Farewell to Evan Luskin

After more than two decades of service to the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, General Director Evan Luskin will retire on June 30, 2012.  Mr. Luskin joined the Lyric on June 1, 1986 as its managing director, and became general director in 1998. The tenure under Mr. Luskin has seen a marked increase in the artistic standards and financial health of the Company.

A lifelong fan of opera, Mr. Luskin received an MBA with a specialization in Arts Management in 1977 from the State University of New York at Binghamton.   He then served as Assistant Director of the Tulsa Opera from 1977 to 1979, Managing Director of the Chattanooga Opera from 1979 to 1982, and Vice President for Finance and Administration of Michigan Opera Theatre from 1982 until coming to Kansas City in 1986. He is looking forward to spending more time with his wife Andrea and his grandchildren in Topeka and Washington, D.C. He also plans to become involved in volunteer activities with children, take up the piano after a hiatus of many years, and travel.

Please share your memories with and congratulations to Evan!

Another Feature on Evan Luskin

In case you missed it, The Kansas City Star on had an article about the Company’s departing General Director Evan Luskin.  Written by Robert Trussell, the article, titled “It’s the last curtain for Lyric Opera’s general director, Evan Luskin”, reflects on Mr. Luskins career journey into the world of opera as well as his plans for the future.

Click to read the article.

Feature on General Director Evan Luskin

Lyric Opera General Director Evan Luskin was recently featured in KC Studio.  If you are not aware, Mr. Luskin will be retiring at the end of June this year.  He has been with the Company for 26 years and has dedicated his career to the art of opera.  Click the link below to read the article and learn about the past, present, and future for our departing leader.

KC Studio article:
The Lyric Opera’s Evan Luskin in his own words

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!

Share your Lyric Theatre Memories

The Lyric Theatre

Just last weekend the Lyric Opera completed its final season in the Lyric Theatre with an updated production of The Marriage of Figaro that also served as a farewell to the building that had been the Company’s home for over 40 years and 180 productions.

In the lead-up to the final production Allison May, Lyric Opera Intern, sat down with some of the staff members who have been with the Company the longest and interviewed them about the memories they have of the Lyric Theatre.  You can click on the links below to read all of the memories shared by our staff.

• General Director Evan Luskin
• Artistic Director Ward Holmquist
• Director of Technical Design R. Keith Brumley
• Property Master Debbie Morgan
• Theatre Maintenance Supervisor Doug Allen
• Stage Manager Erin Thompson
• The Lyric Opera Stage Crew

We know that these people are not the only ones who have memories of the Lyric Theatre so we want to you share yours too.  Simply add your memory as a comment below and help us remember the great times had in this stately structure.

Memories of the Lyric Theatre

With the last Lyric Opera of Kansas City production in the Lyric Theatre just days away from opening, we wanted to share stories we have been compiling about its 41 years hosting the Lyric Opera.  Allison May, Lyric Opera intern, managed to sit down with some of our staff members who have called this theatre home for a number of years and get some stories about the building.  These stories were recently featured on the KCUR 98.3 FM Arts Blog – Sound and Glass.

From Evan Luskin
Evan Luskin began working for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City in 1986 as the Managing Director and in 1998 he became the General Director for the Company. Throughout the years, Luskin has seen many changes to both the building and the Company. Luskin oversaw two renovations to the Lyric Theatre in 1991 and 1998. Luskin recalled that during this time, “I was looking around and worrying about all of these little things that needed fixing. But a little girl came into the front lobby for a performance and said, ‘Mommy, I didn’t know it’d be so pretty here.’ And she was right; it really is a beautiful building.”
Click to read the full interview

From Ward Holmquist
The Artistic Director for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City since 1998, Ward Holmquist, admits he didn’t know much about the Lyric Opera of Kansas City when he was first considered for the job in 1997.  But he said that the Lyric Theatre was one of the most important aspects of the job for him.  “I couldn’t help but be impressed that a regional opera owned its own theatre.  That was really remarkable and very interesting to me. It was one of the first things that piqued my interest.  I assumed, correctly, that the city had a great love and support of opera.”  Interestingly, The Marriage of Figaro was the first opera that Holmquist conducted at the Lyric Theatre.
Click to read the full interview

From R. Keith Brumley
R. Keith Brumley, Director of Design and Technical Production, began working for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City in 1984.  Brumley recalled that one of his favorite funny memories occurred when he was watching a production early in his career.
Click to read the full interview

Evan Luskin, General Director, Announces Retirement

Evan Luskin, Lyric Opera General Director

Last night at the Lyric Opera Board of Directors meeting Lyric Opera General Director Evan Luskin announced that he will be retiring in June of 2012.  Evan has been with the company for over 25 years and has seen it grow in many different ways.  He will be leaving the Company at a historic moment, the completion of the Company’s first season in the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

Join us in giving Evan a standing ovation for all of the hard work he has put into making the Lyric Opera of Kansas City what it is today.  Thank you!

Read an article by Steve Paul in The Kansas City Star:  Lyric Opera chief Evan Luskin to retire after 2011-2012 season

Opera is Uniquely Kansas City

The fall edition of the KCPT program “Uniquely Kansas City” featured the Lyric Opera production of La bohème on their program. The piece features interviews with Daniel Belcher, who sang his first opera at the Lyric Opera and starred in La bohème, and General Director Evan Luskin.

You can see the full piece below, courtesy KCPT.

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Instruction manual for opera

A new online resource for arts lovers was launched today by one of Kansas City’s favorite tenors, Nathan Granner, and arts marketer Marcy Chiasson. Say the founders,

The website features interviews, previews, and reviews on independent and traditional classical music, dance, theatre, and independent film, as well as the most comprehensive arts calendar in the Metro area, fiona’s list. A true grass-roots movement, KCMETROPOLIS.ORG brings together the voices of many expert writers, musicians, musicologists, and arts aficionados to present the most extensive and exciting coverage ever offered of our rich performing arts community!

One of the first features of the new site is an interview with Lyric Opera of Kansas City general manager Evan Luskin. Check it out!