Lyric Opera 2024-2025 Issue 8 - The Listeners

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 66 Making History (2014–present) 2014–2015 Renowned soprano Julia Faulkner is appointed Director of Vocal Studies. In collaboration with Lyric and the Ryan Opera Center, the Harris Theater launches the Beyond the Aria series of special cabaret-style programs performed on the Pritzker Pavilion stage. Lyric principal artists are featured alongside Ensemble members with series Artistic Director Craig Terry at the keyboard. 2016 The first Ryan Opera Center Gala, The Five Tenors , is held at The Casino Club. 2017 Exceptional alumni Andriana Chuchman, Anthony Clark Evans, Quinn Kelsey, Matthew Polenzani, Christian Van Horn, and Amber Wagner perform starring roles across Lyric’s season. Renée Fleming leads an inspiring master class with Ryan Opera Center artists, as part of her annual involvement with the program. 2020 Amid pandemic restrictions, the Ryan Opera Center creates the innovative Ryan Opera Center from Home video series, connecting artists with audiences virtually. Decade 5: Celebrating Success Clockwise from top: The 2019/20 Ensemble after Rising Stars in Concert ; the Ensemble tenors perform at the very first Ryan Opera Center Gala; Lunga Eric Hallam with Enrique Mazzola in Sole e Amore ,one of several digital projects in 2020/21; Renée Fleming leads a master class. From 2014 to the present, the Ryan Opera Center has celebrated remarkable successes, showcasing its exceptional talent and embracing innovation. Here, the fifth and final installment of our ongoing celebration of the program’s 50th anniversary. Kyle Flubacker Jaclyn Simpson Kyle Flubacker Jaclyn Simpson The Ryan Opera Center is at the heart of reimagining Lyric’s 2020/21 Season with seven major digital projects, netting nearly 200,000 total viewers, including Lawrence Brownlee and Friends: The Next Chapter , Master Classes with Sir Andrew Davis, Pasión Latina with Ana María Martínez, Sole e Amore with Enrique Mazzola, and Magical Music Around the World . 2021 Donald Lee III becomes the Ensemble’s inaugural conductor/ pianist, the first of three new Ensemble positions that solidify the Ryan Opera Center’s leadership role in training emerging artists across the full spectrum of the field. 2022 Luther H. Lewis III is named the first Ensemble Stage Director, and Tess Naval is named the first Ensemble Stage Manager. 2023 The Factotum, co-written by Ryan Opera Center alumnus Will Liverman, is premiered and features several current Ryan Opera Center members. 2024 Lyric Music Director Enrique Mazzola leads the first public Ryan Opera Center Master Class since the pandemic. Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Ryan Opera Center celebrates its 50th anniversary, honoring five decades of nurturing exceptional talent.