Week of February 15: Lyric Commentaries for opera streaming and more

Warm up this week with streaming opportunities near and far! We’ll begin our lineup with a production from The Metropolitan Opera, and with Washington National Opera’s celebration of the legendary contralto Marian Anderson, featuring mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves and tenor Lawrence Brownlee.

We’ll see baritone and Ryan Opera Center alumnus Quinn Kelsey in a digital recital with Hawai’i Opera Theatre, an ongoing series from our friends at the National Museum of Mexican Art, a new work inspired by real events and the poems of Margaret Atwood from composer Jake Heggie (Dead Man Walking), and San Francisco Opera’s stream of La rondine. 

We also have two Lyric performances making their virtual premieres this week! On Friday PBS Great Peformances will begin streaming our 2017/18 production of Orphée et Eurydice, a production by John Neumeier with The Joffrey Ballet. On Sunday, we’re excited to premiere our latest virtual offering, Sole e Amore (Sun and Love), an informal performance of lesser-known musical gems by beloved Italian opera composers, curated and hosted by Lyric’s Music Director Designate Enrique Mazzola and presented by The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center. 

Our latest virtual offering "Creating The Factotum," is now live. Go behind-the-scenes with this documentary about the creative process of Ryan Opera Center alumnus baritone Will Liverman and DJ/recording artist K-Rico’s new opera. The Factotum is inspired by The Barber of Seville, and placed in a present-day Black barbershop in Chicago.

As you enjoy this week's set of streaming opportunities, you can explore Lyric Opera Commentaries, which discuss the synopses, music, and some historical insights of the world's most beloved operas, and musical masterpieces you might never have experienced.

Lyric Opera Commentaries are sponsored by the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Foundation in memory of their parents.

The Metropolitan Opera
Puccini: La bohème

This production from The Metropolitan Opera stars Angela Gheorghiu, Ramón Vargas, Ainhoa Arteta, Ludovic Tézier, and Oren Gradus, and was directed by Franco Zeffirelli. La bohème was conducted by Nicola Luisotti on April 8, 2008. This opera stream is available until 6:30pm on Tuesday, February 16.

Lyric Commentary from the 2018/19 Season is by Wynne Delacoma. 

Washington National Opera
Denyce Graves and Lawrence Brownlee: Marian Anderson Award Retrospective

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts teams up with Washington National Opera to honor the legacy of Black contralto Marian Anderson in a recital featuring Denyce Graves and Lawrence Brownlee. This stream is available indefinitely. 

Hawai'i Opera Theatre
Opera Kanikapila

This digital recital from Hawai’i Opera Theatre features Ryan Opera Center alumnus baritone Quinn Kamakanalani Kelsey and award-winning 'ukulele virtuoso Taimane in a kanikapila jam session accompanied by Eric Schank on piano and Rachel Look on guitar.

National Museum of Mexican Art
Mini Concierto: Sarah La Morena

This virtual concert from our friends at the National Museum of Mexican Art features singer-songwriter Sarah La Morena. La Morena was raised in Zacatecas, Mexico, where she grew up listening to regional music, which in turn inspires her music making today. This stream is available indefinitely. 

Lyric Opera of Chicago
PBS Great Performances
Gluck: Orphée et Eurydice

This production from Lyric Opera of Chicago stars Dmitry Korchak, Andriana Chuchman, and Lauren Snouffer, and was directed, designed and choreographed by John Neumeier. Orphée et Eurydice was conducted by Harry Bicket, and features the Joffrey Ballet. This opera stream is available through PBS Great Performances until March 19. 

Lyric Commentary from the 2017/18 Season is by Anthony Freud and Nicholas Ivor Martin. 

Houston Grand Opera
Jake Heggie, Margaret Atwood, and Joshua Hopkins:Songs for Murdered Sisters

Five years ago, Joshua Hopkins’s life changed forever when his sister Nathalie, along with two other women, were murdered by her ex-boyfriend in what is now considered one of the worst cases of domestic violence in Canadian history. In his grief, Hopkins conceived of this song cycle. Co-commissioned by HGO and Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra, with music by Jake Heggie set to poems by Margaret Atwood, this powerful new work, directed by James Niebuhr, is Hopkins’s way of honoring his sister’s memory and speaking out against domestic violence. Songs for Murdered Sisters premieres on Friday, February 19 at 7:30pm CT, and is available for streaming through March 18. 

San Francisco Opera
Puccini: La rondine 

This production from San Francisco Opera stars Angela Gheorghiu, Gerard Powers, Anna Christy, and Misha Didyk, and was directed by Stephen Barlow. La rondine was conducted by Ion Marin in 2007. This opera stream premieres on Saturday, February 20 at 12pm CT, and will be available through Sunday, February 21. 

Lyric Opera of Chicago
Sole e Amore (Sun and Love) 

Revel in the sounds of Italy with a virtual performance awash with beautiful lesser-known musical gems by beloved Italian opera composers, curated and hosted by Lyric’s Music Director Designate Enrique Mazzola and presented by The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center. With Maestro Mazzola at the piano, as well as ensemble pianist Chris Reynolds, members of the Ryan Opera Center 2020/21 Ensemble will perform songs by Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi, Puccini, and Mascagni, selected with love by Mazzola. Familiar melodies from later operas can be heard in many of the songs.

Sole e Amore premieres on Sunday, February 21 at 6pm CT.

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