SOUTH SHORE OPERA COMPANY OF CHICAGO PERFORMS ADMISSION-FREE CONCERT, A NIGHT OF ROMANCE, JUNE 20
TICKETED THREE-COURSE DINNER WITH ARTISTS AT PARROT CAGE RESTAURANT FOLLOWS PERFORMANCE
Release Date: 06/09/09
The South Shore Opera Company of Chicago concludes its inaugural season with A Night of Romance Saturday, June 20 at 5:30 p.m. at the recently renovated South Shore Cultural Center, 7059 S. South Shore Dr. The concert is admission free and is presented in partnership with the South Shore Cultural Center Advisory Council. No tickets or reservations are required.
The concert will feature duets, trios, and ensembles performing selections from La Bohème, The Marriage of Figaro, La Traviata, Carmen, Cosi Fan Tutti, Don Giovanni and Porgy and Bess.
The cast includes a group of professional artists including critically acclaimed sopranos Anisha McFarland, Kimberly Jones and Joelle Lamarre along with tenor Cornelius Johnson and baritone Kirk Walker. Mistress of ceremonies is Elizabeth Norman Sojourner, the artistic director of the South Shore Opera Company. Cast also features tenor Jeffrey Burish; soprano Dana Campbell; baritones Marvin Lynn and Bill McMurray; and tenor Kiel Williams.
A Night of Romance will be followed by a special three-course dinner with the artists at the Parrot Cage restaurant at 7:30 p.m. to celebrate the close of the company’s inaugural season. Dinner is offered at a special discounted price of $25 to concert attendees. The Parrot Cage is located in the South Shore Cultural Center and is part of the Washburne Culinary Institute of the City Colleges of Chicago. Please reserve with the Parrot Cage at 773-602-5333.
The South Shore Opera Company was founded by local artist and University of Illinois at Chicago professor Marvin Lynn this winter. The company’s mission is to make opera and musical theater more accessible to diverse Chicago audiences on the southside and elsewhere. The company was formed in partnership with the South Shore Cultural Center and its advisory council. All concerts involve a diverse cross-section of young performers and are free and open to the public.
Dr. Marvin Lynn is founder and executive director of the South Shore Opera Company of Chicago. A native Chicagoan and a South Shore community resident, he has performed with the Grant Park Symphony Chorus, Dreamstreet Theater, the Municipal Opera Company of Baltimore, the Annapolis Opera Company and the Maryland Arts Festival. He holds a bachelor of arts in elementary education with a concentration in voice and opera from DePaul University; a master of arts in urban education from Columbia University in New York City; and a doctorate in education from the University of California in Los Angeles.
Elizabeth Norman Sojourner is artistic director of the South Shore Opera Company. She is a celebrated artist and who has performed regularly with the Grant Park Symphony, the Chicago Sinfonietta and at Bach Week in Evanston. Nationally, she has appeared at the White House, the Kennedy Center, and with the symphonies of Richmond, Eugene, Duluth and Chicago, and abroad in Europe and Africa. Engagements this season include Mahler’s Second Symphony with the Oak Park/River Forest Symphony, Carmina Burana with the Eugene Symphony, and an appearance with Wynton Marsalis and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra premiering his new composition, All Rise. She holds a bachelor of arts in education with a concentration in voice from Morgan State University in Baltimore and a master of arts in vocal performance from DePaul University. She is currently on the voice faculty of Roosevelt University.
Cornelius Johnson is the music director. He quickly gained attention as an artist in opera, concert, and as a recitalist. Johnson made his professional solo operatic debut as Peter, the Honeyman, in Houston Grand Opera’s production of Porgy and Bess which toured major houses including the Opera Bastille in France, the Teatro alla Scala in Italy, and the Bunkamura Theater with the Tokyo Philharmonic. Other operatic appearances include Lyric Opera of Chicago’s “Opera in the Neighborhoods,” Teatro Real in Madrid, and Opera Memphis. Johnson has received many awards including the Frank Pandolfi Award from the Connecticut Opera Guild Scholarship Competition. In addition to an active performance schedule, he is also a faculty member at Olive Harvey College, one of the City Colleges of Chicago.
For more information on this concert, visit www.chicagoparkdistrict.com or call 312.742.PLAY, 312.747.2001 (TTY).
- Contact Phone: 312 742 7529
- Publication Date: 06/09/09