Events: Opera Everywhere

Pre-Opera Lectures	Andrew Patner Lecture Series
Opera Focus	India Blooms in Chicago

Chicago Opera Theater pops up in the most unexpected places…

All Ages: Special Performances & Opera for All Concerts

Pirates of Penzance: High school apprentices perform Gilbert and Sullivan’s classic operetta. April 15 & 16, 2008, 6pm at Storefront Theater, Gallery 37 66 E Randolph St Chicago, IL 60601. (Free, but limited seating)
PianoForte Foundation’s PianoForte Salon Series: Young Artists in recital on Friday, May 2, 2008 at 12:15pm. This concert can be experienced in person or via the live broadcast on WFMT 98.7 FM. PianoForte Foundation, nfp is located in the Fine Arts Building, 410 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 820, Chicago, IL 60605. (Free)

Tiny Great Performances™ for Tots
Help your toddler and kids discover the magic of live performance! Come to DuPage Children’s Museum for the perfect introduction to opera by COT’s Young Artists as part of their Tiny Great Performances™. Young Artists will perform some of opera’s greatest hits through an interactive kids program. DuPage Children’s Museum, 301 N. Washington Street, Naperville, IL 60540. (Tiny Great Performances™ are free to DCM members or free with admission.)

Tiny Great Performance #1	Saturday	May 17, 2008	10:30-10:50am
Tiny Great Performance #2	Saturday	May 17, 2008	11:00-11:20am
Tiny Great Performance #3	Saturday	May 17, 2008	11:30-11:50am

Adults: Andrew Patner Lecture Series

Brilliant arts commentator and critic-at-large for 98.7 WFMT, Andrew Patner, explores each upcoming opera in a free lunchtime series at the Chicago Cultural Center. All lectures begin at 12:15pm and are held at the Chicago Cultural Center, 5th floor Washington room, 78 E Washington Chicago, IL 60602.

Don Giovanni	Thursday, April 24, 2008	12:15pm
A Flowering Tree	Tuesday, May 6, 2008	12:15pm
Orlando	Thursday, May 22, 2008	12:15pm

Adults: Pre-opera Lectures
Get insider insights into COT’s 2008 Spring Season through special events and pre-opera lectures at the Harris Theater
(All pre-opera lectures are free with opera ticket)

Don Giovanni	Wednesday	April 30, 2008	6:30pm
Don Giovanni	Saturday	May 3, 2008	6:30pm
Don Giovanni	Tuesday	May 6, 2008	6:30pm
Don Giovanni	Friday	May 9, 2008	6:30pm
Don Giovanni	Sunday	May 11, 2008	2:00pm
A Flowering Tree	Wednesday	May 14, 2008	6:30pm
A Flowering Tree	Saturday	May 17, 2008	6:30pm
A Flowering Tree	Tuesday	May 20, 2008	6:30pm
A Flowering Tree	Friday	May 23, 2008	6:30pm
A Flowering Tree	Sunday	May 25, 2008	2:00pm
Orlando	Wednesday	May 28, 2008	6:30pm
Orlando	Saturday	May 31, 2008	6:30pm
Orlando	Tuesday	June 3, 2008	6:30pm
Orlando	Friday	June 6, 2008	6:30pm
Orlando	Sunday	June 8, 2008	2:00pm

Adults: Opera Focus

Don Giovanni

The Trilogy Completed – Mozart and DaPonte
Thursday, April 17, 2008 at 6pm
Goethe-Institut 150 N Michigan Ave Suite 200 Chicago, IL 60601
FREE, but reservations requested with Lisa Lux (312.263.0472 or lux@chicago.goethe.org)

Conductor Jane Glover, director Diane Paulus and Don Giovanni himself, Iain Paterson, in conversation as COT completes the Mozart/DaPonte opera trilogy. (Presented in partnership with the Goethe-Institut and in collaboration with the Austrian Consulate General and Istituto Italiano di Cultura.)

Orlando

In Conversation
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 at 6pm
Goethe-Institut 150 N Michigan Ave Suite 200 Chicago, IL 60601
FREE, but reservations requested with Lisa Lux (312.263.0472 or lux@chicago.goethe.org)

German composer George Frideric Handel spent the better part of his adult life living and working in London. COT artists explore how the British musical scene was influenced by this German, and how the British influenced Handel’s works. Join a conversation with famed British conductor, Raymond Leppard, in his fifth decade on the podium, the exceptional British counter-tenor portraying Orlando, Tim Mead, and revered General Director, Brian Dickie as they shed light on opera by Handel and reveal insights into COT’s new production of Orlando. Joined by Young Artists singing excerpts from this new production. (Presented in partnership with the Goethe-Institut and in collaboration with the British Consulate General.)

Origins of Orlando
Tuesday, May 27, 2008 at 6:30pm
Newberry Library, 60 W Walton Street, Chicago, IL 60601
FREE, but reservations requested (312.704.8420 x23 or education@chicagooperatheater.org)

Orlando, written in 1732 by George Frideric Handel, is based upon a poem of epic proportions, Orlando furioso by Ludovico Ariosto. Orlando furioso influenced countless literary works and numerous pieces of music including three operas by Handel alone. Come discover Orlando’s origins with Director Justin Way, Princeton University musicologist Wendy Heller, and Italian literary historian Eleonora Stoppino from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign as they explore Handel’s music and Ariosto’s epic poem. (Co-sponsored by Istituto Italiano di Cultura and the Department of French & Italian at Northwestern University.)

A Flowering Tree

Stories Told: Through the Voices of South Indian Women
Thursday, May 1, 2008 at 6:00pm
University of Chicago Gleacher Center, 450 North Cityfront Plaza Drive Chicago, IL 60611
FREE, but reservations requested (312.704.8420 x23 or education@chicagooperatheater.org)

Renowned for his geo-political operas, John Adams’ newest work turns away from contemporary events toward stories from long ago. A Flowering Tree is based upon an ancient folk tale from Southern India translated by A.K. Ramanujan, a famous poet, brilliant folklorist and faculty member at the University of Chicago for 30 years before his passing in 1993. Ramanujan had an eye for the best stories, a sympathy for women’s points of view, and the ability to transform folk tales into universal stories. Esteemed scholar Wendy Doniger, a colleague of Ramanujan’s at the University, takes us on a journey by recounting the original tale and delving into the folk traditions that inspired Adams’ newest masterpiece. (Co-sponsored by the University of Chicago Graham School of General Studies and South Asia Language & Area Center.)

All Ages: India Blooms in Chicago

View all other events celebrating A Flowering Tree as part of India Blooms in Chicago.

Ethnic Neighborhood Tour & Scavenger Hunt
Saturday, May 10, 2008, 10:30am
Indo-American Center, 6328 N. California Ave, Chicago, IL 60659
FREE, but reservations required as spots are limited. (312.704.8420 x23 or education@chicagooperatheater.org)

Visit Chicago’s own “living museum.” Members of the Indo-American Heritage Museum at the Indo-American Center give an insider’s view of the Devon Avenue neighborhood on Chicago’s north side. Hear a brief history of the Asian Indian community in Chicago, see and touch Indian artifacts and clothing, watch a live demonstration of Kathak dance, and sample some Indian sweets. Scavenger hunt teams will be assigned and the journey will begin. Tour will last approximately 1.5 hours. We recommend you stay and have lunch at one of the many wonderful restaurants on Devon Avenue. Lunch specials will be available with partnering restaurants.