Lyric Opera 2019-2020 Issue 6 The Three Queens

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 12 You’re in high school and you think you like opera, but you don’t know anyone else who’s interested in it? Join Lyric’s Youth Opera Council (YOC) and meet other students who share your excitement about opera! At the same time, you’ll get the inside story on life at one of the world’s great opera companies. Katie Tonielli, a senior at Glenbard East High School (Lombard), admits that “prior to being on the YOC, I knew nothing about opera. This was an opportunity to really delve into something I had no experience with – it was a way to branch out.” Taylor Hanks, also a GEHS senior, who introduced her friend Katie to opera, heard about the YOC from her mother: “After seeing something about it on Lyric’s website, she emailed me and said, ‘You should check this out!’” YOC members plan many events during opera season, starting with a Lyric summer performance in Millennium Park. “It’s just otherworldly to be lying on your back under the huge night sky with all these people around you who love opera as much as you do,” says Sophia Peterson, a senior at Barrington High School. For Taylor, part of the enjoyment of that event is “having the liberty to talk to each other, because in the standard operatic setting you can’t do that. When you can give your commentary while it’s going on and go ‘Wow I really love this part,’ or ‘Wow, that music is so emotional’ – it really elevates the experience.” A major highlight of the YOC’s year is “A Night at the Opera”: as many as 100 teenagers gather at Lyric, enjoy food and drink in the downstairs Opera Club, hear a pre-performance talk, and attend the performance. During the YOC’s bimonthly planning meetings, says Taylor, By Roger Pines The opera connection: Lyric’s Youth Opera Council brings high-school students together “A Night at the Opera,” the biggest event of the Youth Opera Council’s year. “we talk about how we can spread the word about what food is going to be served, what music we might have playing, the photo booth, the games. One fun part of it is that we have pieces of costumes on a rack – you can try them on and have a photo taken.” When it comes to choosing the opera itself, says Sophia, “we try to pick what’s most popular and will appeal to our Jaclyn Simpson Jaclyn Simpson