John Von Rhein – Page 8

"We talk about hate, we talk about religion, we talk about consciousness. We talk about waking up every morning with something to be thankful for. ... Our goal is not to shake our fists at anyone," Lawrence Brownlee says.

With new song cycle, Lawrence Brownlee explores a black man’s life in America

May 13, 2019 at 2:15 p.m.

Lawrence Brownlee is celebrated for his portrayals of the princely heroes and love-smitten lords of bel canto. His career is flourishing in major concert halls and opera houses throughout the...

Ana Maria Martinez, from left, as Fiordiligi, Joshua Hopkins as Guglielmo, Andrew Stenson as Ferrando and Marianne Crebassa as Dorabella during a dress rehearsal of the Lyric Opera's production of Mozart's "Cosi Fan Tutte" at the Civic Opera House.

Lyric revival of Mozart’s romantic comedy ‘Cosi Fan Tutte’ touches the heart

May 13, 2019 at 2:15 p.m.

Sexual harassment of women? Mozart wrote an opera about that, 229 years ago. The composer and his librettist, Lorenzo Da Ponte, titled their final stage collaboration “Cosi fan tutte” —...

Tenor Lawrence Brownlee performs Sunday, April 9, 2017 at the Civic Opera House.

Recommended Chicago-area classical concerts Feb. 16-22

May 13, 2019 at 2:15 p.m.

Newberry Consort: One of history’s great love affairs, that of the medieval poet Abelard and his beautiful student Heloise, is recreated with actors reading from the lovers’ letters and the...

English National Ballet, Turin Opera top Harris Theater’s 2018-19 season

May 13, 2019 at 2:15 p.m.

It can’t be easy for a single nonprofit organization to function successfully as both a multiuse arts presenter and the downtown Chicago home of dozens of resident music and dance...

Chicago Opera Theater’s ‘Elizabeth Cree’ is a bloody good show

May 13, 2019 at 2:15 p.m.

If the plethora of activity in Chicago alone is any indication, the field is experiencing a veritable golden age of new American chamber operas. This season is bringing the local...

Recommended Chicago-area classical concerts for Feb. 9-15

May 13, 2019 at 2:14 p.m.

Chicago Opera Theater – “Elizabeth Cree”: COT presents the Chicago premiere of a new opera by composer Kevin Puts and librettist Mark Campbell, based on Peter Ackroyd’s Victorian-era courtroom thriller,...

Soprano Renee Fleming, singing "Summertime", during the presentation of "Chicago Voices", at the Civic Opera House Feb. 4, 2017.

(Nuccio DiNuzzo/baiduhai)

Lyric’s 2018-19 season: Italian favorites and ‘West Side Story’

May 13, 2019 at 2:14 p.m.

Keeping a mega-cultural institution such as Lyric Opera of Chicago thriving was never a walk in the park, but operating in both a volatile business environment and a hyper-competitive entertainment...

Albina Shagimuratova as Elvira Walton, left, and Lawrence Brownlee as Lord Arturo Talbot perform in a dress rehearsal of Bellini's "I Puritani" at the Lyric Opera.

Spectacular singing sparks Lyric’s revival of ‘I Puritani’

December 14, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.

Since 1955, when Lyric Opera mounted its first production of “I Puritani” to display Maria Callas in one of her most celebrated bel canto roles, Vincenzo Bellini’s final opera has...

Alan Stout dies: NU composer and professor was a major figure in Chicago music

May 13, 2019 at 2:14 p.m.

Alan Stout once was hailed as one of Chicago’s most important classical composers, but after a burst of high-profile recognition in the 1960s and early ’70s, his powerfully crafted music...

Composer Jennifer Higdon stands after her Low Brass Concerto was performed by principal trombonist Jay Friedman, trombonist Michael Mulcahy, trombonist Charles Vernon, tubist Gene Pokorny, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Center on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018.

Muti, soloists premiere a big-shouldered crowd pleaser with Higdon’s Low Brass Concerto

May 13, 2019 at 2:14 p.m.

Jennifer Higdon has been basking in a week of national attention the likes of which would turn any other classical composer — and a woman composer at that — several...

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