Sergio Mims: Lyric Opera of Chicago: Spotlight on BLUE

Lyric Opera of Chicago

BLUE — A POWERFUL NEW  OPERA

In June 2020, Lyric Opera presents  Blue, a new opera inspired by true  events. A Black couple experiences  the joys and fears of raising a son  in 21st century America. When  forced to face a devastating loss,  the family is left to question their  faith and the systems meant to  protect them. What makes Blue a must-see? Jeanine Tesori, Tony Award-winner and  composer of five Broadway musicals,  wrote a hauntingly beautiful score for  Blue. This Midwest premiere is in English  with projected texts, ensuring that you  won't miss a word of Tazewell  Thompson's moving libretto. The phenomenal cast features Kenneth  Kellogg and Aaron Crouch reprising   their roles as The Father and The Son,  plus Taylor Raven as The Mother and  Mark Rucker as The Reverend joining  the cast for Lyric's production. This intimate, small scale production  will be presented at The Yard at  Chicago Shakespeare Theater Blue comes to The Yard next June — don't  miss it! Save your seats today online or  over the phone at 312.827.5600. "Drawing on her deep experience in  musical theater, her keen ear for  elements of contemporary classical music  and her abundant imagination, Ms. Tesori  has written a strong yet subtle score that  avoids the obvious and exudes a personal  voice...Mr. Thompson, who also directed  the production, has written one of the  most elegant librettos I’ve heard in a long  time." — The New York Times INSPIRED BY TRUE EVENTS AND BLACK  LITERATURE Inspired by Ta-Nehisi Coates’s award-winning  Between the World and Me and James  Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time, Blue explores  race, violence, and reconciliation, and places  timely issues at the  forefront of the opera. A NOTE FROM THE LIBRETTIST "The times are fraught. Lit by lightning and divisiveness. Love, family, friends and the church are there when we need them. And we need them now. We need a song to soothe our sorrows as we confront painful, personal truths. We need music in our lives and our children near to help us repair heartache; music to ultimately lift us and celebrate the bonds of sisterhood and brotherhood togetherness."       —Tazewell Thompson, librettist and director