05/24/14 – OTELLO (LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO)- 1:00pm
Lyric Opera of Chicago
Otello by Giuseppe Verdi
Libretto by: Arrigo Boito, after William Shakespeare’s tragedy
Sung in Italian, Approx. Length: 3 hours
Jealousy, betrayal, and murder—Shakespeare’s drama finds new dimension in Giuseppe Verdi’s blazing and revealingly expressive music.
Otello seems unbeatable on the battlefield, but he’s powerless against his insidious henchman Iago, who convinces him that his innocent wife has been untrue.
Production of Otello by Sir Peter Hall, former director of Britain’s National Theatre and Royal Shakespeare Company, and one of the world’s most revered directors of opera and theater.
Revival of Giuseppe Verdi’s Otello generously made possible by Mr. & Mrs. Dietrich M. Gross, an Anonymous Donor, the Abbott Fund, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and the Mazza Foundation.
Otello Dedication
Lyric Opera is dedicating this revival of Otello to the memory of artistic director emeritus Bruno Bartoletti, whose artistry and wisdom enriched the company for nearly half a century.
The Otello performances are also dedicated to one of the most remarkable artists in Lyric Opera history, baritone Tito Gobbi, in the centenary year of his birth.
Gobbi was instrumental in bringing Bartoletti to Lyric Opera’s attention. Together they were true Lyric pioneers, whose commitment and achievements played an immensely important role in the company’s development and growth.
CAST:
Montano: Anthony Clark Evans
Cassio: Antonio Poli
Iago: Falk Struckmann
Roderigo: John Irvin
Otello: Johan Botha
Desdemona: Ana María Martínez
Emilia: Julie Anne Miller
A Herald: Richard Ollarsaba
Lodovico: Evan Boyer
Actors: Phoenix Alazam, Jon Beal, Michael T. Black, Matt Cobb, Chuck Coyl, Katherine Coyl, Wesley Truman Daniel, Tony DiFalco, Paula Dudzik-Muenzner, Patrick Dunham, Arianne Ellison, Chris Lafferty, Kirsten Lendyke, Kurt Merrill, Greg Poljacik, Leighton Schlanger, Elise Spoerlein
CONDUCTOR: Bertrand De Billy
STAGE DIRECTOR: Sir Peter Hall
REVIVAL DIRECTOR: Ashley Dean
CHORUS: Anima – Young Singers of Greater Chicago
CHORUS MASTER: Emily Ellsworth
CHORUS: Lyric Opera Chorus
CHORUS MASTER: Michael Black
