COT's Epic MOBY DICK Sets Sail April 25

Chicago Opera Theater (COT) caps its 2018/2019 season with the Chicago premiere of "Moby-Dick," an epic adaptation of Herman Melville's 1851 classic "Moby-Dick; or, The Whale" at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance (205 E. Randolph Street) Thursday, April 25 and Sunday, April 28.

The production is co-produced by Utah Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, San Jose Opera and Gran Teatre del Liceu. This grand American epic, featuring music by Jake Heggie and a libretto by Gene Scheer arrives in Chicago on the heels of critically acclaimed performances in Utah, Pittsburgh and San Jose. The production is conducted by Staley Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya and directed by Kristine McIntyre. The design team includes David Jaques (Lighting), Erhard Rom (Sets) and Jessica Jahn (Costumes.) For more information on the creative team, click here.

"'Moby-Dick' is a stunning work of extraordinarily powerful music and gripping storytelling," said Yankovskaya. "Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer have drawn from the most compelling and dramatic passages of Melville's epic, crafting a deft adaptation that has thrilled audiences across the globe. We're proud to be bringing this important American opera to Chicago audiences for the first time."

The opera focuses on the perilous adventures of the whaling ship Pequod, as Captain Ahab gathers a crew on his quest for revenge on the legendary whale that cost him a leg. Featuring a cast of more than 50 singers, including acclaimed American tenor Richard Cox as Captain Ahab and Russian-American baritone Aleksey Bogdanov as Starbuck, the spectacular production was hailed as "a stunning achievement... imposing, monumental, goose bump-inducing orchestral and choral writing" by Opera Today and "a modern masterpiece" by OperaWire. Other principal singers include Vince Wallace (Queequeg), Andrew Bidlack (Greenhorn), Summer Hassan (Pip), Aaron Short (Flask), Christopher Magiera (Captain Gardiner) and David Govertsen (Stubb). The chorus features more than 30 male voices. For more information on the cast, click here.

"Moby-Dick" is sung in English (with English supertitles) and runs 2 hours and 40 minutes. "Moby-Dick" will be performed Thursday, April 25 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 25 at 3 p.m. at the Harris Theatre for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph Street. Tickets, which range in price from $45-$145, are available now on the Chicago Opera Theater website or by calling (312) 704-8420.

Chicago Opera Theater (COT) is a nationally recognized opera company based in Chicago, now in its 46th 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 Ashley Magnus 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.

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