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L Y R I C O P E R A O F C H I C A G O
January 28 - February 24, 2017
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15
Opera and Friendship
In 2015, Chicago became my new address when
I accepted an assignment in the Windy City.
But Chicago became my home when I made
a friend for life at Lyric!
Last November, I sank into my seat for
Wozzeck
and returned the “Hi” from the woman
beside me. However, this time instead of the
usual pleasantries, we started to chat (and
laugh) until the curtain went up. One hundred
minutes (and no intermission) later we were on
the way to a bar for drinks (if you have seen
Wozzeck,
you will understand)! We quickly
connected over life experiences and our love
for opera.
This chance meeting in November connected me to this fabulous
city in a way that I did not think possible. And this year? We are
signed up as subscribers for the 2016-17 season, of course!
So – why do I love Lyric? Because I love opera. Because I want
to share that love of opera with others. Because one day my daughters
who grew up listening to this music will join me at Lyric to experience
these amazing performances in this city that I now call home!
Dr. Annette Gibbs-Skervin
(Chicago)
A Richer Experience
My most exciting evening at Lyric was the very first time I experienced
an opera (
Tannhäuser
) with audio description.
I’m a visually impaired operagoer and often felt that my experience was
limited because I was not aware of the visuals, especially costumes and sets.
Also, some of my languages are a bit rusty, and not having access to the
projected titles was frustrating. Once I put that earbud in my right ear and
heard the voice of the audio describer, everything changed.
Now while I’m listening to the opera, I am also imagining the set,
costumes, props, and the performers themselves, and I can follow the dialogue
with the supertitles.
I do not know much about music in a formal sense. I did not take any
fine arts class or personal study of music in my many years of education.
So my love for Lyric Opera is based on sheer experience of being an alert and
delighted audience member. My first experience of opera was 40 years ago,
when I caught the title in an article on
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
and,
knowing some German, decided to go. I have been a fan of Lyric ever since.
My appreciation is deep and rich, because I have matured into being
a grateful person and I feel the presence of an overwhelming gratitude that
literally hundreds of people – starting with volunteers to welcome you, and
cleaners of the building, and professors and mentors who nurture the talent
of musicians and singers, and craftspeople to design clever and beautiful staging
– bring forth a presentation with such integration at a level of perfection that is
thrilling. I just love Lyric and what it represents for all of us hungry for human
unity. For we all hope that beauty itself will forge in us a way to appreciate life
itself, and to help us connect with one another beyond all the dissonance
of the times we live in.
Robert Carroll
(Darien)
Tannhäuser
at Lyric, the first opera production
for which Robert Carroll used audio description.
Dr. Annette Gibbs-Skervin made a new friend
at last season’s
Wozzeck
. Pictured in that production are
Tomasz Konieczny in the title role and Angela Denoke as Marie.
CORY WEAVER