Did you Hear? Nixon is coming to KC

That’s right, the set and costumes for the upcoming production of Nixon in China at the Lyric Opera is en route to Kansas City from Vancouver.  With just over 6 weeks until opening, a myriad of staff members and contractors are already hard at work.  Chorus coaching has been happening since December and principal singers will arrive in 3 weeks.

James Wright, General Director of Vancouver Opera, recently wrote about the journey of Nixon in China to Kansas City on the Vancouver Opera Blog. Read what Mr. Wright has to say, and pay attention near the end to learn about his Kansas City connection.

More Kauffman Center Praise

William Littler, a music columnist for The Toronto Star, recently wrote an article that talked both about a Moshe Safdie performing arts center that was never realized in Toronto and the newly realized Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts designed by Moshe Safdie in Kansas City.  Along with writing about the parallels and connections between the arts centers and cities (including a mention of the Kauffman family’s Toronto roots), Mr. Littler praises Kansas City for its cultural strengths and particularly the Lyric Opera and the production of Turandot in which he attended last October.  Mr. Littler notes “Turandot marked a coming of age for the company,” and we agree.

Read the entire article

Spring Opera Guides Now Available

As many readers may know, the Lyric Opera will be performing John Adams’ Nixon in China and Rossini’s The Barber of Seville this spring as the Company concludes its inaugural season in the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

To help our patrons, and those interested in learning about opera, we offer free, in-depth guides about each opera.  These guides are written by Stu Lewis, a member of the Lyric Opera Guild, and are fantastic resources when wanting to understand an opera before you attend.  You will find a detailed outline of the opera’s story, and great insight into the composers and librettists, including information about their careers and motivations.  The guides can be found at kcopera.org on each show’s information page, or directly by clicking on the links below.

Take a peek to see what you can learn, and please thank Stu Lewis for his hard work!

Nixon in China Guide

The Barber of Seville Guide

World Premiere Youth Opera – The Giver

This Saturday, January 14th at 2:00 p.m. in Rose Theatre at Rockhurst High School the Lyric Opera Education Department will be presenting the world premiere of the youth opera The Giver, based on the book, of the same name, by Lois Lowry.  The opera, directed by Susan Kander, also coincides with the 20th anniversary of the Lyric Opera Education Department, which was celebrated on Sunday, January 8th.  You can read more about both events in a story in The Kansas City Star article by Patrick Neas.  Click to read the article.

Tickets to The Giver are still available.
Click here to reserve yours today!

Two Months In

That’s right, it has been just over 2 months since the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts was completed and opened to a wide variety of events.  The Lyric Opera had great success with its first two productions, Turandot and Così fan tutte, and think the programming the Company has in the Spring will be just as enjoyable.

In addition to the reviews about the Lyric Opera and the new facility, a few different articles have been written about the Kauffman Center its successes and its shortcomings.  Click on the links below to read the articles:

Kansas City, here it comes: Arts center symbolizes new city core
by Matt Pearce, Los Angeles Times

Arts Center Reflects a New Dawn on the Prarie
by Zachary Wolffe, The New York Times

Open two months, Kauffman Center shows glories and glitches
by Steve Paul, The Kansas City Star

Poised for Growth

Zachary Woolfe, a reporter for The New York Times, attended the Sunday matinee performance of Così fan tutte and reviewed the production.  While his thoughts on the production of Così fan tutte were complimentary, the parts that stuck out to us were about the Company in general.  Mr. Woolfe talks about how the Company has weathered the economic situation of these past few years.

Mr. Woolfe wrote, “Like every opera company in America, the Lyric Opera has taken a hit from the economic downturn. For two seasons Gilbert and Sullivan chestnuts took the place of more adventurous works. But the company has not had to resort to the more drastic measures taken elsewhere, like canceling whole seasons or substituting concerts for staged opera.”

“Instead the Lyric Opera’s ambitious plans have become reality: the move to the Kauffman Center, as well as the opening of a new administrative and production center nearby. John Adams’s ‘Nixon in China’ arrives in March; those Gilbert and Sullivans, it turns out, were no more than a temporary retrenchment.”

Click to read the full review of Così fan tutte.  We agree with Mr. Woolfe that some sacrifices these last few years may have put the Lyric Opera in a great position to produce some of the best opera in the Company’s history.

General Director Nears Retirement

Lyric Opera General Director Evan Luskin was recently featured in an article in The Kansas City Jewish Chronicle.  Mr. Luskin will be retiring at the end of the season after working as General Director since 1998 and Managing Director before that since 1986. In the article Mr. Luskin talks about how he has approached running the Lyric Opera, what he is looking forward to doing in retirement and why he thinks the Company is ready for the future.  Click to read the entire article and if you have memories of Evan’s tenure share them in the comment section below!

Student Matinee Inspires Our Despina

Susanne Mentzer, Despina in the current run of Così fan tutte, has been blogging for the Huffington Post.  While in Kansas City she has been involved with a few different educational programs involving opera including the Company’s Apprentice programs and just recently student matinee rehearsal performance of Così fan tutte.  Ms. Mentzer’s latest posts talks about that recent experience and some other thoughts on arts education in general.  Read Ms. Mentzer’s latest contribution to the Huffington Post.

It is also worth noting that the Lyric Opera has a number of affordable educational and outreach programs for people of all ages.  The Company is glad to be able to offer these programs and is always looking for additional ways to be involved in the community spreading the joy of opera!

Così fan tutte Receives High Praise

Così fan tutte opened on Saturday and the reviews are coming in.  See below for excerpts from the various reviews and links to the full text.  If you have seen the show already, share your own review and tell us what you thought!

Timothy McDonald of The Kansas City Star
“On the surface, the plot of Mozart’s late opera ‘Così Fan Tutte’ seems almost like a sitcom, yet as the new production by the Lyric Opera of Kansas City shows, there’s no reason to let a little fun get in the way of some of the most elegant music this side of creation.”  Click to read the full review

Paul Horsley of The Independent
“The production is a worthy follow-up to the company’s Kauffman Center opener of Turandot, and it demonstrated that the Muriel Kauffman Theatre is as adaptable to intimate, small-scale opera as to lavish display (maybe even more so).” Click to read the full review (you may need to scroll down)

Lee Hartman of KCMETROPOLIS.ORG
“An abrupt 180-degree shift from opulence of ‘Turandot,’ the Lyric Opera Kansas City’s updated version of Mozart’s ‘Così fan tutte’ was an intimate ensemble affair with some over-the-top laughs.” Click to read the full review.

Zachary Woolfe of The New York Times
“…breezy…simple and effective…elegant…strong…”  Click to read the full review.

10 Questions with Marie Lenormand

We asked our Dorabella in Così fan tutte, Marie Lenormand, some questions recently for our 10 Questions series.  Read about Ms. Lenormand’s accolades, talents and favorite operas.

1.  How did your initial interest in the art form of opera begin?
Marie: Little by little, taking voice lessons and finding gratification in discovering this repertoire.

2.  Where did you grow up?
Marie: I grew up in a rural area called La Sarthe, in western France.

3.  What is your favorite opera to watch/experience?
Marie: Any Janacek opera or any production by Laurent Pelly.

4.  Have you performed your role in Così fan tutte before?
Marie: I have performed Dorabella several times, it may be the role I have performed the most, in fact. I made my European debut with it in Bordeaux in 2002.

5.  What language(s) do you speak fluently?
Marie: I speak French and English but I can get by in Italian and Spanish.

6.  What experience would define your success thus far?
Marie: In 2010, the French “Syndicat Professionnel de la Critique de Théâtre, de Musique et de Danse”, (basically the association of all arts reviewers and journalists in my country) granted me an Award for my interpretation of the title role in Ambroise Thomas’s Mignon at the Paris Opéra Comique. They picked me among all kinds of classical musicians to be the “Musical Revelation of the 2009-2010 Season” and, as it is an award that very few singers have ever received, I am terribly proud of it.

7.  What facts about you would our audiences be surprised to learn?
Marie: For fun, I play the ukulele.

8.  The opera role you haven’t performed, but would like to perform the most in your career?
Marie: I would love to perform Concepciòn in Ravel’s L’Heure Espagnole.

9. What is your favorite role to sing?
Marie: I want to sing Mignon again!

10.  If you bumped into me at a coffee shop and learned that I had never been to an opera before, what would you say to entice me to give it a try?
Marie: I would say “You must go! You will not believe it! It tells beautiful stories with live orchestra, lights, sets, costumes, and people singing virtuosic music without a microphone! It will blow your mind!”

To learn more about Ms. Lenormand, click here to visit her website.