Leonard Bernstein's Mass at Ravinia Festival

Ravinia Festival has announced casting for its July 28 production of Leonard Bernstein’s Mass. Conductor Marin Alsop has resurrected this overlooked work with performances around the world. This production reunites her with director Kevin Newbury (who recently won raves for directing the opera Fellow Travelers and the spectaculars as New York’s Park Avenue Armory) after earning a Grammy nomination for their recording of Mass, which the New York Times praised as “one of the best events of the year.” Commissioned for the 1971 opening of the Kennedy Center, Bernstein’s theater piece Mass is one of the most opulent works of his career, uniting hundreds of artists on stage, including a variety of singers and dancers, in both its Ravinia and CSO premieres.

The cast will be led by Tony winner Paulo Szot (South Pacific) as the Celebrant and feature a Street Chorus comprising Morgan James (Motown, The Addams Family), Mykal Kilgore (Jesus Christ Superstar Live, Motown), Timothy McDevitt (Me and My Girl, Brigadoon), Sumayya Ali (Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet), Kaitlin Mesh (West Side Story, Nice Work If You Can Get It), John Clay III (Grand Hotel), Michael Maliakel (Monsoon Wedding), Nicholas Cunningham (Phantom of the Opera, La Cage aux Folles), Aaron Blake (Fellow Travelers, Candide), Isabel Santiago (Giant, First Daughter Suite, In the Heights Tour), Devon Guthrie (Fellow Travelers, Lyric Opera of Chicago), Barrie Lobo McLain (Kanasa City Choir Boy), Matt Boehler (Metropolitan Opera, Prototype Festival), Karim Sulayman (Houston Grand Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, New York City Opera), Meredith Lustig (Streetcar Named Desire), James Onstad (The Industry, Chicago Lyric Opera, BAM), Michael Preacely (Phantom of the Opera, Porgy and Bess), Alexander Elliot (New York City Opera, Dallas Opera, BAM), Nicole Fragala (West Side Story, Spoleto Festival USA), Devin Ilaw (The Kind and I, Les Misérables), Alexa Jarvis (American Opera Projects, Vashon Opera), and Erica Everett (University of Michigan).

The production of Mass will have music supervision by Leslie Stifelman, choreography by Melissa Mahon, scenic design by Victoria “Vita” Tzykun, costume design by Paul Carey, lighting design by Al Crawford, video design by Darrel Maloney and programming by Troy Fujimura, and sound design by Nevin Steinberg. It also features the Highland Park High School Marching Band directed by Joshua Chodoroff and the choruses Vocality and Chicago Children’s Choir, both led by Josephine Lee.