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L Y R I C O P E R A O F C H I C A G O
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December 10, 2016 - January 27, 2017
The operas of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart present us with music that makes us glad to be alive. It invigorates, illuminates, excites,
moves, and delights.
The Magic Flute
is an opera for all ages and all seasons. The added joy is that it communicates a unique humanity
that is its own reward. The connections audiences make to this opera’s hero and heroine – and to the emotional journey taken by
each of them – become increasingly meaningful to us. When the performance ends, we leave the theater enriched by their triumph
and eager to conquer every trial, as they have done.
This is a masterpiece that exists on many levels. It is, of course, a highly
entertaining, immensely family-friendly fairy story that entrances children of all ages
– from nine to ninety! But at the same time,
The Magic Flute
presents us with a
profound philosophical account of the Enlightenment. It proclaims both humanity
and humanism. Over the more than 225 years of its performance history, this opera
has been interpreted in a vast variety of ways. Still, it is essential never to lose sight of
its childlike quality. That is what has captivated audiences throughout the world and
throughout the last two and a half centuries. Lyric has chosen to present it at holiday
time, and you’ll find no work more appropriate for bringing joy and uplift to all of us.
For this new production it is a pleasure to welcome back a conductor and
director who have done outstanding work previously at Lyric. Rory Macdonald
(
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
) brings to Mozart’s score precisely the degree of
elegance, wit, and lyricism that it demands, and Neil Armfield (
Sweeney Todd
,
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
) has staged the opera with enormous imagination
in a marvelously unexpected setting.
In last season’s production of
The Marriage of Figaro
, audiences and critics
were deeply impressed by the Lyric debut performances of two exceptional Mozart
interpreters, Christiane Karg and Adam Plachetka. I’m thrilled that they’re with
us again to renew their collaboration on the Lyric stage, this time as Pamina and
Papageno, roles in which they have shone in major European houses. Our music
director, Sir Andrew Davis, and I have both been impressed by Andrew Staples, our debuting Tamino, whom I heard most
recently at the Salzburg Festival. Taking over Tamino for the second half of the run is Ryan Opera Center alumnus Matthew
Polenzani, a great favorite at Lyric and the Metropolitan Opera, whose Mozart roles have been a cornerstone of his outstanding
international career.
This marvelous cast also includes two artists making auspicious Lyric debuts: Kathryn Lewek, the American soprano who has
enjoyed repeated international successes in the fiendishly difficult music of the Queen of the Night; and our Sarastro, German bass
Christof Fischesser, whose performances of his native repertoire in major European and American houses have been exceptional
in both Mozart and Wagner roles.
To those already familiar with
The Magic Flute
as well as those just becoming acquainted with it, I wish you a truly glorious
experience at Lyric!
From the General Director
STEVE LEONARD
Anthony Freud
General Director, President & CEO
The Women’s Board Endowed Chair