Lyric Opera 2023-2024 Issue 1 - The Flying Dutchman

15 | Lyric Opera of Chicago As part of the wedding celebrations for one of her granddaughters (Mimi’s daughter, Sarah), Peggy hosted a party at her home in Lake Forest, where the bride and groom were serenaded with La Boheme excerpts sung by artists from The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center under a candlelit canopy of trees. It goes without saying that Lyric is woven into the family’s life. The building that houses the Lyric Opera of Chicago was completed in 1929, on a design by Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, the leading architects of the city’s post- Fire construction boom; from 1912 to 1936, the company was responsible for landmarks such as the Wrigley Building, Merchandise Mart, Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, and the former central Chicago post of ce. “Lyric as a building is wonderful especially in the consistency of ornament and design intent you see throughout the building,” says Koroski. “You often see the suggestion of musical instruments. You see the theatrical masks. You see the smallest detail on a doorknob, the same leaf pattern that exists in the cast iron surrounding the entrance, and at the cornice at the top of the building.” The glass wall project is a piece—a very large piece, it may be said—of an enormous ongoing initiative to tend to the health of the house itself and to the well-being of its patrons. The complete seating overhaul completed before the 2021/22 Season was part of this journey, and there is more to come. Restrooms throughout the building are going to improve, as will the box seating. There will be greater accessibility throughout the house, and improved lighting. For the moment, though, we may all take a moment to bask in the comfort of this beautiful, useful upgrade— a clear improvement. The doors on the west and north sides of the lobby should offer notably better climate control.