March 16, 2020
Week of March 15: Lyric Commentaries for opera streaming and more
We hope you enjoy a new week of curated streaming opportunities that you can enjoy in the comfort of your own home! Warm up your biggest screen and check out our streaming suggestions below, along with commentaries that accompany Lyric titles.
In addition to this week’s streaming schedule, we’re excited to announce that beginning Monday, March 15, you can now take Lyric with you anywhere! Lyric is releasing complete live opera performances from past Lyric seasons on our website, and through a variety of music streaming platforms in the coming months, for listeners around the world to enjoy. This week’s schedule includes Luisa Miller (2019) featuring Krassimira Stoyanova, Joseph Calleja, Quinn Kelsey, Soloman Howard, and Christian Van Horn, conducted by Enrique Mazzola; The Queen of Spades (2020) featuring Brandon Jovanovich, Sondra Radvanovsky, Lucas Meachem, and Samuel Youn, conducted by Sir Andrew Davis; and Die Walküre (2017) featuring Christine Goerke, Eric Owens, Brandon Jovanovich, and Elisabet Strid, conducted by Sir Andrew Davis.
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.
Monday, March 15
MasterVoices
Guettel: Myths and Hymns — Chapter 2: WORK
MasterVoices proudly presents WORK, Chapter Two of a four-part digital production of Adam Guettel’s song cycle, Myths and Hymns, which explores the nature of faith and longing in a secular world. Conceived by Tony Award(R)-winning Artistic Director Ted Sperling, performances of each chapter feature the MasterVoices Chorus along with acclaimed soloists, directors, animators, and illustrators from the worlds of theater, opera, television, and film. This stream is available through June 30.
Tuesday, March 16
Harris Theater for Music and Dance
Beyond the Aria
Presented by Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Beyond the Aria pairs internationally celebrated opera singers of Lyric’s mainstage alongside rising stars from The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center. The next installment features Ryan Opera Center Ensemble member Katherine Beck, and Ensemble alumni Amanda Majeski and Anne Toomey.takes place digitally at 7pm CT.
Cincinnati Opera
Wanderlust
This digital concert from Cincinnati Opera stars soprano Talise Trevigne, chamber ensemble concert:nova, and is conducted by William R. Langley. Wanderlust is available through March 21.
Wednesday, March 17
Cincinnati Opera
Angela Brown: Opera... From a sistah’s point of view
This digital concert from Cincinnati Opera stars soprano Angela Brown in an adaptation of her popular show using humor, storytelling, and song to dispel common opera myths. With her signature wit and larger-than-life personality, Brown demystifies classic plotlines and celebrates the diversity of opera’s characters while tracing the beauty of its music through the stories and voices of Black singers. Brown is joined for this program by mezzo-soprano Briana Hunter, tenor Jamez McCorkle, soprano Victoria Okafor, and baritone Reginald Smith Jr., with pianist Marie-France Lefebvre. This opera stream is available through March 21.
Thursday, March 18
Hawai'i Opera Theatre
Mozart:Bastien & Bastienne
This production from Hawai‘i Opera Theatre stars Taka Komagata, Martina Bingham, and Jamie Offenbach and is directed by HOT’s General Director, Andrew Morgan.
Friday, March 19
The Metropolitan Opera
Rossini: The Barber of Seville
This production from The Metropolitan Opera stars Joyce DiDonato, Juan Diego Flórez, Peter Mattei, John Del Carlo, and John Relyea, and was directed by Bartlett Sher. The Barber of Seville was conducted by Maurizio Benini on March 24, 2007.
Lyric Commentary from the 2019/20 Season is by Nicholas Ivor Martin.
Saturday, March 20 and Sunday, March 21
San Francisco Opera
Wagner: Siegfried
This performance from San Francisco Opera stars Daniel Brenna, Iréne Theorin, David Cangelosi, Greer Grimsley, Falk Struckmann, and Raymond Aceto, and was directed by Francesca Zambello. Siegfried was conducted by Donald Runnicles in 2018. This opera stream premieres on Saturday, March 20 at 12pm CT, and will be available through Friday, March 26.
Lyric Commentary from the 2018/19 Season is by Colin Ure.
Sole e Amore (Sun and Love)
Sole e Amore (Sun and Love)
Revel in the sounds of Italy with a virtual recital 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 and Ensemble member Chris Reynolds alternating at the piano, members of the Ryan Opera Center 2020/21 Ensemble perform songs by Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi, Puccini, and Mascagni, selected with love by Mazzola.
Creating The Factotum
Creating The Factotum
Follow the development of a new opera by Ryan Opera Center alumnus Will Liverman and DJ/recording artist K-Rico that transcends the limits of traditional repertoire. The Factotum, inspired by Rossini's The Barber of Seville, takes place in a present-day Black barbershop in Chicago and combines operatic singing with hip-hop, barbershop, gospel, funk, neo soul, and R&B music.
Chicago filmmaker Raphael Nash has captured the behind-the-scenes process of creating this new work and brings us backstage to meet the artists, hear from the creators, and feel the energy of a new opera being born.
Pasión Latina
Pasión Latina
Celebrate music of the Spanish-speaking world with a free virtual concert starring and hosted by renowned soprano and Lyric favorite Ana María Martínez, and featuring Ryan Opera Center artists and alumni.
These engaging artists perform a dynamic selection of some of their favorite music from Puerto Rico, Mexico, Cuba, Guatemala, Argentina, and Spain, with piano accompaniment by Ryan Opera Center Music Director Craig Terry and current Ensemble pianist Chris Reynolds.
Lawrence Brownlee and Friends: The Next Chapter
Lawrence Brownlee and Friends: The Next Chapter
Lyric's Ryan Opera Center presents a free virtual concert celebrating the depth and breadth of Black artistry, hosted by world-renowned tenor Lawrence Brownlee, who also serves as artistic advisor for the event. The concert also features prominent Ryan Opera Center alumni—soprano Whitney Morrison, mezzo-soprano J'Nai Bridges, and baritone Will Liverman—and three current 2020/21 Ryan Opera Center Ensemble members—tenors Martin Luther Clark and Lunga Eric Hallam, and baritone Leroy Davis.