2015/16 Season Lehaár The Merry Widow LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO Table of Contents BRIGITTE LACOMBE / THE METROPOLITAN OPERA THE METROPOLITAN BRIGITTE / LACOMBE IN THIS ISSUE The Merry Widow – pp. 24-38 6 From the General Director 16 The Big Reveal: Scenery and Props 42 Artistic Roster 8 From the President at Lyric 43 Supernumeraries/Lyric Unlimited/ Education Corps 10 Board of Directors 24 Tonight’s Performance 44 Patron Salute 12 Women’s Board/Guild Board/ 25 Synopsis Chapters’ Executive Board/ 27 Cast 46 Aria Society Ryan Opera Center Board 28 Artist Profiles 55 Breaking New Ground/Look To 14 Administration/Administrative The Future 35 Opera Notes Staff/Production and Technical 57 Major Contributors – Special Staff 38 Director’s Note Events and Project Support 40 Musical Staff/Orchestra/Chorus 58 Ryan Opera Center 59 Ryan Opera Center Contributors SCENERY AND PROPS AT LYRIC 60 Lyric Unlimited Contributors pp. 16-22 61 Planned Giving: The Overture Society 63 Annual Corporate Support/Special Thanks and Acknowledgements 65 Annual Individual and Foundation Support 71 Commemorative Gifts 72 Facilities and Services/Theater Staff On the cover: James Tissot (French, 1836-1902), Detail of L'Ambitieuse (The Reception), 1883-1885 Oil on canvas; overall: 73 1/2 x 56 x 5 inches (186.69 x 142.24 x 12.7 cm); support: 56 x 40 inches (142.24 x 101.6 cm) Collection Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York. Gift of William M. Chase, 1909. Photograph by Tom Loonan. Photo Credit: Albright- Knox Art Gallery / Art Resource, NY 2 | November 14 - December 13, 2015 LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO Since 1991 www.performancemedia.us | 847-770-4620 3453 Commercial Avenue, Northbrook, IL 60062 Gail McGrath Publisher & President Sheldon Levin Publisher & Director of Finance A. J. Levin Director of Operations Account Managers Rand Brichta - Michael Hedge - Arnie Hoffman Executive Editor Karen Mathis - Greg Pigott Lisa Middleton Southwest Betsy Gugick & Associates 972-387-1347 Midwest David L. 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Nothing may be reproduced in any manner without written permission. © 2015 Performance Media & Gail McGrath & Associates, Inc. is a Woman Owned Business 4 | November 14 - December 13, 2015 LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO From the General Director The world has known for more than a century that Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow is one of the greatest operettas ever written. It’s an absolute masterpiece, brimming over with wonderful melodies and a delightfully sentimental story. We’re delighted to present The Merry Widowto you in Susan Stroman’s spectacular production, first seen at the Metropolitan Opera last season. For every member of that audience, it was a joyous evening of captivating storytelling and beautiful music-making. In any operetta, understanding the text in both dialogue and song can play LEONARD STEVE a huge role in our enjoyment of the piece as a whole. There’s a good deal of spoken dialogue in most of the great operettas, including The Merry Widow. In Jeremy Sams’s new version (created especially for this production), we have the treat of being able to savor the performances of great artists singing and speaking in our own language. My two remarkable colleagues at Lyric, creative consultant Renée Fleming and music director Sir Andrew Davis, were integral to the success of this production at the Met, and it’s wonderful that they’re able to reprise Lehár’s operetta here in Chicago. Renée’s portrayal of the merry widow herself, Hanna Glawari, entranced the New York audience with its vitality, wit, and of course, the extraordinary vocalism that makes all of her portrayals unforgettable. And how marvelous it is for us to experience Sir Andrew’s astounding stylistic versatility in a season that includes his performances of not only Viennese operetta, but also Rossini, Berg, and a world premiere. Two other remarkable artists are returning to Lyric in this production. Taking on the title role for the final three performances is Nicole Cabell, one of the Ryan Opera Center’s most distinguished alumni, a hugely acclaimed singing actress throughout America and Europe. Singing Count Danilo in all the Merry Widow performances will be the legendary American baritone Thomas Hampson, whose performances at Lyric in roles of Massenet, Verdi, and Wagner have made him a great Lyric favorite and an artist we’re thrilled to welcome back this season. Joining Renée, Nicole, and Tom in the important supporting roles are Michael Spyres (who gave an irresistible performance in our Fledermaus two seasons ago) and two marvelous artists in their Lyric debuts, Heidi Stober and Patrick Carfizzi. The Merry Widow is bound to leave you floating on cloud nine, as if you’ve eaten the most delicious dessert. Its warmly romantic glow and dazzling melodies will, I hope, add greatly to the joy of your holiday season. Anthony Freud 6 | November 14 - December 13, 2015 LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO From the President I’m thrilled to begin my tenure as President of Lyric Opera for many reasons, but above all, because opera has become a vital element of my life, both personally and professionally. In the early 1990s, when my company was about five years old, I realized that in the marketing world you took clients to a Bulls Game, or to Wrigley Field – there was a customary set of entertainment venues. But rather than a sports outing, what if we treated them to the opera? We began bringing clients, for whom it was unique and unforgettable, introducing them to an art form they’d heard about but never experienced. For me, it checked the boxes on the business side, but it also nurtured in me an enduring love for opera. I’d grown up in New Jersey listening to WQXR, hearing the Met on the radio, but becoming a subscriber and enjoying opera in the theater was brand ROSENBERG TODD new to me. It’s been my great pleasure to be a Lyric subscriber since 1992. l feel a special excitement every opening night, and when I return to a production a second or third time, I always see things I hadn’t seen before. My wife and I continue to introduce people to Lyric, many of whom have become subscribers themselves. When I was growing up in the 1960s and ‘70s, people frequently responded to opera as something classic, almost old world, best seen and heard in traditional performances. Today, however, I relish the broad range of theatrical interpretation. I’m struck every season by performances that communicate a particular resonance with what’s happening culturally or socially in our world at the time. Certain truths captured so memorably in opera are timeless, still challenging us as they challenged these works’ original audiences. I think of recent productions, such as Rusalka or The Passenger – each was a truly visceral experience that stayed with me for weeks. This year I’m looking forward with great anticipation to Lyric’s new production of The Marriage of Figaro, and especially to the world premiere of Bel Canto. Under my watch, the next chapter in Lyric’s history will implement the strategic plan the management and board developed four years ago. The principles of excellence, relevance, and fiscal responsibility are our key priorities of focus. I’m excited to witness Lyric becoming a broader provider of cultural service to Chicago and the Chicagoland region. To stay excellent, relevant, and fiscally responsible in this rapidly changing world, we need to be prepared to innovate. That means looking beyond the customary constraints of our art form and asking, “What can we learn, borrow, beg, or steal from other forms of entertainment and cultural enrichment?” One idea behind the board’s innovation committee has been to empower a small group of board members to do just that. In many ways Lyric Unlimited is our laboratory. Through it we are reaching out to communities throughout Chicago, we are forming collaborative partnerships with other cultural, community, and educational organizations, and we are exploring the ways in which opera, as an art form, may develop in the future. Lyric offers an increasing number of diverse activities – not only our mainstage opera season, but also our productions of great musicals, Lyric Unlimited’s wide-ranging projects, and, of course, our world-renowned Ryan Opera Center. But we need to think of ourselves as one Lyric. Everything we do is part of a unified, single-minded goal to be the great North American opera company of the twenty-first century. David T. Ormesher 8 | November 14 - December 13, 2015 LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO Board of Directors The Honorable Bruce Rauner Life Directors Mark E. Ferguson Kenneth R. Norgan The Honorable Rahm Emanuel Frank W. Considine Michael W. Ferro, Jr. Sharon F. Oberlander Honorary Chairmen Edgar Foster Daniels Rick Fezell * John W. Oleniczak of the Board Richard J. Franke Matthew A. Fisher Olufunmilayo I. Olopade, Edgar D. Jannotta M.D. Co-Chairman Emeritus Edgar D. Jannotta * Renée Fleming * David T. Ormesher Allan B. Muchin George E. Johnson * Sonia Florian Co-Chairman Emeritus Robert H. Malott Mike Foley * William A. Osborn Richard P.