Dr. Louise Bernard Joins Lyric Opera of Chicago Board of Directors

CHICAGO (1/17/24) — Lyric Opera of Chicago announces the appointment of Dr. Louise Bernard to its Board of Directors. Bernard, the museum director for the Obama Presidential Center, brings extensive background in the arts and culture sector and strong commitment to civic engagement, making her a valuable addition to the opera company's leadership.

"We are delighted to welcome Louise to our Board of Directors," says Sylvia Neil, Board Chair. "Her prodigious cultural expertise and deep commitment to education and civic engagement resonate with Lyric's mission and we eagerly look forward to her contributions to the company."

Bernard has had a distinguished career in the cultural and educational spheres. In her current role, she leads the design, development, and operation of the Obama Presidential Center Museum on Chicago’s South Side. Previously, Bernard was director of exhibitions at the New York Public Library and was a senior content developer and interpretive planner for Ralph Appelbaum Associates, where she contributed to the development of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, and several international projects.

Bernard, who grew up in West Yorkshire, England, earned her BA from the University of Manchester in 1993, dual MA degrees from Indiana University Bloomington in 1997, and her PhD from Yale in 2005.

In addition to her professional roles, Bernard is actively engaged in corporate and civic initiatives. She was formerly a board member of Yale's graduate school alumni association and in 2023 served as Returning Guest Faculty for the Oxford Cultural Leaders Program at Oxford University. She was previously an evaluator for the Ford Foundation: Pre-Doctoral, Dissertation, and Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, Literature Panel, National Academies in Washington, D.C. from 2009-2013.

Bernard, unanimously elected to Lyric’s Board of Directors, begins her term immediately.

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About Lyric

Lyric Opera of Chicago is committed to redefining what it means to experience great opera. The company is driven to deliver consistently excellent artistry through innovative, relevant, celebratory programming that engages and energizes new and traditional audiences.

Under the leadership of General Director, President & CEO Anthony Freud, Music Director Enrique Mazzola, and Special Project Advisor Renée Fleming, Lyric is dedicated to reflecting, and drawing strength from, the diversity of Chicago. Lyric offers, through innovation, collaboration, and evolving learning opportunities, ever-more exciting, accessible, and thought-provoking audience and community experiences. We also stand committed to training the artists of the future, through The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center; and to becoming increasingly diverse across our audiences, staff, programming, and artists—magnifying the welcoming pull of our art form, our company, and our city.

Through the timeless power of voice, the splendor of a great orchestra and chorus, theater, dance, design, and truly magnificent stagecraft, Lyric is devoted to immersing audiences in worlds both familiar and unexpected, creating shared experiences that resonate long after the curtain comes down.

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