What you need to know about Verdi’s Rigoletto

CHICAGO (7/23/24) — Driven by passion, revenge, and obsession, Giuseppe Verdi’s classic tragedy Rigoletto arrives on the stage of Lyric Opera of Chicago from September 14 to October 6, 2024, ushering in the start of Chicago’s cultural season. Conducted by Lyric’s Music Director Enrique Mazzola, a much-acclaimed Verdian, and directed by Juilliard’s Mary Birnbaum in her Lyric debut, this production opens the Lyric season with a vengeance.

A screaming sorrow. When the court jester Rigoletto mocks the statesman Monterone at the Duke of Mantua’s party, Monterone curses Rigoletto. The Duke then seduces Rigoletto’s daughter, Gilda, who falls for him completely. Once Rigoletto hears of this, he hatches a plan to kill the Duke. But the plan goes utterly awry: Gilda tragically sacrifices herself for love, and Rigoletto wails over her lifeless body. The legendary score’s highlights include the Duke’s instantly recognizable “La donna è mobile” and Gilda’s ecstatic “Caro nome,” one of the most beloved soprano showpieces in all of opera.

Chicago’s “maestro-around-town” opens Lyric’s 70th season. Music Director Enrique Mazzola conducts his sixth Verdi opera at Lyric with this production of Rigoletto. Mazzola’s interpretation of this classic score was much acclaimed at the Bregenz Festival in Austria in 2019. With 64 members of the Lyric Opera Orchestra — plus 32 members of the Lyric Opera Chorus under the leadership of Chorus Director Michael Black — Rigoletto marshals all of Lyric’s mighty forces to create an unforgettable musical experience.

A trio of captivating voices. Rigoletto is anchored by three world-renowned voices. Russian baritone Igor Golovatenko is Rigoletto; he previously starred as Rodrigue in Don Carlos in Lyric’s 2022/23 Season. He has sung at many of the world’s leading opera houses and was hailed for his performances in the Metropolitan Opera’s La forza del destino last season. Armenian soprano Mané Galoyan portrays Gilda, one of her signature roles, for her Lyric debut. She won raves for her performances of Gilda at Houston Grand Opera; the Houston Press called her “radiant” with “a crystalline voice that cuts through any orchestral texture.” She portrays another Verdi heroine, Violetta, in La traviata at Santa Fe Opera this summer. Mexican tenor Javier Camarena rounds out the lead cast as the Duke of Mantua, in his much-anticipated Lyric debut. Camarena was acclaimed for his portrayal of the Duke at the Met, where he is the first and only singer to perform a mid-show encore in three different productions.

A stellar supporting cast. After scene-stealing Verdi performances at Lyric as Wurm in Luisa Miller in the 2019/20 Season and as the Grand Inquisitor in Don Carlos in the 2022/23 Season, Soloman Howard returns as the assassin Sparafucile. Chicago native Zoie Reams, last seen at Lyric as Ragonde in Le Comte Ory and as Chief’s Daughter #2 and the Sybil in Proximity in the 2022/23 Season, sings the role of Maddalena; later in the season she appears in the starring role of the Mother in the Lyric premiere of Jeanine Tesori and Tazewell Thompson's Blue. Andrew Manea makes his Lyric debut as Monterone, and Maire Therese Carmack makes her Lyric debut as Giovanna. Members of The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center, Lyric’s renowned artist-development program, also appear in key roles in Rigoletto. Travon D. Walker is Borsa in his Lyric debut, Sankara Harouna is Marullo, Christopher Humbert, Jr. is Ceprano in his Lyric debut, Adia Evans makes her Lyric debut as Countess Ceprano, and Gemma Nha makes her Lyric debut as the Page.

Direction and design that drive the drama. Rigoletto is directed by Mary Birnbaum in her Lyric debut. Hailed for her “genuinely insightful…vibrant” stage direction by The New York Times, Birnbaum is currently Associate Director of the Opera Studies program at The Juilliard School, and in 2023 was named the General & Artistic Director of Opera Saratoga. Her directing credits include an acclaimed production of La Bohème at Santa Fe Opera in 2019. Rigoletto features set design by Robert Innes Hopkins, who worked on Lyric’s most recent Ring Cycle; costume design by 22-time Tony Award nominee Jane Greenwood; and lighting design by Duane Schuler, an acclaimed designer of nearly 200 Lyric productions.

Chicago’s cultural season starts with thunder. From the deep lyricism of its starry cast to the triumph of Enrique Mazzola’s musical leadership and Mary Birnbaum’s directing debut, audiences are sure to be captivated by Verdi’s Rigoletto. The opera’s unscrupulous Duke, innocent Gilda, and multifaceted title character will keep audiences on the edge of their seats all the way to the tragic end.

Important to know…

• 7 chances to see Rigoletto: September 14; matinees on September 18 and 22; September 25, 28, and October 1; and a matinee on October 6.
• Performed in Italian, with easy-to-follow English translations projected above the stage.
• A total running time of 2 hours and 35 minutes, including one intermission.
• Ticketholders are invited to a free pre-opera talk by Roderick K. Hawkins on Rigoletto’s composition history and social context; the talk begins one hour before each performance on the main floor of the theater.
• Audio description, a guided touch tour of the set, and SoundShirts are available at the Sunday, September 22 matinee performance. Braille and large-print programs, high-powered opera glasses, assistive listening devices, and booster seats are available from the main floor coat check at all performances. For more information on these and other accessibility assets, visit lyricopera.org/accessibility.
• For more information and tickets, visit lyricopera.org/rigoletto or call 312.827.5600.

Lyric's presentation of Verdi's Rigoletto is generously made possible by Lisbeth Stiffel, Marlys A. Beider, and Randy L. & Melvin R.* Berlin.
*deceased

Maestro Enrique Mazzola is generously sponsored by Alice & John Butler, H. Gael Neeson, Sylvia Neil & Daniel Fischel, and the Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation as members of the Enrique Circle.