ensemble:  LOREN BATTIESTE, William Dwyer, Andrew Harris, ADAM HENDRICKSON, DREW LADD, MATTHEW NEWLIN, LOUISE ROGAN, CATHERYNE SHUMAN, CORRIE STALLINGS, CAROLYN STEIN, VALERIE VINZANT, MEGAN ROSE WILLIAMS

 

George Frideric Handel

TESEO

April 21, 27, May 2 at 7:30pm; April 29 at 3pm

 

Conductor:                                        MICHAEL BEATTIE

Director:                                            James Darrah

Set Designer:                                    FRANÇOIS-PIERRE COUTURE

Costume Designer:                          James Darrah

Lighting Designer:                           JULIAN PIKE

 

Sung in Italian with English supertitles.

 

Role                                                    Cast (Alphabetical)

Agilea (Soprano)                          MANUELA BISCEGLIE

Clizia (Soprano)                            DEANNA BREIWICK

Teseo (Mezzo)                             Cecelia Hall                   

Medea (Mezzo)                            RENEE TATUM                 

Egeo (Countertenor)                     GERALD THOMPSON

Arcano (Countertenor)                  DAVID TRUDGEN              

 

COT Young Artists Ensemble:  LOREN BATTIESTE, Andrew Harris, DREW LADD, MATTHEW NEWLIN, CORRIE STALLINGS, CAROLYN STEIN, VALERIE VINZANT, MEGAN ROSE WILLIAMS   

 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

THE MAGIC FLUTE

September 15, 19, 21 at 7:30pm; September 23 at 3pm

 

Conductor:                                        STEUART BEDFORD

Director:                                            Michael Gieleta

Set Designer:                                    JAMES MACNAMARA

Costume Designer:                          Gregory Gale

 

Sung in English with English supertitles.

 

Role                                                    Cast (Alphabetical)

Tamino (Tenor)                            SEAN PANNIKAR              

Pamina (Soprano)                         ELIZABETH REITER            

Papageno (Baritone)                     MARKUS BEAM                 

Sarastro (Bass)                            GRIGORY SOLOVIOV           

Queen of the Night (Soprano)         CLAUDIA BOYLE                        

Monostatos (Tenor)                     ALEX MANSOORI

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