Michael Black News

Verdi's heart-wrenching romantic drama follows a pair of star-crossed lovers who are driven apart by one man's selfish plot. The battle between passionate love and violent jealousy is set to thrilling, electrifying music. 

First show of Lyric's 65th season: A delightful production of the perennially popular Rossini opera gets the 2019/20 season off to an effervescent start.

Lyric Opera of Chicago launches its 65th season with the 19th annual Stars of Lyric Opera at Millennium Park concert at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion on Friday, September 6, at 7pm. The free outdoor performance, presented in cooperation with The City of Chicago and Millennium Park, annually attracts capacity crowds to the pavilion, great lawn, and surrounding areas of the park.

In a pitiful bedsit in one of the roughest estates in Hull, Lad and Lass are found surviving on a diet of vodka and cigarettes. The unfortunate circumstances and an already toxic relationship push them to the brink on a daily basis, binding them to each other and to the realisation that they might not be able to endure such a broken life.

Lyric's new grand-scale coproduction of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim's masterpiece West Side Story opens tonight and features Broadway star Corey Cott as Tony and rising star Mikaela Bennett as Maria. Additional lead casting includes Brett Thiele (Riff),Amanda Castro (Anita), Manuel Stark Santos (Bernardo), and Adam Soniak (Action). Performances run through June 2, 2019 at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago. Tickets are on sale now starting at $29 and can be purchased at lyricopera.org/wss or by calling 312-827-5600.

Lyric's coproduction of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim's West Side Story opens next month and features Broadway star Corey Cott as Tony and rising star Mikaela Bennett as Maria.

People's Light presents Caryl Churchill's A Number, starring Tony Award nominee John Dossett (Broadway's Gypsy opposite Bernadette Peters) and Nathan Darrow (House of Cards, Gotham). In the near future, three identical sons confront their father over past misdeeds, with shocking consequences. From one of the world's most inimitable playwrights comes a 'stunning' (The New York Times) and suspenseful exploration of identity, parenthood, and the ethics of human cloning. Tickets range from $21.50-$53. To purchase, call 610.644.3500 or visit www.peopleslight.org. People's Light is located at 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, PA 19355.

Lyric's coproduction of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim's West Side Story opens next month and features Broadway star Corey Cott as Tony and rising star Mikaela Bennett as Maria. We've got a first look at the company in action, check out the photos below!

The Chicago premiere of Lyric's new coproduction of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim's masterpiece West Side Story features nearly 100 artists from Chicago and across the country.

New York Theatre Workshop announced today that Ato Blankson-Wood (Slave Play) will complete the cast of NYTW's special one-night-only reading of A Number

New York Theatre Workshop (NYTW) has announced that they will present a special one-night-only reading of A Number, by NYTW Usual Suspect and five-time Obie Award winner Caryl Churchill (Love and Information; A Number), directed by NYTW Usual Suspect and Tony Award winner Sam Gold (Fun Home, Othello) and featuring Daniel Craig (Othello, Spectre). The reading will benefit NYTW's Artist Workshop and Education programming and will take place at New York Theatre Workshop (79 East 4th Street) Sunday, March 10, 2019 at 7pm.

Lyric Opera of Chicago's fever-dream staging of Arin Arbus's production of Giuseppe Verdi's perennially popular La traviata opens Saturday, February 16 at 7:30pm, with ten performances through March 22 at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Dr., Chicago. Tickets start at $39 and are available now at lyricopera.org/Traviata or by calling 312-827-5600.

With plot twists worthy of Shakespeare, the love between Princess Ginevra and the noble Ariodante is threatened by the machinations of Polinesso, who lusts after the princess and will stop at nothing to sabotage the royal wedding.

Violetta Valry is a courtesan who can have everything she desires except lasting happiness. Love is found, lost, and reclaimed too late in Verdi's most cherished opera.

Lyric Opera of Chicago kicks off 2019 with two acclaimed productions: the return of the new production of Puccini's captivating and tragic love story La boheme, and the Midwest premiere of a beloved production of Massenet's Cendrillon, based on the Cinderella story. La boheme is a quintessentially Italian opera and the plot is forever youthful and eternally fresh. Cendrillon features an enchanting blend of wit, sensitivity, and elegance against the backdrop of a familiar storybook kingdom.

The Lyric Opera of Chicago premiere of Jules Massenet's charming fairytale opera Cendrillon (Cinderella) opens Saturday, December 1 at 7:30pm. There are six performances Dec. 1 through Jan. 20 at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Dr., Chicago. Tickets start at $49 for adults and just $20 for children, and are available now at lyricopera.org/Cendrillon or at 312-827-5600.

The Lyric Opera of Chicago premiere of Jules Massenet's charming fairytale opera Cendrillon (Cinderella) opens Saturday, December 1 at 7:30pm. There are six performances Dec. 1 through Jan. 20 at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Dr., Chicago. Tickets start at $49 for adults and just $20 for children, and are available now at lyricopera.org/Cendrillon or at 312-827-5600.

Lyric Opera of Chicago's production of Verdi's Il trovatoreopens Saturday, Nov. 17, at 7:30pm. There are seven performances November 17 - December 9  at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Dr., Chicago. Tickets start at $39 and are available now at lyricopera.org/Trovatore or at 312-827-5600.

Lion and tigers and bears, oh my! Main Street in Arlington is now paved with yellow bricks as kids and adults alike are following it to enjoy Theatre Arlington's production of The Magical City of Oz. This fun and whimsical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, based on L. Frank Baum's book, was first written and staged by Steven D. Morris and Don Powers in 1984. At that time Morris was the theater's first Children's Theatre Director and was frustrated by the lack of entertaining scripts for children, so he set out to create his own with his friend, Don Powers, who composed all the new music. This charming retelling has all of the familiar, loveable characters portrayed by adult actors, but throws in a few new ones along the way, as they attempt to find their way to the mysterious and magical city of Oz. What differs a bit in this version is the participation by the children in the audience! No matter the version or the year, this timeless message still rings true - no matter how we far we travel there is simply no place like home.

Lyric Opera of Chicago's new coproduction of Puccini's La boheme opens the company's 64th season tomorrow -- Saturday, October 6, at 6:30pm. There are five performances through October 20 and six additional performance Jan. 10-25 at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago. Tickets start at $49 and are available now at  lyricopera.org/Boheme or at 312-827-5600.