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RENÉE FLEMING NAMED BY LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO FIRST EVER CREATIVE CONSULTANT
December 9, 2010 CHICAGO – The Board of Directors of Lyric Opera of Chicago announced today that soprano RENÉE FLEMING has been named Creative Consultant, a first in this company’s history. Simultaneously, she and Sir Andrew Davis, Lyric's music director, have been elected to the Board of Directors as Vice-Presidents. Ms. Fleming’s appointment as Creative Consultant is effective immediately, for a term of five years.
The Renée Fleming Initiative is being sponsored by an Anonymous Donor, Mr. and Mrs. John V. Crowe, The Crown Family, Mr. and Mrs. J. Thomas Hurvis, Richard P. and Susan Kiphart, John D. and Alexandra C. Nichols, the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Enterprises Group, and Mr. and Mrs. William C. Vance — all of whom are prominent members of the Lyric Opera of Chicago Board of Directors.
As Creative Consultant of Lyric Opera of Chicago, Ms. Fleming will play an active leadership role in creating new projects and initiatives designed to increase opera audiences and awareness of the art form, while sharing in the company’s artistic vision.
Her plans, in collaboration with her Lyric colleagues, include:
Curating a world-premiere opera to debut in the 2015-16 season.
Collaborating with other Chicago-based arts institutions to send a special message about the strength of culture in Chicago.
Fostering an annual commitment to American music theater, starting with a new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma in the spring of 2013.
Further developing Lyric’s young-professionals initiative, which takes opera into the workplace and provides entry-level experiences for the curious adult.
Expanding the education activities of Lyric to include a joint program with the Merit School of Music devoted to finding and nurturing young, talented singers in the Chicago area, and to making Lyric more accessible to the children and young adults involved in all areas of music education at Merit.
Presenting non-operatic and off-season performances at the Civic Opera House.
Continuing her on-stage presence at Lyric, including a Subscriber Appreciation Concert with Dmitri Hvorostovsky honoring General Director William Mason on January 7, 2012; staged concert performances of André Previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire with Ms. Fleming in the role created for her, Blanche DuBois, in spring 2013; a production of Capriccio for fall 2014, in which Ms. Fleming will sing the Countess (both A Streetcar Named Desire and Capriccio will be part of Lyric’s subscription season); and participation in Lyric’s 60th Anniversary Gala on November 1, 2014.
Establishing a prominent presence in a variety of web-based marketing projects, as well as in print and broadcast media. Ms. Fleming and Sir Andrew Davis are already in preparation for an audio/video series that will introduce audiences to the new 2011-12 season.
Of this new adventure in her professional life, Renée Fleming said, “Lyric is a vibrant home to so many talented and dedicated colleagues. I am eager to join forces with them as we work to keep opera relevant and meaningful in people’s lives today. Dick Kiphart, Bill Mason, Sir Andrew Davis, and the Lyric Board have my deepest gratitude for this extraordinary privilege.” (Attached below is a document in which Ms. Fleming explains her thoughts and initiatives, “IN HER OWN WORDS.”)
Board President Richard P. Kiphart said, “For any business to flourish, new ideas are essential. Renée’s creativity and flair will be fantastic for Lyric Opera and will add to what is already a very successful organization. She is a highly knowledgeable opera professional who has a broad view of what a major opera house can mean to a community. She is also dedicated to bringing new audiences to our art form and to furthering the reach of opera through educational initiatives. I am also delighted that she will be joining Sir Andrew Davis as an international presence for our organization.”
Sir Andrew Davis commented, “Renée and I have been friends and colleagues for many years and collaborating with her has always been for me an enormous pleasure. First and foremost, she is a marvelously natural and instinctive musician; in both musical and dramatic matters she is thoughtful, sensitive and committed. She is a great star and yet always works with her fellow artists in a spirit of mutual respect and an infectious delight in the common pursuit of the highest artistic standards. The passion she brings to her performances is echoed in everything she does, which is why I think she is such an inspirational addition to our team. I look forward to working with her for many years to come.”
General Director William Mason added, “I have been involved with Lyric Opera for virtually my entire professional career, so it is particularly important to me that there be a strong team to carry on when I retire. That is why I am so delighted that Renée will be joining the terrific artistic and management forces we now have in place, and that she will be working with the new general director when she or he is hired. Renée comes with new and interesting ideas and will be an important collaborator as the company moves forward. She is fervently committed to ensuring the future of opera, and needless to say has keen insights into what makes great singers. All of these attributes make her an exciting and invaluable addition to the Lyric Opera family.”
RENÉE FLEMING: “IN HER OWN WORDS”
When
approached by Dick Kiphart and Lyric Opera of Chicago with the
opportunity to contribute in an administrative capacity, I was
speechless; rare for a singer. The thought of working on the other side
of the lights hadn’t occurred to me, and I began to ponder exactly how
I could best aid one of the world’s greatest opera houses while
continuing to meet my performance obligations. I discovered that my
passion for this art form and my desire to contribute run equally high,
and I am deeply grateful to Dick, the Lyric Board, Bill Mason, and Sir
Andrew for this opportunity.
We singers have a unique perspective. Over time, we observe and experience not only how different companies operate, program, and present, but also how different audiences perceive various productions and opera in general. Lyric is special to me and to so many artists for offering a wonderful “home” where we love to perform. It that is also renowned for top-drawer management and the highest artistic standards championed by Bill Mason and Sir Andrew Davis. Add to that an open-minded, theater-loving audience, and Lyric has it all.
Further, in the current difficult economic climate, Bill, his senior administrative team, and the extraordinary Lyric Board have been meticulous when it comes to fiscal prudence, and they have managed this without sacrificing artistic quality. This, combined with aggressive marketing and fundraising, has kept the company in excellent financial shape, which is one of the many reasons why I am excited to be joining forces with Lyric. So, the ship is airtight, the economic storm is subsiding, and it’s time to take those brave steps forward and tackle the challenges facing opera today.
Drawing on my experience and on my respect and love for Lyric, I am hoping to develop the following initiatives and programs in concert with my new Lyric colleagues. These plans, while ambitious, are the product of much reflection on how I feel I might best contribute to one of the world’s most respected cultural institutions.
World Premiere
New works are the lifeblood of this genre we so love. Lyric Opera is generously allowing me to curate a world-premiere opera to be performed in the 2015-16 season. Sir Andrew, Bill, and I are already looking at potential properties and composers.
Chicago Stands for Culture
Reflecting on my years of travel, one thing is clear to me: Chicago is a cultural mecca. Loving theater and art as I do, and having Lyric and the Chicago Symphony together in one friendly, lakeside, thriving city, presents a unique opportunity for destination-style festivals. In terms of revenue, marketing, and PR sharing, the whole is decidedly more than its parts. My colleagues and I would like to collaborate with other Chicago-based institutions such as the Chicago Symphony, Art Institute, Goodman Theatre, and Harris Theater to exploit this unique cultural landscape far and wide in support of both the arts and the city of Chicago.
The American Musical at the Civic Opera House
I believe it may be time to reexamine the role of an opera house in American communities in the 21st century. In addition to creating new works and providing quality programming in the operatic lexicon we know and love, we can also broaden the offerings to include more from our own musical heritage.
After 100 years in this country, the American musical has achieved “classic” status, and opera companies with extraordinary artistic resources are uniquely positioned to present productions at the highest level as part of the standard repertory. We needn’t wait for Broadway touring companies to present works that are tailor-made for the Chicago community, and that highlight the strengths of Lyric. Lyric has been investigating possibilities in this area for some time, and we would like to foster an annual series. In this regard, I am pleased to announce that Lyric will be presenting Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma in the spring of 2013.
Outreach and Community Engagement
As classical music has become more rarified in the past century, and popular music has taken over mass culture, outreach has become even more important. In a modern world where at least two generations of limited education in the arts has diminished the assumed contextual knowledge that has always been key for building opera appreciation and attendance, we should be casting as wide a net as possible. Lyric is already reaching out to students and adults through a wide variety of programs annually, and I am looking forward to helping my colleagues do even more in this regard.
I am particularly interested in developing programs that help newcomers test the opera waters, ideally with a community of like-minded explorers. We should reward their curiosity with user-friendly, non-patronizing resources that not only provide information about the works and productions, but give historical context as well. Sir Andrew and I are already working on a series of videos that will appear on Lyric’s website and will introduce potential audiences to Lyric’s new 2011-12 season.
Performances
As I continue performing around the world, we have added several exclusive projects to my performance calendar, specifically for the Lyric audience. These include a staged concert production of André Previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire, in which I sing the dramatically challenging role of Blanche DuBois that was created for me. On January 7, 2012, there will be a Subscriber Appreciation Concert to honor Bill Mason, whose 50-year involvement at Lyric and tenure as General Director culminates at the end of the 2011-12 season. I am grateful to be sharing this concert of favorite duets and arias with my friend, the extraordinary Dmitri Hvorostovsky. Sir Andrew will of course be on the podium. Further, in the 2014-2015 season, Lyric is mounting a production of Richard Strauss’s Capriccio with Sir Andrew conducting so that I can share one of my favorite roles, the Countess, with the Lyric audience. And, I’ll be participating in the company’s 60th Anniversary Gala on November 1, 2014, along with many of my esteemed colleagues.
Education Expansion & Finding Future Stars
Lyric has a richly diverse educational program in place serving both schools and communities. Helping to build on current programs will bring me special joy, given my background in music education and my dedication to education as the key to culture. In addition, I am hoping to develop a program with the Merit School of Music that will find and nurture new talent in the Chicago area, in addition to making Lyric more accessible to children and young people who clearly already have an interest in music. Ultimately, great acting singers are at the heart of opera, and we need to seek and develop more notable talents for which international stages are clamoring. I believe that there are amazing young voices right here in Chicago, and Lyric is poised to develop and potentially guide them right into the Ryan Opera Center.
Expanding the Role of the Civic Theater
Lyric’s Civic Opera House is an architectural treasure; one of the most beautiful theaters in the world. The company is also in the advantageous position of owning the theater, which opens up the possibility of non-operatic programming. This type of presenting is occurring in many major theaters today as a way to increase revenue and bring in audiences who might not otherwise be familiar with the theater or the opera, and who might as a result be less intimidated about expanding their musical horizons; Kristin Chenoweth, Barbara Cook, and Sting have performed at the Metropolitan Opera, and similar upcoming series are planned at the Royal Opera in London.
# # #
We singers have a unique perspective. Over time, we observe and experience not only how different companies operate, program, and present, but also how different audiences perceive various productions and opera in general. Lyric is special to me and to so many artists for offering a wonderful “home” where we love to perform. It that is also renowned for top-drawer management and the highest artistic standards championed by Bill Mason and Sir Andrew Davis. Add to that an open-minded, theater-loving audience, and Lyric has it all.
Further, in the current difficult economic climate, Bill, his senior administrative team, and the extraordinary Lyric Board have been meticulous when it comes to fiscal prudence, and they have managed this without sacrificing artistic quality. This, combined with aggressive marketing and fundraising, has kept the company in excellent financial shape, which is one of the many reasons why I am excited to be joining forces with Lyric. So, the ship is airtight, the economic storm is subsiding, and it’s time to take those brave steps forward and tackle the challenges facing opera today.
Drawing on my experience and on my respect and love for Lyric, I am hoping to develop the following initiatives and programs in concert with my new Lyric colleagues. These plans, while ambitious, are the product of much reflection on how I feel I might best contribute to one of the world’s most respected cultural institutions.
World Premiere
New works are the lifeblood of this genre we so love. Lyric Opera is generously allowing me to curate a world-premiere opera to be performed in the 2015-16 season. Sir Andrew, Bill, and I are already looking at potential properties and composers.
Chicago Stands for Culture
Reflecting on my years of travel, one thing is clear to me: Chicago is a cultural mecca. Loving theater and art as I do, and having Lyric and the Chicago Symphony together in one friendly, lakeside, thriving city, presents a unique opportunity for destination-style festivals. In terms of revenue, marketing, and PR sharing, the whole is decidedly more than its parts. My colleagues and I would like to collaborate with other Chicago-based institutions such as the Chicago Symphony, Art Institute, Goodman Theatre, and Harris Theater to exploit this unique cultural landscape far and wide in support of both the arts and the city of Chicago.
The American Musical at the Civic Opera House
I believe it may be time to reexamine the role of an opera house in American communities in the 21st century. In addition to creating new works and providing quality programming in the operatic lexicon we know and love, we can also broaden the offerings to include more from our own musical heritage.
After 100 years in this country, the American musical has achieved “classic” status, and opera companies with extraordinary artistic resources are uniquely positioned to present productions at the highest level as part of the standard repertory. We needn’t wait for Broadway touring companies to present works that are tailor-made for the Chicago community, and that highlight the strengths of Lyric. Lyric has been investigating possibilities in this area for some time, and we would like to foster an annual series. In this regard, I am pleased to announce that Lyric will be presenting Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma in the spring of 2013.
Outreach and Community Engagement
As classical music has become more rarified in the past century, and popular music has taken over mass culture, outreach has become even more important. In a modern world where at least two generations of limited education in the arts has diminished the assumed contextual knowledge that has always been key for building opera appreciation and attendance, we should be casting as wide a net as possible. Lyric is already reaching out to students and adults through a wide variety of programs annually, and I am looking forward to helping my colleagues do even more in this regard.
I am particularly interested in developing programs that help newcomers test the opera waters, ideally with a community of like-minded explorers. We should reward their curiosity with user-friendly, non-patronizing resources that not only provide information about the works and productions, but give historical context as well. Sir Andrew and I are already working on a series of videos that will appear on Lyric’s website and will introduce potential audiences to Lyric’s new 2011-12 season.
Performances
As I continue performing around the world, we have added several exclusive projects to my performance calendar, specifically for the Lyric audience. These include a staged concert production of André Previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire, in which I sing the dramatically challenging role of Blanche DuBois that was created for me. On January 7, 2012, there will be a Subscriber Appreciation Concert to honor Bill Mason, whose 50-year involvement at Lyric and tenure as General Director culminates at the end of the 2011-12 season. I am grateful to be sharing this concert of favorite duets and arias with my friend, the extraordinary Dmitri Hvorostovsky. Sir Andrew will of course be on the podium. Further, in the 2014-2015 season, Lyric is mounting a production of Richard Strauss’s Capriccio with Sir Andrew conducting so that I can share one of my favorite roles, the Countess, with the Lyric audience. And, I’ll be participating in the company’s 60th Anniversary Gala on November 1, 2014, along with many of my esteemed colleagues.
Education Expansion & Finding Future Stars
Lyric has a richly diverse educational program in place serving both schools and communities. Helping to build on current programs will bring me special joy, given my background in music education and my dedication to education as the key to culture. In addition, I am hoping to develop a program with the Merit School of Music that will find and nurture new talent in the Chicago area, in addition to making Lyric more accessible to children and young people who clearly already have an interest in music. Ultimately, great acting singers are at the heart of opera, and we need to seek and develop more notable talents for which international stages are clamoring. I believe that there are amazing young voices right here in Chicago, and Lyric is poised to develop and potentially guide them right into the Ryan Opera Center.
Expanding the Role of the Civic Theater
Lyric’s Civic Opera House is an architectural treasure; one of the most beautiful theaters in the world. The company is also in the advantageous position of owning the theater, which opens up the possibility of non-operatic programming. This type of presenting is occurring in many major theaters today as a way to increase revenue and bring in audiences who might not otherwise be familiar with the theater or the opera, and who might as a result be less intimidated about expanding their musical horizons; Kristin Chenoweth, Barbara Cook, and Sting have performed at the Metropolitan Opera, and similar upcoming series are planned at the Royal Opera in London.
# # #
Renée Flemings Website
RENÉE
FLEMING BIOGRAPHY
One of the most beloved and celebrated musical ambassadors of our time, soprano Renée Fleming captivates audiences with her sumptuous voice, consummate artistry, and compelling stage presence. Known as “the people’s diva” and named the number one singer by Salzburger Festspiele Magazin in 2010, she continues to grace the world’s greatest opera stages and concert halls, now extending her reach to include other musical forms and media. Over the past few seasons, Ms. Fleming has been hosting a wide variety of television and radio broadcasts, including the Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD series for movie theaters and television, and Live From Lincoln Center on PBS.
As a musical statesman, Renée Fleming has been sought after on numerous distinguished occasions, from the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to performances in Beijing during the 2008 Olympic Games. On January 18, 2009, she was featured on the televised We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial concert for President Obama. She has performed for the United States Supreme Court, HRH The Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace, and, in November 2009, celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Czech Republic’s “Velvet Revolution” at the invitation of Václav Havel. An additional distinction was bestowed in 2008, when breaking a precedent, Ms. Fleming became the first woman in the 125-year history of the Metropolitan Opera to solo headline an opening night gala.
Renée Fleming’s 2010-11 season at the Metropolitan Opera includes performances of Rossini’s Armida (February/March 2011) and Strauss’s Capriccio (March/April 2011). Her 2010-11 concert season began with the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s Last Night of the Proms performance in September, followed by appearances with the Pittsburgh Symphony conducted by Manfred Honeck, the National Symphony under Christoph Eschenbach, and the Saint Louis Symphony with David Robertson, all for their 2010-11 gala concerts. In October, Ms. Fleming traveled to Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium with the Munich Philharmonic and conductor Christian Thielemann, and in November, she embarked on a Scandinavian tour, performing with the Danish National Symphony, Aarhus Symphony, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Norwegian Radio and Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestras. Further concert highlights include performances with the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra and the Toronto Symphony, as well as the Staatskapelle Dresden and the Berliner Philharmoniker. A dedicated and masterful recitalist, Ms. Fleming appeared in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and Kansas City, Missouri (October 2010), and in January 2011, she embarks on a recital tour to Quebec, Washington, D.C., New York’s Carnegie Hall, Ann Arbor, Montreal, and San Juan.
A three-time Grammy winner, Ms. Fleming won the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Performance for Verismo (Decca/September 2009), a CD featuring a collection of rarely heard Italian arias. In June 2010, Decca and Mercury Records released the CD Dark Hope, which features Ms. Fleming performing songs by artists such as Leonard Cohen, Peter Gabriel, Arcade Fire and Death Cab for Cutie, among others. Ms. Fleming’s most recent DVD, Renée Fleming & Dmitri Hvorostovsky: A Musical Odyssey in St. Petersburg, follows Ms. Fleming and baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky to Russia, where they explore and perform in some of St. Petersburg’s most spectacular locations. These releases follow the critically acclaimed 2008 CD of Strauss: Four Last Songs and a DVD of the complete Thaïs by Massenet. In recent years, this twelve-time Grammy-nominated artist has recorded everything from Strauss’s complete Daphne to the jazz album Haunted Heart, to the movie soundtrack of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Her recording honors range from the 2009 Echo Award for Strauss’s Four Last Songs to the Prix Maria Callas Orphée d’Or by the Académie du Disque Lyrique for TDK’s DVD production of Capriccio.
Renée Fleming’s artistry has been an inspiration to many other prominent artists, such as Chuck Close and Robert Wilson, whose portraits of her were included in the Metropolitan Opera’s 2007 fund-raising auction. Two portraits of Ms. Fleming were also created by Francesco Clemente, who revealed one work in Salzburg in spring 2007, with the Metropolitan Opera displaying the other in 2008. Among her numerous awards are Sweden’s Polar Prize (2008); the Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur from the French government (2005); Honorary Membership in the Royal Academy of Music (2003); and a 2003 Honorary Doctorate from The Juilliard School, where she was also commencement speaker.
An advocate for literacy, Renée Fleming has been featured in promotional campaigns for the Association of American Publishers (“Get Caught Reading”), and the Magazine Publishers of America’s READ poster campaign for the American Library Association. She was honored by The New York Public Library as a “Library Lion.” Her book, The Inner Voice, was published by Viking Penguin in 2004, and released in paperback by Penguin the following year. An intimate account of her career and creative process, the book is also published in France by Fayard Editions, in the United Kingdom by Virgin Books, by Henschel Verlag in Germany, Shunjusha in Japan, and by Fantom Press in Russia.
In addition to her work onstage and in recordings, Renée Fleming has represented Rolex timepieces in print advertising since 2001. In 2008, she launched La Voce by Renée Fleming, a fragrance designed for her, with the proceeds benefiting the Metropolitan Opera. Master Chef Daniel Boulud created the dessert “La Diva Renée” (1999) in her honor, and she inspired the “Renée Fleming Iris” (2004), which has been replicated in porcelain by Boehm. Having been added to Mr. Blackwell’s best-dressed list, Ms. Fleming has worn concert gowns designed by Bill Blass, Gianfranco Ferré, John Galliano, Christian Lacroix, Karl Lagerfeld, Issey Miyake, Oscar de la Renta, Angel Sanchez and Vivienne Westwood. In addition to serving as the face of opera for two public-transit campaigns in New York and London, Ms. Fleming has appeared on The Martha Stewart Show, Spectacle: Elvis Costello with…, The View, and Prairie Home Companion as “Renata Flambé,” among numerous other media outlets.
Ms. Fleming is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie Hall Corporation, the Board of Sing for Hope, and the Advisory Board of the White Nights Foundation of America.
Directions
FROM THE WEST
Exit at Upper Wacker Dr (North). DO NOT EXIT AT 90/94!
Proceed 5 blocks North on Wacker to Madison. The Opera House
is located on the North-West corner of Madison and Wacker.
(Just two blocks North of the Sears Tower on Wacker.)
BY TRAIN
The Civic Opera House is conveniently
located
near both Union Train
Station and the Richard Ogilvie
Transportation
Center (formerly
Northwestern Station). Union Station is
bound
by the following
streets: Clinton (west); Canal (east);
Jackson
(south); and Adams
(north). The Ogilvie Transportation Center
is
bound by the following
streets: Clinton (west); Canal (east);
Madison
(south)/ main entrance;
and Washington (north). For additional
information,
including train
schedules, contact METRA Train
Information/Passenger
Services at (312) 322-6777.
Please take advantage of the
special opera
rates
101 South Wacker
Madison-Wells
215 West Washington
Monroe & Wells
77 South Wacker
Randolph & Franklin
Franklin & Lake
500 West Monroe
319 West Randolph
25 South Wacker
150 North Wacker
100 North Riverside
300 West Monroe
10-30 South Wacker
Madison-Clinton
Washington-Madison-Wells
1 South Wacker
30 North Wells
1 South Wacker
Washington & Franklin
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published by Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc.