Harris Theater for Music and Dance
205 East Randolph Drive
Chicago, IL 60601
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Harris Theater Announces 2018–19 Beyond the Aria Series
Featuring series artistic director and pianist Craig Terry, and stars of Lyric Opera’s
18-19 season including Michael Fabiano, Danielle de Niese,
Tamara Wilson, Jamie Barton, and many more
Chicago, Ill. — The Harris Theater for Music and Dance announces the return of Beyond the Aria for five performances in the 2018–19 season. Produced by the Harris Theater in association with Lyric Opera of Chicago, this unparalleled series brings opera luminaries to the Pritzker Pavilion stage in intimate, cabaret-style performances with repertoire hand-picked by the artists and spectacular evening views of Millennium Park.
The 2018-19 lineup boasts four Richard Tucker Award winners — Patricia Racette (’98), Michael Fabiano (’14), Jamie Barton (’15), and Tamara Wilson (’16) — along with other featured artists of Lyric Opera’s blockbuster productions of Idomeneo, La Bohème and Ariodante. The marquee singers share the stage with ensemble members of The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center, representing the next generation of leading talent, in unscripted evenings of arias, ensembles, and surprises curated and accompanied by Craig Terry.
“We are thrilled to present the fifth season of Beyond the Aria, and to continue our partnership with Lyric Opera,” said Patricia Barretto, Alexandra C. and John D. Nichols President and CEO of the Harris Theater. “This series, set against the backdrop of beautiful Millennium Park, is like nothing else in Chicago. To see stars of the opera world up close and personal, performing the music that has inspired and shaped them as artists, is really something special.”
2018-19 BEYOND THE ARIA PERFORMANCES:
October 16, 2018 | 7:30PM Erin Wall, soprano
David Portillo, tenor
Alan Higgs, bass-baritone
November 28, 2018 | 7:30PM Tamara Wilson, soprano
Jamie Barton, mezzo-soprano
Josh Lovell, tenor
January 14, 2019 | 7:30PM Danielle de Niese, soprano
Michael Fabiano, tenor
Lauren Decker, contralto
March 12, 2019 | 7:30PM Heidi Stober, soprano
Kyle Ketelsen, bass-baritone
Whitney Morrison, soprano
May 29, 2019 | 7:30PM Patricia Racette, soprano
Ann Toomey, soprano
Mario Rojas, tenor
***Programs, prices, and dates are subject to change***
SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION:
Beyond the Aria is made possible by the generous support of Kenneth R. Norgan (Series Presenting Sponsor), Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation (Series Foundation Sponsor), Phil Lumpkin (Ensemble Member Sponsor), Bank of America Merrill Lynch (Opening Night Sponsor), and Helen Hall Melchior (January 14 Sponsor). Additionally, the Theater gratefully acknowledges the support of Jewell Events Catering (Presenting Catering Sponsor).
TICKETS AND SUBSCRIPTIONS:
Choral riser subscriptions and single tickets are available now online and through the Harris Theater Box Office. To purchase table seating on the Pritzker Pavilion stage, please call 312-334-2482 or email [email protected].
To purchase tickets or to request additional information, contact the Harris Theater Box Office at 312.334.7777 or visit in person at 205 E. Randolph. Hours are noon to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday and performance days.
ABOUT THE HARRIS THEATER FOR MUSIC AND DANCE:
The Harris Theater is Chicago’s primary residence for music and dance, connecting diverse audiences with outstanding artists from across the city, the nation, and the world. The Theater’s activities fall under three central strategies: support for local music and dance companies, presentation of national and international artists, and community engagement and educational programs. Now in its fifteenth anniversary season, the Theater has earned national recognition as a distinctive model for collaboration, performance, and artistic advancement.
Today, the Harris Theater’s original group of 12 resident companies has grown to include 30 diverse music and dance companies, and its Harris Theater Presents series has featured world-renowned artists and ensembles including Mikhail Baryshnikov, Batsheva Dance, Joshua Bell, Renée Fleming, Sir John Eliot Gardiner and the Monteverdi Choir, Hamburg Ballet, Angélique Kidjo, Paris Opéra Ballet, and Stephen Sondheim. The Harris Theater’s community engagement initiatives build bridges between artists and community members, providing master classes, artist talks, and free tickets for more than 35 partner organizations throughout Chicago.
To learn more about the Harris Theater, Chicago’s state-of-the-art 1,499-seat performance venue, visit harristheaterchicago.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
ABOUT CRAIG TERRY, BEYOND THE ARIA ARTISTIC DIRECTOR:
Lauded for his “sensitive and stylish” (The New York Times) and “superb” (Opera News) playing, pianist Craig Terry enjoys an international career, regularly performing with the world’s leading singers and instrumentalists. Currently, Terry serves as Music Director of The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at Lyric Opera of Chicago after having spent eleven seasons at Lyric as Assistant Conductor. Previously, he served as Assistant Conductor at the Metropolitan Opera after joining its Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. Terry has performed with such esteemed vocalists as Jamie Barton, Stephanie Blythe, Christine Brewer, Nicole Cabell, Sasha Cooke, Eric Cutler, Danielle de Niese, Joyce DiDonato, Renée Fleming, Susan Graham, Denyce Graves, Bryan Hymel, Brian Jagde, Joseph Kaiser, Quinn Kelsey, Kate Lindsey, Ana María Martínez, Susanna Phillips, Luca Pisaroni, Patricia Racette, Hugh Russell, Bo Skovhus, Garrett Sorenson, Heidi Stober, and Amber Wagner. He has collaborated as a chamber musician with members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra, the Gewandhaus Orchester, and the Pro Arte String Quartet.
Terry’s 2018-19 season recital performance schedule includes more than thirty concerts in North America, Europe, Africa, and Australia with artists including Stephanie Blythe, Christine Brewer, Lawrence Brownlee, Jennifer Johnson Cano, Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, Ana María Martínez, Eric Owens, Nicholas Phan, Patricia Racette, Hugh Russell, and Heidi Stober. His discography includes three recently released recordings: “Diva on Detour” with Patricia Racette, “As Long As There Are Songs” with Stephanie Blythe, and “Chanson d’Avril” with Nicole Cabell. His latest recording project with Joyce DiDonato, “Songplay,” will be released by Warner Classics in November 2018.
ABOUT LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO:
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s mission is to express and promote the life-changing, transformational, revelatory power of great opera. Lyric exists to provide a broad, deep, and relevant cultural service to Chicago and the nation, and to advance the development of the art form.
Founded in 1954, Lyric is dedicated to producing and performing consistently thrilling, entertaining, and thought-provoking opera with a balanced repertoire of core classics, lesser-known masterpieces, and new works; to creating an innovative and wide-ranging program of community engagement and educational activities; and to developing exceptional emerging operatic talent.
Under the leadership of general director Anthony Freud, music director Sir Andrew Davis, and creative consultant Renée Fleming, Lyric strives to become The Great North American Opera Company for the 21st century: a globally significant arts organization embodying the core values of excellence, relevance, and fiscal responsibility. For more information, visit lyricopera.org.
ABOUT THE PATRICK G. AND SHIRLEY W. RYAN OPERA CENTER:
The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center is the professional artist development program for Lyric Opera of Chicago. Since its inception in 1974, the Ryan Opera Center has been recognized as one of the premier programs of its kind in the world. That standing is maintained by providing the finest up-and-coming singers and pianists with unparalleled training and experience. The program is administered by Dan Novak, director; Craig Terry, music director; Julia Faulkner, director of vocal studies; and Renée Fleming, advisor.
Each year the Ryan Opera Center selects 12-14 gifted emerging artists to join its program from more than 400 applicants. Beginning in the spring, they arrive to join the full-year residency program, under the guidance of Novak, Terry, Faulkner, and Fleming, as well as Anthony Freud, Sir Andrew Davis and numerous other opera professionals. Ensemble members are immediately immersed into the world of opera and vocal performance. Coaching sessions and master classes are augmented by performance and understudy experience in Lyric Opera’s regular season productions as well as other Ryan Opera Center concerts and recitals. For more information, visit lyricopera.org/ryanoperacenter.
