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Chicago Tribune
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
In Lyric Opera's ‘The Listeners,' one little sound drives a woman to the edge
Some describe it as a giant, idling engine. Some say it's like the whirr of a generator. Others swear it comes straight from the center of the Earth. About 2% of the global population reports hearing what researchers and conspiracy theorists alike call 'the Hum.' The real-life phenomenon, which is still unexplained, inspires a new opera at Lyric Opera of Chicago from March 30 to April 11: 'The Listeners,' by composer Missy Mazzoli and librettist Royce Vavrek. The opera follows suburban schoolteacher Claire Devon (Chicago-born soprano Nicole Heaston, in her house debut), who is plagued by the Hum. Over the course of the opera, Claire learns she's not alone. She joins a cultlike community of 'Listeners,' a decision that alters the course of her life. The opera's scenario was devised by writer Jordan Tannahill, who has since adapted the story into a novel and BBC miniseries. After pandemic delays, 'The Listeners' debuted in 2022 at the Norwegian National Opera. Productions by co-commissioners Opera Philadelphia and, now, Lyric have followed. At the time she connected with the Tribune, Mazzoli — also the Chicago Symphony's composer-in-residence from 2018 to 2021 — had just arrived in Chicago from Essen, Germany, where 'The Listeners' is enjoying a second brand-new production. Not bad for an opera that's barely been in the world for two and a half years. The following conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity and flow. Q: Over this opera's short lifespan, it's already inspired two different productions. What was it like to experience it with a totally new vision in Essen, and how did it differ from the production that we're going to see here in Chicago? A: Besides some Zoom meetings with the dramaturg and director, I was not part of making the production in Germany at all. It was really surreal to sit down and not know what was going to happen. The production is much more abstract, symbolic and psychological. For example, the house of the protagonist, Claire, is just this big neon sign that says 'ANGER' in huge, 10-foot-tall letters. At one point in the German production, a character came out into the audience waving a very realistic gun before a fake SWAT team arrested him in the aisle. That would never happen in America. I guess (the short lifespan) sounds quick, but the thing is, 'Listeners' was really delayed because of the pandemic. It was supposed to premiere in Philly in 2021; instead, they pushed it back by two years and Philly had to go second. And I've written one and a half operas since 'The Listeners' — I'm onto other crazy stuff. So, it's interesting. Q: Those years in question have been eventful, to say the least. Are there parts of the work you're hearing or seeing differently now? A: I hate to say this, but you can't get away from it: The piece was always in a small, small part a reaction to the first Trump administration. One of the major themes of the work is what happens when a charismatic leader manipulates a population's vulnerabilities and uses them to his or her own ends. Unfortunately, that has new relevance. There's also a line (from) back in 2022 where Claire is singing about all of her lost potential, which is another big theme of the work. She has this line where she says, 'I could have been the president of the goddamn United States.' Now, obviously, to see a Black woman standing up there singing that. … It used to be funny. It's not funny anymore. Q: Claire taps into her inner 'wildness' in the opera. That, plus the remote desert setting, reminds me a bit of 'Proving Up.' ('Proving Up,' Mazzoli's 2018 opera about American homesteaders, was supposed to be performed at Lyric in January 2022 but was canceled by a rise in COVID.) Both operas explore the edges of civilization, and the things that can happen in that liminal space. Do you see similarities between those projects? A: I think of both as being part of an American trilogy of operas. The first one is 'Proving Up,' the second one is 'The Listeners,' and the third is 'Lincoln in the Bardo' (Mazzoli's forthcoming adaptation of the George Saunders novel premieres at the Metropolitan Opera in fall 2026.) They all look at how people relate to each other in American society. There's one similarity I thought of just now, which is the way that I write the villains in both 'Proving Up' and 'The Listeners.' The Sodbuster character in 'Proving Up' and Howard Bard, the leader of this group in 'The Listeners,' both sort of take up too much space. Everywhere else, it's a very fast-paced opera. And then Howard comes out, and the whole world needs to breathe with him. Same thing with the Sodbuster — he takes his damn time. Their control is what I wanted to convey. Q: The other two operas in that American trilogy are adaptations of existing stories — but then again, opera is an art form that's very friendly to adaptation. What made you and Royce Vavrek, your librettist, want to spring for an original story this time? A: We thought of that right away. So, when we contacted Jordan, our assignment was, 'What story would you tell first on the operatic stage?' Certainly, the sonic element of the Hum came out of that prompt. 1 of 3 Composer Missy Mazzoli worked with librettist Royce Vavrek to create "The Listeners" as a co-commission for Lyric Opera of Chicago, Norwegian National Opera and Opera Philadelphia. (Caroline Tompkins) Q: The Hum… How is it conveyed in your score? A: That was a big challenge. I knew I wanted the audience to hear the Hum at some point, but I decided I wanted them to hear it very far into the opera. You spend the first bit of the opera thinking these people are crazy, then you hear it. The question is, in a contemporary opera full of strange sounds, how do you create a sound where people are like, 'Oh, that's the Hum'? The answer is through electronics — it's the first electronic sound we hear. I worked with a great sound engineer, Daniel Neumann, who helped me with the surround-sound elements of it. There's no bad seat for the Hum. But every seat in the house has a different experience of it, which is also important. It's not just about hearing the sound of the Hum: It's about feeling the pressure that these Listeners feel. It's a very intense sound that swirls around and hopefully has an oppressive effect. Q: The sound is depicted as crazy-making, for lack of a better word. The act of going mad — and specifically women going mad — is something opera historically loves to depict. In what ways were you thinking about gender in this opera, if at all? A: I think gender plays into the cult dynamics a lot. So does this other, parallel theme of squashed potential. That idea was based on a lot of the women in my family. My mom always wanted to be an architect. But she was told she could either be a nurse or a teacher, so she was like, 'I guess I'll be a teacher.' Her strategic brain would have made her a great architect, but she filtered that skill into other things. Like, she will kick your ass at cards and chess. It also comes out in darker ways, like frustration and latent anger. That experience of feeling like you're not living the life you want to lead, despite everyone around you saying your life is great, you have this great family, this great job. … I see all the women in my family feeling that in a very strong way. I tried to portray that bubbling up in Claire.
Chicago Tribune
16-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Review: A Chicago ‘La Bohème' at Lyric Opera turns winter into spring into winter
Saturday's spring opener at the Lyric Opera of Chicago took place as a fool's spring gave way to the reality of the calendar, as a green sea of St. Patrick's Day revelers, clad for the hopes of April, discovered just how quickly March can turn frigid on you. The audience for 'La Bohème' entered the doors of the great opera house in one season and exited in entirely another. Giacomo Puccini's Mimì, who understood the power of seasonal change better than anyone in the operatic canon, surely would have sympathized, singing as she does about how loneliness is most acute in winter, when even the sun denies its companionship. She claims that the first kiss of April (from her lover? from the sun?) will belong to her. Not that such a day is ever promised. Still, Melanie Bacaling's staging of 'La Bohème' — this Rogers Park-born director's debut at anything like this level — certainly has its heart more in April than March, especially given the presence of a swath of Uniting Voices of Chicago singers (formerly the Chicago Children's Choir) joining the Lyric Opera Chorus and the optimistic take from its two stars, the American lyric soprano Ailyn Pérez, also a Chicago native, and the Samoan tenor Pene Pati. The latter makes a strikingly well-received Lyric debut, seemingly relishing every moment, every note, his voice akin to a pint of Guinness in a cozy pub, or a surprisingly sensual morning. The Canadian conductor Jordan de Souza understands what part the Lyric Orchestra must play here, and so it does. Pati's Rodolfo worries for Mimì, one discerns, but even in her final moments, there he is in the corner of the garret, smiling away, dreaming of a recovery that never comes. Pérez's Mimì doesn't seem to worry about seduction either way; in this production, Rodolfo is the calm from the storm of her life. The notion of refuge is there in how they sing to each other, and how they dance in the Parisian snow, two sunny dreamers, one better off than the other but both turning to La Vie Bohème as refugees from the harshness of the wintery world beyond the Café Momus. Under its former general director Anthony Freud, the Lyric pursued its post-pandemic recovery on twin tracks: a traditional experience here, paired with something that pushes the envelope there. The latter slot this spring is occupied by Missy Mazzoli's contemporary piece 'The Listeners,' opening March 30, and the former with this lush 'La Bohème,' new to Chicago but with sets by Gerard Howland created for the Los Angeles and Dallas Operas some years ago. Howland did add a 'Waiting for Godot'-like tree for the Parisian winter exterior, but even the falling snowflakes are lit by Duane Schuler as if this were 'White Christmas,' which I don't mean as a pejorative. Costumes originally were designed by the late British designer Peter J. Hall. Lyric, of course, has produced this most accessible of operatic titles — it was the source for Jonathan Larson's musical 'Rent' and any fan of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical repertory will hear familiar notes and chords — on and off for some 70 years. It has been a staple of the Wacker Drive repertoire since besuited and bedecked Chicagoans of the era of the first Mayor Daley came to dab their eyes. Freud clearly decided to lean into 'La Bohème's' entry-level popularity: there is a lobby exhibition of the piece's history at the Lyric and, more importantly, he predicted that the affection for the title would be a way to protect a new director like Bacaling, as well as to support a Chicago-born star (who is singing as Mimì several times around the world this year), an energetic young conductor, the Chicago-based newcomer Ian Rucker (who plays a pleasingly goofy Schaunard), and the 36-year-old Lyric favorite Will Liverman, who essays with some depth the jealous Marcello. It all paid off; the presence of the children's choir on stage was part of the reason for so many children in the house, I suspect, but it added to the sense of communal enjoyment as little kids watched and, one hopes, felt. The splendid soprano Gabriella Reyes seemed to catch this mood when she came out for her bow with Musetta's little dog, the two grinning from ear to ear, as was Peixin Chen, although the sharp-edged bass is the singer who, as Colline, gives the show at least some of its requisite gravitas. Puccini fans will leave well satisfied. 'I am always fine until that one chord,' I heard one departing woman say behind me as she protected herself against the sudden chill with the warmth of what sounded like an emotional capitulation with a familiar cue. La Vie Bohème, indeed. Chris Jones is a Tribune critic. cjones5@ Review: 'La Bohème' (3.5 stars) When: Through April 12 Where: Lyric Opera of Chicago, 20 N. Wacker Drive Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
Axios
11-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Axios
Billy Corgan to premiere Smashing Pumpkins opera at Lyric Opera Chicago
Lyric Opera of Chicago will premiere an opera by Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan for the 30th anniversary of one of the band's seminal albums. Driving the news: Lyric Opera on Tuesday announced their 2025-26 season, which includes the Nov. 21 world premiere of "A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness," composed by Corgan. The big picture: Considered one of the greatest alternative rock albums and symbolic sound of the '90s, "A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness" opera will feature Corgan and special guests in a "completely new sonic and visual experience," for Lyric, according to press release. What they're saying: "Opera and rock both tell stories of heightened emotions, and I am excited for both fans of my music and traditional opera fans to hear some truly inspired work; for the balance here is to honor both traditions in a magisterial way," Corgan said in a statement. Zoom out: The opera's 71st season opens on Oct. 10 and will include two performances as part of the "Movie Nights at Lyric" with the Lyric Opera Orchestra performing the live score of films that will be announced soon. "Carmina Burana" will feature 225 artists on stage, including the Uniting Voices Chicago children's choir. Renée Fleming returns to Lyric for one night only in April 2026 for "Voice of Nature: The Anthropocene" with music accompanied by video by National Geographic Society. The intrigue: " safronia," written by Chicago poet laureate avery r. young, tells Young's story about the Great Migration and a family's return to their southern hometown. It is a mix of poetry and folklore to the sounds of blues, funk and soul. What's next: Tickets for "A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness" go on sale to the public April 11 at 10am.
Chicago Tribune
11-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Lyric Opera's 2025-26 season includes ‘Madama Butterfly' and Billy Corgan revisiting ‘Mellon Collie'
The Lyric Opera of Chicago laid out its 2026-26 season at a presentation at the Civic Opera House on Tuesday, the first season to be announced under the direction of John Mangum, Lyric's newly installed general director, president and CEO. Many of the projects first were put in motion by Mangum's predecessor, Anthony Freud. The increased pace of performances reflects what Mangum called a continuation of Lyric's recovery from the pandemic. The fall slate of the leading Midwestern opera company opens with the Lyric premiere of a new co-production with the Metropolitan Opera of New York, Greek National Opera and Canadian Opera Company of Luigi Cherubini's 'Medea' (Oct 11-26). It will star Sondra Radvanovsky, who was born in Berwyn and rose to a reputation as one of the opera world's leading sopranos. Also coming this fall, a double bill of two one-act operas, Pietro Mascagni's 'Cavalleria rusticana' and Ruggero Leoncavallo's 'Pagliacci' (Nov. 1-23). Director Elijah Moshinsky's production will be staged by revival director Peter McClintock and feature a cast that includes Russell Thomas, Quinn Kelsey, and Gabriella Reyes. Enrique Mazzola conducts. November will see three performances of Carl Orff's cantata 'Carmina Burana' (Nov. 14-18) and the world premiere of a new 'alt rock opera' penned by Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins fame, titled 'A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness' (Nov. 21-30). Corgan was in the house Tuesday. His new opera is based on the Smashing Pumpkins conceptual double album of roughly the same title, the band's third studio album. Recorded in Chicago and released in 1995 with 28 tracks, 'Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness' represents the emotional and philosophical ambitions of 1990s alternative rock at its most expansive. 'Billy could have celebrated the 30th anniversary of this album anywhere,' Mangum said. 'He wanted to do it at the Lyric.' Corgan said that he was a longtime Lyric audience member and wanted to pay tribute to the operatic world. 'This is to celebrate the compositional aspect of the work,' Corgan said. 'We're not trying to do opera-goes-rock.' Corgan also said he will 'get a sing a few songs' but also wanted to 'get out of the way' of the orchestrations and the operatic singers involved in the project. 'My dream here is for us to create a beautiful immersive environment,' Corgan said. He hopes the project 'will be able to travel beyond Chicago.' How much actual staging will take place remains to be seen, given that this is a world premiere planned for seven performances, mostly on consecutive nights. But the songs have been reorchestrated and reordered and there will be costumes and other design elements. Its presence on the mainstage season (requiring an add-on ticket for subscribers) is a departure from custom for the Lyric, although one likely to prove popular with Smashing Pumpkins fans. In January, Lyric will stage Richard Strauss' 'Salome' (Jan. 25 to Feb. 14, 2026), the 1905 opera based on the Oscar Wilde play, as staged by David McVicar and starring Elena Stikhina in the title role in her Lyric debut. 'Salome,' among other attributes, is famous for its Dance of the Seven Veils. McVicar's production originated at the Royal Opera House in London in 2008. A San Francisco Opera production of Mozart's 'Così fan tutte' (Feb. 1-15) follows, directed by Michael Cavanagh and set in a seaside resort in the 1930s — featuring Ana María Martínez and Rod Gilfry in leading roles. At Lyric, Mazzola will conduct. On Tuesday, Mangum said that the opening production of Lyric's 2026-27 season will be 'Don Giovanni,' completing the trilogy of the Mozart/Lorenzo Da Ponte operas at Lyric. Next, Lyric will stage Puccini's 'Madama Butterfly' (March 14 to April 12, 2026), directed by Matthew Ozawa, with Karah Son making her Lyric debut in the title role. That piece will be paired with 'El último sueño de Frida y Diego (The Last Dream of Frida and Diego)' (March 21 to April 4, 2026) by composer Gabriela Lena Frank and librettist (and famed playwright) Nilo Cruz. Sung in Spanish and embracing of Mexican folk music traditions, the piece will star Daniela Mack and Alfredo Daza. Finally, the season concludes with the world premiere of 'safronia' (April 17-18, 2026), an Afro-surrealist opera both penned by and starring Chicago Poet Laureate avery r. young. This new piece follows a family who took part in the Great Migration but has returned home to reckon with the past. Timothy Douglas directs an opera that will include gospel, blues, funk and soul. Young said Tuesday that the story is based on that of his grandparents. Additional special events aside from the opening night gala (on Oct.10) include Renée Fleming, who has ended her association with Washington D.C.'s Kennedy Center, in concert in Chicago on Feb. 5, 2026, and an expanded version of 'Movie Nights at Lyric' (Disney's 'Coco' on Oct. 16-18 and 'Mary Poppins' on April 10-11, 2026) where the Lyric's orchestra provides a live accompaniment to one of two classic Hollywood movies.
Associated Press
11-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Lyric Opera of Chicago will start to reflect John Mangum's production picks in 2026-27
CHICAGO (AP) — The Lyric Opera of Chicago's 2025-26 season will include five productions that first appeared elsewhere and one revival, all picked by the previous general director, Anthony Freud. The current general director, John Mangum, arrived on Oct. 14 from the Houston Symphony after the retirement of Freud, who had led the Lyric for 13 years. Mangum plans on seven mainstage operas in 2026-27, including three of his choosing. Freud left in place two titles for 2027-28, the final season he partially programmed. Mangum is planning a 2029-30 season marking the 75th anniversary of the company and the 100th anniversary of the opera house. Following an opening gala on Oct. 10, next season's staged works start the following night with the company premiere of Cherubini's 'Medea' in the Italian version, the company announced Tuesday. Sondra Radvanovsky sings the title role in David McVicar's staging, repeating her performance that opened the Metropolitan Opera's 2022-23 season. 'It's expensive to originate a production on your own,' Mangum said. 'The `Medea' is a great example. That's a co-production that we invested in from the beginning and was always intended to come here. That really I think is the new model. The idea that the house can just do a production on its own is economically not really feasible these days.' The number of performances will increase to 59 in 2025-26 from 47 this season, down from a pre-pandemic high of 66 in 2017-18. Next season includes three concerts of Orff's 'Carmina Burana' and seven by alternative rocker Billy Corgan focusing on the 30th anniversary of his recording with The Smashing Pumpkins, 'Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.' The Lyric has sold 72% of tickets this season prior to remaining productions of Puccini's 'La Bohème' and Missy Mazzoli's 'The Listeners' that open this month. The 2023-24 season ended at 75%, down from 76% in 2022-23. Elijah Moshinsky's 2002 Lyric Opera productions of Mascagni's 'Cavalleria Rusticana' and Leoncavallo's 'Pagliacci' open Nov. 1 and feature Yulia Matochkina and SeokJong Baek in their company debuts. Elena Stikhina and Nicholas Brownlee make their company debuts on Jan. 25 in Strauss' 'Salome,' in a McVicar production first seen at London's Royal Opera in 2008. Mozart's 'Così fan tutte' opens Feb. 1 in Michael Cavanagh's 2021 staging from the San Francisco Opera that sets the action in a 1930s U.S. country club. Matthew Ozawa directs Puccini's 'Madama Butterfly' starring Karah Son in her company debut on March 14, 2026, in a staging first seen at the Cincinnati Opera in 2023. Gabriela Lena Frank's 'El último sueño de Frida y Diego' opens March 21, 2026, in the Lorena Maza staging from the 2022 world premiere at the San Diego Opera.
