Lyric Opera 2024-2025 Issue 2 - Fidelio

29 | Lyric Opera of Chicago ELZA VAN DEN HEEVER LEONORE Previously at Lyric: Chrysothemis/ Elektra (2018/19) and Armida/ Rinaldo (2011/12). This season, the South African-born soprano will appear at the Metropolitan Opera as Empress/ Die Frau ohne Schatten and as Salome, two of her signature roles. She will make her debut at La Scala as Sieglinde/ Die Walküre under the baton of Christian Thielemann and appear as Elettra/ Idomeneo at the San Francisco Opera under Eun Sun Kim. Recent highlights include the Empress at the Vienna State Opera; her role debut as Elisabeth/ Tannhäuser at the Met; Chrysothemis/ Elektra at the Baden-Baden Easter Festival and in concert at the Philharmonie Berlin; her role debut as Sieglinde/ Die Walküre with the Rotterdam Philharmonic; and Julia in Spontini’s La Vestale in a new production. Van den Heever’s other notable appearances include role debuts as Senta/ Der fliegende Holländer at the Met, as Salome in Paris, as Julia in La Vestale at the Theater an der Wien, as Marie/ Wozzeck at the Met, and as the Empress in Die Frau ohne Schatten in concert with the Rotterdam Philharmonic. The soprano was an ensemble member of the Frankfurt Opera from 2008 to 2013 and made her European debut there as Giorgetta in Puccini’s Il trittico . Her interpretation of the role, conducted by Bertrand de Billy, has been released on CD by Capriccio. RUSSELL THOMAS FLORESTAN Previously at Lyric: Seven roles since 2016/17, most recently Radamès/ Aida (2023/24) and Ernani/ Ernani (2022/23). This season, Thomas can be seen as the Kaiser/ Die Frau ohne Schatten (Metropolitan Opera), in Tannhäuser (Houston Grand Opera), and as Enée/ Les Troyens à Cartage (Seattle Opera). The celebrated American tenor recently made his role debut as Parsifal with Houston Grand Opera, sang his first Don Carlos (five-act version in French) with the Staatsoper Hamburg, debuted at the Opéra national de Paris as Don Alvaro/ La forza del destino , and reprised Calaf/ Turandot and Otello with the Los Angeles Opera. At Lyric, he sang Mario Cavaradossi/ Tosca (2021/22) and Canio/ Pagliacci in Lyric’s 2020/21 award-winning film version. The 2019/20 Season included Radamès/ Aida (Houston Grand Opera) and his return to the title role/ Otello (Washington National Opera). He also starred in Il trovatore (Bayerische Staatsoper), Idomeneo (Salzburg Festival, in a new Peter Sellars production), Roberto Devereux (San Francisco Opera), and La clemenza di Tito (Metropolitan Opera, LA Opera). Thomas has previously enjoyed success as Beethoven’s Florestan (San Francisco); Bellini’s Pollione (Lyric, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Toronto, Valencia); and Puccini’s Rodolfo (Met). Russell Thomas is sponsored by the Guild Board of Directors. BRIAN MULLIGAN DON PIZARRO Previously at Lyric: Father/ Hansel and Gretel (2012/13) and Enrico/ Lucia di Lammermoor (2011/12). Mulligan begins the 2024/25 Season in the title role of Der fliegende Holländer at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam with Jaap van Zweden conducting the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest. He will make role debuts as Der Wanderer in Siegfried at the Hangzhou Philharmonic in China, and as Alberich in Das Rheingold in a new production at the Opéra national de Paris. Next, he returns to the Teatro San Carlo di Napoli as Jochanaan in Salome . He will make his debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra as Kurwenal in Tristan und Isolde under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin, before returning to the San Francisco Opera for their Pride Gala . He finishes the season again as the Dutchman, in his debut with the Taiwan Philharmonic in Taipei. Other recent highlights include his role debut as Telramund in a new David Alden production of Lohengrin at San Francisco Opera, a role and house debut as Barak in Die Frau ohne Schatten at the Théâtre du Capitole de Toulouse, and Wotan in Die Walküre on tour with the Rotterdam Philharmonic. DIMITRY IVASHCHENKO ROCCO Previously at Lyric: Pogner/ Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (2012/13). This season, the Russian bass performs Daland/ The Flying Dutchman in Zürich and Gremin/ Eugene Onegin in Toronto. Last season he sang Rocco/ Fidelio in Toronto, Sarastro/ Die Zauberflöte in Munich and Dresden, as well as Kaspar/ Der Freischütz in Wiesbaden and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in Berlin. Ivashchenko has previously performed as Rocco/ Fidelio at the Zürich Opera (2019/20) and at the Wiesbaden State Opera (2022/23). He has sung Sarastro/ Die Zauberflöte in Berlin, Baden-Baden, Vienna, Paris, New York, and Aix-en-Provence. His Wagner roles include Daland in Geneva and Madrid, Hunding/ Die Walküre in Toronto, Toulouse and at the Baden- Baden Festival, and Fafner/ Rheingold and Siegfried in Paris. Ivashchenko made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2015 as Sparafucile in Rigoletto , a role he also performed in Munich, Paris, and the Bregenz Festival. Ivashchenko sang Osmin/ Die Entführung aus dem Serail at the Semperoper in 2017 and again in 2019/20. Other important roles include Gremin/ Eugene Onegin at the Vienna State Opera, Konchak/ Prince Igor and Ivan Khovanski/ Khovanshchina at the Paris Opera, King Mark/ Tristan und Isolde in Cottbus, and Filippo II/ Don Carlo in Graz. He studied at the Glinka Conservatory in Russia and at Karlsruhe University of Music. Artist profiles