Chicago Opera Theater

Last week, we welcomed over 500 CPS students from across Chicago to the Studebaker Theater for this year's OFA Student Showcase, themed ‘Wishes’ ✨!

For many of these kiddos, it was their first time EVER visiting the Fine Arts Building! We were thrilled to see our students and teachers present excerpts from their original operas on the Studebaker stage 🎭

From beautifully painted backdrops by students at Disney II Elementary to commissioned works by local Chicago talent like Taylor Ott, we had a wonderful time bringing our students’ stories to life!

A huge thank you to our Director of Education & Community Engagement, Veronica Chamberlain, and all of her incredible volunteers for making the day run so smoothly. We have the best team!

If you’re moved to support programs like OFA, head to cot.org/opera-for-all

Next week, experience an exciting story of betrayal and family in the Vanguard world premiere of ‘Trusted’, Saturday May 30, 3 pm at the Studebaker Theater. 💼

Bringing this gripping production to life is...

Vanguard Composer, Aaron Israel Levin
Librettist, Marella Martin Koch
Conductor, Eli Chen

YOUNGEST, Meghan Kasanders
OLDEST, Quinn Middleman, mezzo-soprano
AUDITOR, Tracy Cantin.
FATHER, Kyle Albertson Bass-Baritone

Purchase tickets for the WORLD PREMIERE of 'Trusted': 🎟 cot.org/trusted-levin

From 'The Importance of Being Earnest' to the world of Philip Glass, we are excited to share our brilliant lineup of artists for Chicago Opera Theater’s 2026–27 Season:

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST 🎩
Vanessa Becerra, soprano
Brenna Corner, Director
Martin Luther Clark
Leah Dexter
Véronique Filloux, Soprano
Kamna Gupta, Conductor
Omar Najmi
Emily Treigle

THE JUNIPER TREE 🌳
Janai Brugger
Brian DeMaris, Conductor:
Lawrence Edelson, Director
Véronique Filloux, Soprano
Laureano Quant
Emily Treigle

INVENTING OZ ✨
Stacy Garrop, Composer
Sam Norman, Librettist

DISCOVERY CONCERT: ON THE WILDE SIDE 🎹
Michael Banwarth, Pianist & Music Director
Additional artists to be announced!

DISCOVERY CONCERT: ONCE UPON A TIME 📖
Yasuko Oura, Pianist & Music Director
Additional artists to be announced!

Learn more about the 2026–27 Season at cot.org/2026-27-season or via the link in bio. 🔗

COT launches its bold new Chicago Sings commissioning initiative with 'Inventing Oz', a new opera by Stacy Garrop and Sam Norman.

Discover the story behind the creation of 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' and how Chicago, the 1893 World’s Fair, and Baum’s own search for home inspired one of America’s most beloved stories. 🌪️🧙‍♀️✨

Learn more and meet the cast at cot.org/2026-27-season

Darkly beautiful and hauntingly poetic, 'The Juniper Tree' arrives in its Chicago premiere in a mesmerizing operatic adaptation by Philip Glass and Robert Moran. 🕊️

Drawn from the Brothers Grimm, this hypnotic fairy tale journeys through jealousy, loss, transformation, and rebirth in a spellbinding score unlike any other. 🍎

Learn more and meet the cast at cot.org/2026-27-season

From one of Hollywood’s legendary film composers comes a sparkling operatic adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s 'The Importance of Being Earnest'.

In this Chicago premiere by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, romance, mistaken identities, and razor-sharp wit unfold through effervescent music filled with playful nods to some of classical music’s greatest composers.

Learn more and meet the cast at cot.org/2026-27-season

✨ANNOUNCING THE 2026/27 SEASON!✨

Chicago is one of the great opera cities in the world—but no company does opera quite like COT.

Our 2026/27 Season celebrates the thrill of discovery with two extraordinary Chicago premieres: Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s sparkling operatic adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Importance of Being Earnest' and Philip Glass, Robert Moran and Arthur Yorinks haunting ‘The Juniper Tree’, based on the classic fairytale by the Brothers Grimm.

Alongside these productions, our Discovery Concerts – ‘On the Wilde Side’ and ‘Once Upon a Time’ - invite you to explore the stories, themes, and ideas surrounding the operas in engaging and unexpected ways.

This season also marks the launch of Chicago Sings, a bold new initiative commissioning full-length operas by Chicago-based composers. Audiences will get a first look at ‘Inventing Oz’ by Stacy Garrop and Sam Norman, a fantastical new opera inspired by L. Frank Baum’s years living in Chicago and the creation of ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’.

Rarely performed works. New opera. Unexpected musical journeys.

Welcome to where Chicago discovers the unexpected!

Learn more at cot.org/2026-27-season

Thank you to everyone who joined us for Murder at the Opera this past weekend!

Your generosity helped us raise over $170,000 in support of Chicago Opera Theater’s Chicago premieres, new works initiatives, and expanded arts education programs.

It was also a true honor to celebrate Dorothy Osborn and her extraordinary impact on COT. Bravo to the sleuths in the room who successfully uncovered the truth behind the demise of the venomous critic Basil Snide…

🕵️‍♂️🌹 Gotta watch out for those mezzo sopranos!

Photos by Michelle Reid