Lyric Opera Auditions

Thank you for your interest in auditioning for Lyric Opera of Chicago. Here you will find current audition opportunities across the company.

Singers and instrumentalists wishing to receive audition information from Lyric Opera of Chicago or The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center may contact the appropriate administrators as follows:

Lyric Opera of Chicago will hold auditions for solo dancers with strong technique and significant stage experience for its upcoming production of La traviata by Giuseppe Verdi on Saturday, July 18, 2026. The production will be staged by critically acclaimed director Arin Arbus with choreography by Austin McCormick, artistic director and founder of COMPANY XIV. Teanna Zarro is the ballet mistress. 

La traviata requires two (2) male-presenting and two (2) female-presenting solo dancers, and one (1) male-presenting and one (1) female-presenting cover dancers. All dancers should have substantial professional experience and be highly trained in both ballet and contemporary dance. Dancers should be stylistically versatile with excellent partnering skills and acting ability. Pointe shoes are not required.  

Lyric Opera of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer committed to inclusive casting and encourages all highly accomplished dancers to audition. 

Rehearsals will begin Monday, March 1, 2027, with performances running from Wednesday, March 24, through Saturday, April 25, 2027.

Weekly rate for Solo Dancers in the 2026/27 Season is $1,7800.00/week.

The schedule for the audition on Saturday, July 18, is as follows:

• 9:00am: Check-in: must arrive by 9:30am
• 10:00am: Warm-up class
• 11:00am: Audition begins: should conclude no later than 4:00pm, likely earlier

 

The deadline to register for this audition is Friday, July 10, at 5:00 p.m. CDT

To RSVP, you must send your résumé and headshot via attachment to [email protected], and complete the registration form you will receive in reply. You will not be granted the ability to register for an audition until you have made a complete application. Walk-ins will not be seen.

Please be prepared to show a government-issued photo identification card to gain access to the audition. All applicants must have valid eligibility to work in the United States. Lyric Opera will not apply for working permits for foreign dancers. 

Artists at Lyric Opera of Chicago are represented by the American Guild of Musical Artists. Should you be hired for La traviata you will be required to join this union, if you are not already a member.

Lyric Opera of Chicago announces auditions for Guys and Dolls

Lyric Opera of Chicago will hold auditions for Chicago-based musical theater artists to perform principal roles, covers, and ensemble singers and dancers in the 2026-27 season performances of Guys and Dolls. Inspired by contemporary thrift shops and urban missions, this production by acclaimed director Francesca Zambello reimagines the Save-a-Soul Mission as a liminal space between the original Prohibition-era 1930s and the vibrant aesthetics of modern-day New York. The performances will be conducted by James Lowe with choreography by Joshua Bergasse. Artists should be local to the Chicagoland area and have full-time availability for rehearsals and performances. Lyric Opera of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer committed to inclusive casting and encourages all highly accomplished singers, actors, and dancers to audition.

Guys and Dolls will engage seven principal cast artists, twenty-eight ensemble artists, and four off-stage swings:

• Sarah Brown, leading role
• Sky Masterson, leading role
• Miss Adelaide, leading role
• Nathan Detroit, leading role
• Nicely-Nicely Johnson, featured role
• Benny Southstreet, featured role
• Arvide Abernathy, featured role
• All other named roles (Big Jule, Harry the Horse, Gen. Cartwright, Mimi, etc.) and all understudies will come from the 28-person ensemble.

The rehearsal and performance 6-week period is from May 10, 2027, through June 20, 2027, with 19 performances scheduled from opening night on June 4, 2027. Weekly rates are established by the collective bargaining agreement with the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) and are set for the 2026-27 season at $3,107.00 for leading roles, $2,086.00 for featured roles, and $1,447.00 for ensemble and offstage swings. Ensemble members asked to understudy a leading role will receive an additional $639.00 per week for the full period, and an additional $1,021.00 per week for any week in which they perform a leading role. Ensemble members asked to understudy a featured role will receive an additional $639.00 per week for any week in which they perform a featured role.

Audition schedule
Auditions will take place at Lyric Opera of Chicago, 40 North Wacker Drive (stage door):
Wednesday, July 15*: Ensemble auditions and dance calls
Thursday, July 16: Ensemble auditions and dance calls

August TBD: Principal auditions
August TBD: Principal and ensemble callbacks

Tuesday, September 15: Ensemble callbacks
Wednesday, September 16 – Friday, September 18: Final round and director sessions for principals, understudies, and ensemble

*The first round of ensemble auditions on July 15 will be a union call open only to members of AGMA and Actors’ Equity Association.

Auditions are by invitation only.
To be considered, please submit the form here.  

• Not all applicants are guaranteed an audition. Auditions will be scheduled based on review of submitted materials, accepted through July 8, 2026.
• All auditions must be done live in Chicago.
• All artists who submit the linked form and submit the required materials (details in form) will be notified by July 10, 2026.
  Walk-ins will not be seen.

Audition requirements
Successful applicants will be asked to prepare musical excerpts and sides according to the roles or ensemble positions for which they are in consideration. Lyric Opera of Chicago will provide a pianist. All preliminary ensemble auditions in July will participate in a dance call to learn a routine from the production taught by choreographer Joshua Bergasse.

Additional information
Artists at Lyric Opera of Chicago are represented by the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA). Should an artist be hired, they will be required to join this union if they are not already a member. Auditionees must be United States citizens or possess, at the time of the audition, legal permission to work in the United States of America during the rehearsal and performance period.

For more information, please email [email protected].

About Lyric Opera of Chicago and Lyric Unlimited
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s mission is to express and promote the life-changing, transformational, revelatory power of great opera. Lyric exists to provide a broad, deep, and relevant cultural service to Chicago and the nation, and to advance the development of the art form. To learn more about Lyric’s current and future season, visit lyricopera.org.

Lyric Opera of Chicago is committed to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, parental status, socio-economic status, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws. We strongly encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply.

Lyric Opera of Chicago's music staff consists of cover conductors, répétiteurs, and prompters. If you you like to be considered for a position on Lyric Opera's music staff, please email your résumé and references to [email protected]. If you are interested in cover conducting and have conducting reels available to you, please be sure to include them.

Alternate contact information is:
Lyric Opera of Chicago
Music Staff Auditions
20 N. Wacker Drive, Ste. 860
Chicago, IL 60606

Lyric grants auditions for principal roles to professional opera singers on an invitation-only basis. The artist's management should email [email protected] with requests for an audition.

 

There are no orchestra auditions at this time. 

There are no chorus auditions at this time.

To request an information packet about becoming a supernumerary at Lyric Opera of Chicago, please email Tommy Novak, super captain, at [email protected].

 

There are no Lyric Unlimited Auditions at this time. 

Applications for The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center 2026/27 Ensemble are now closed. For questions about the Ryan Opera Center's application and audition process, please contact Logan Skirm at [email protected]

 

---

Photo: Todd Rosenberg