Porgy and Bess

L Y R I C O P E R A O F C H I C A G O

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Denyce Graves Defies Categorization Superstar mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves is featured in Lyric’s Carousel as Nettie Fowler, who acts as a mother hen to the New England waterfront community depicted by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Graves, who has performed everywhere – from the world’s greatest opera houses to the White House – is embarking on her first full- length musical theater production with Carousel . She welcomes the challenge: “I’ve always loved musical theater, and I feel so much better about getting my feet wet in this genre at an opera house. I’m thrilled to bits about doing this.” Lyric audiences are sure to relish hearing Graves’s powerful voice in Carousel, a show that Graves approaches with reverence and a long history. “‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ is one of the first songs I ever heard as a child,” she reminisces. “My mother used to sing it to me, and I’d always thought it was a spiritual!” On Lyric’s stage, she plans to approach each performance of the song with the “honesty, truthfulness, and compassion” that it demands. Graves has always been devoted to musical theater, which she’s performed a great deal as concert excerpts. She has had a chance to compare notes with her good friend and fellow opera star Christine Brewer (the Mother Abbess in last season’s Lyric production of The Sound of Music ) when the two performed recently at a concert for peace and unity in Ferguson, Missouri. Brewer found that memorizing her spoken lines was the most difficult part of preparation for her musical debut. “I’m cautious to make this statement, but I have a very good and detailed memory (my husband can attest to that!) and memorizing opera hasn’t been an issue, but memorizing lines will be different for sure,” notes Graves. All in all, Graves is delighted and grateful to turn over what she calls “a new page” in her career. Catch her onstage at Lyric starting in April!

Lyric’s Musical Theater Initiative continued in 2013-14 with The Sound of Music. (Below) Billy Zane portrayed Captain von Trapp, opposite Jenn Gambatese as Maria.

many questions as it answers.”

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22 | N O V E M B E R 1 7 - D E C E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 4 music and story, Lyric has assembled an amazing creative team. Tony Award-winning director Rob Ashford returns to direct after making his Lyric debut in February 2014 with the acclaimed new production of Rossini’s The Barber of Seville . Joining him is costume designer Catherine Zuber, who also designed the Barber costumes. Making his theatrical debut as set designer is Italian artist Paolo Ventura. Rob Ashford saw the haunting circus- inspired images in Ventura’s 2008 “Winter Stories” exhibition several years ago and knew that they were the ideal inspiration for a future production of Carousel . When he was approached to direct Lyric’s new production, he suggested Ventura as a designer, who was immediately drawn to the project. Together, the design team has created a visual world that Ashford describes as “tinged in melancholy” Based on the acclaimed play Liliom by Ferenc Molnár, Carousel is a complex story of missed opportunities and second chances that was the personal favorite of composer Richard Rodgers. Carousel barker and general ne’er-do-well Billy Bigelow falls in love with the beautiful, innocent young mill-worker Julie Jordan, but neither of them can truly express the depth of their feelings. They marry, have a child, and then Billy dies in tragic circumstances. Years later, his ghost is given a chance at redemption through helping his now- grown daughter Louise. To fully explore the possibilities inherent in the

that will also contain moments of profound beauty and hope. To audiences who are familiar with the piece, Freud promises a unique, fresh approach to this beloved work: “Audiences who come to Lyric will see a Carousel that will have its own, very distinctive identity.” Maggie Berndt, Lyric Opera’s public relations specialist, is former publicist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.