Lyric Opera 2018-2019 Issue 14 West Side Story

L Y R I C O P E R A O F C H I C A G O May 3 - June 2, 2019 | 15 the human issues surrounding the death penalty, exploring its impact on both the families of the victims and that of the prisoner awaiting execution.” Of course, the crowning glory of the season will be the Ring , with complete cycles in three consecutive weeks, beginning April 13, 2020. Sir Andrew Davis will return to Wagner’s masterpiece in Lyric’s new production directed by David Pountney. Having proceeded with one opera each season since Das Rheingold pre- miered in 2016/17, the company will debut the new Götterdämmerung ( Twilight of the Gods ) in two performances, before the cycles begin. e third cycle will be exclusively matinees, a Lyric rst for the Ring . Götterdämmerung is a spectacular cli- max to the cycle . eatrically the piece is more in the tradition of 19th-century grand romantic opera than the rest of the cycle, says Freud, but the music takes the opera to a whole new level of imagination. And, like the rest of the Ring , this nal opera of the cycle presents Wagner’s orchestra as a key protagonist, illuminating every scene with extraordinary beauty, power, and theatrical- ity. e experience of hearing it in context – that is, preceded within the same week by Das Rheingold, Die Walküre , and Siegfried – is an essential experience for any operagoer. e leading artists, all of whom received huge praise when the rst three operas pre- miered, will all be returning: Eric Owens (Wotan), Christine Goerke (Brünnhilde), Burkhard Fritz (Siegfried), Samuel Youn (Alberich), Tanja Ariane Baumgartner (Fricka, Waltraute), Brandon Jovanovich (Froh, Siegmund), and Elisabet Strid (Sieglinde; a rising star, Ryan Opera Center alumna Laura Wilde, sings the role in the third cycle). Together they will make this Ring truly unforgettable. As has been the case for the past ve years, Lyric Unlimited will enhance the sea- son with a chamber opera, produced at Chicago Shakespeare eater in Lyric’s very rst collaboration with CST. “ e chamber operas,” says Freud, “have been new and topical, and each work has resonated deeply with audiences.” e work next season will be Jeanine Tesori and Tazewell ompson’s Blue in its Midwest premiere, following the world premiere in July at the Glimmerglass Festival. is opera brings audiences into the emotional epicenter of an African- American family, in which the father is a police o cer and the son a politically active teenager. Freud considers Blue “a wonderful opportunity to bring an important new work to the city in an ideal new venue for Lyric Unlimited performances.” Leonard Foglia’s production of Dead Man Walking at Houston Grand Opera. FELIX SANCHEZ/HOUSTON GRAND OPERA e climax of Richard Jones's production of e Queen of Spades at the Canadian Opera Company. DEVON CASS JIYANG CHENG DARIO ACOSTA MICHAEL COOPER ree outstanding American singing actors lead the cast of Dead Man Walking : (left to right) Patricia Racette (Sister Helen Prejean), Ryan McKinny (Joseph De Rocher), and Susan Graham (Mrs. De Rocher).