The Factotum makes its world premiere February 3

ViewThe Factotum images here

CHICAGO (2/3/2023) – Lyric Opera of Chicago presents the first of two world premieres in its 2022/23 Season with the opening of The Factotum, February 3 - 12, 2023. The new soul opera’s sold-out world premiere at Chicago’s Harris Theater runs alongside sold-out performances of Hansel and Gretel at the Lyric Opera House for a spectacular weekend of opera.

The Factotum was conceived by Will Liverman and DJ King Rico as a modernized riff on Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, set in a Black barbershop on Chicago’s South Side. A joyful and original piece all its own, The Factotum redefines everything that opera can be through a genre-bending score that remixes classical singing with gospel, funk, rap, hip-hop, classic barbershop quartet, and R&B.

Co-book writer, director, and dramaturg Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj and conductor Kedrick Armstrong make their Lyric debuts in bringing this powerful tale of community and Black joy to life. The ensemble cast is led by Liverman, Cecilia Violetta López (also in her Lyric debut), and Norman Garrett.

The Factotum runs for five performances only, through February 12. Audiences are invited to experience a new kind of opera in the city that inspired its creation, and which it celebrates.

View The Factotum images here

Read The Factotum digital program book.

Performance dates for The Factotum are February 3, 5 (matinee), 8, 10, and 12 (matinee). All performances take place at Chicago’s Harris Theater for Music and Dance in Millennium Park, 205 E. Randolph Street.

The Factotum is performed in English, with projected English titles.

Running time is 2 hours and 30 minutes, including one intermission.

Concept, Music, and Lyrics by Will Liverman and DJ King Rico
Book by Will Liverman, DJ King Rico, and Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj
Dramaturgy by Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj

Commissioned by Lyric Opera of Chicago and Houston Grand Opera. Co-production of Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Portland Opera, and Washington National Opera.

Lyric’s world premiere of The Factotum is generously made possible by the Ford Foundation, The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center Board, Roberta L. & Robert J. Washlow, the John R. and Grace K. Stanek Charitable Fund, Gene & Jean Stark, OPERA America, the Bill & Orli Staley Foundation, Mary Stowell, the Eisen Family Foundation, an Anonymous Donor, and Laurel Appell Lipkin.

Additional support is provided by Lyric Opera of Chicago's Production Circle.