Lyric Opera 2022-2023 Issue 10 - West Side Story

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 32 The Wiz (Addaperle), The Piano Lesson (Grace), Crowns (Jeanette), Company (Sarah), Godspell (Joanne), Smokey Joe’s Cafe (Brenda), The Color Purple, and Hairspray. She holds a BFA in musical theatre from Howard University. AMY ROMERO | SWING Lyric debut Romero recently played Velma and covered the Sharks ensemble in West Side Story at Teatro Lirico di Cagliari in Italy. Her regional credits include: the Spanish language world premiere of On Your Feet! en Español at GALA Hispanic Theatre in Washington, D.C.; On Your Feet! at North Carolina Theatre; The Wiz (Florida), and the NYC workshop of Thoughts of a Colored Man . She has also toured nationally with productions such as Legally Blonde , recording artist Lisa Lisa’ s concert tour, and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood . JOSH ZACHER | SWING, u/s ACTION Lyric debut The NYC based actor, dancer, and choreographer was seen in the national tours of The Prom (1st Nat’l, Dance Captain), A Chorus Line ( Larry, Mike/Mark u/s), and The Elf on the Shelf. He has performed at The Kennedy Center, North Shore Music Theatre ( The Music Man), The 5th Avenue Theatre, The Ordway ( West Side Story) , Kansas City Starlight, The REV Theatre Co. ( Footloose) , Theatre By The Sea ( Newsies) , The Sharon Playhouse ( Les Miserables ), and The Wagon Wheel Center for the Performing Arts. Zacher is a guest faculty member at Broadway Dance Center and a teaching artist for New York City Center. PRODUCTION TEAM JAMES LOWE | CONDUCTOR Previously at Lyric: West Side Story (2018/19) and Oklahoma! (2012/13). Lowe made his Broadway debut conducting Gypsy , starring Patti LuPone, and was music director and conductor of the revivals of Les Misérables and Anything Goes (Grammy nomination). He led the rst national tour of The Light in the Piazza , and was music director and conductor for the touring National Theatre production of My Fair Lady . Recent operatic engagements include La bohème (Houston Grand Opera), Jeanine Tesori’s The Lion, The Unicorn, and Me (Washington), Show Boat (Glimmerglass Festival), and Rachel Portman’s The Little Prince (Utah Opera). Lowe has also appeared at the San Francisco, Tulsa, New York City, andWolf Trap opera companies. At Houston Grand Opera he has worked on productions of works of Mozart, Bizet, Copland, Sondheim, Portman, and Heggie. Lowe has also led the Houston Symphony, Memphis Symphony, Jacksonville Symphony, and American Composers Orchestra. He has performed as piano soloist with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and has given recitals at such distinguished venues as the Aspen Music Festival, the Chautauqua Institute, and the University of Texas-San Antonio NewMusic Festival. FRANCESCA ZAMBELLO | DIRECTOR Previously at Lyric: Six productions since 1999/00, most recently F lorencia en el Amazonas (2021/22) and Luisa Miller (2019/20). The internationally recognized director of opera and theater has served as the Artistic Director of Washington National Opera at the Kennedy Center since 2013. She is also the Artistic & General Director of the Glimmerglass Festival, Emerita. She served as the Artistic Advisor to the San Francisco Opera from 2005 to 2011 and as the Artistic Director of the Skylight Theater from 1987 to 1992. Zambello’s U.S. directing debut took place at the Houston Grand Opera with a production of Fidelio . She debuted in Europe at Teatro la Fenice in Venice with Beatrice di Tenda and has since staged new productions at major theaters and opera houses in Europe, Asia, Australia, Russia, and the U.S. She has worked at more than 50 international opera houses including the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Paris Opera, Bolshoi, Munich State Opera, Covent Garden, and Opera Australia. She has been named a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French government, a Knight with the Order of the Star of Italy and received the Russian Federation’s Arts Medal, all for her service to culture. Other honors include three Olivier Awards from the London Society of Theatres and two Evening Standard Awards, and she has twice received the French Grand Prix des Critiques for her work at the Paris Opera. She also received the Medallion Society Award from San Francisco Opera, recognizing 30 years’ work for the company. PETER J. DAVISON | SET DESIGNER Previously at Lyric: Five productions since 2008/09, most recently Florencia en el Amazonas (2021/22) and West Side Story (2018/19). The British designer’s productions with prestigious companies throughout Europe and the U.K. include The Marriage of Figaro (Vienna); Die Gezeichneten , Falstaff , and Die schweigsame Frau (Zurich); Capriccio (Berlin, Turin); Der Rosenkavalier , Carmen , and Mary Stuart (English National Opera); Anna Bolena (Bavarian State Opera); Mitridate , Re di Ponto and Carmen (Salzburg); The Queen of Spades (Covent Garden); Guillaume Tell (Opéra National de Paris); and Cyrano de Bergerac (La Scala), among many other productions and venues. In addition to The Rake’s Progress , The Marriage of Figaro , and Cyrano de Bergerac at the Metropolitan Opera, his work has also been seen in the U.S. at Washington National Opera (eight productions), San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, The Dallas Opera, and the Glimmerglass Festival. His theater credits include productions for Broadway ( Medea, Hamlet , Deuce , Copenhagen , Democracy, Is He Dead, Blithe Spirit ), the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, London’s West End, and the Chichester Festival Theatre.