Lyric Opera 2024-2025 Issue 8 - The Listeners

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 30 JOHN MOORE DILLON Lyric debut This season, Moore sang the role of Dillon at Opera Philadelphia in the U.S. premiere of The Listeners . He also debuts with Washington National Opera as Steve Jobs in The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs , a role he has sung across the United States, and with Odyssey Opera and Boston Modern Orchestra Project he will perform and record the role of Kinesias in Mark Adamo’s Lysistrata . He joins the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra twice this season, for concerts of Handel’s Messiah followed later by performances of Poulenc’s Le bal masqué . Future seasons include a debut with the Finnish National Opera. Last season, he sang Steve Jobs in The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs with San Francisco Opera, performed Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Pittsburgh Opera, took the title role of Sweeney Todd with Dayton Opera, and joined Seattle Opera for the company’s 60th Anniversary Gala concert. Other recent highlights include debuting the role of Rasheed in the operatic adaptation of A Thousand Splendid Suns at Seattle Opera, and singing Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia with New Orleans Opera. On the concert stage, he collaborated with the Jacksonville Symphony for Brahms’s Ein Deutsches Requiem and Mahler’s Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen , and performed Handel’s Messiah with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. JOSEPH LIM THOM Previously at Lyric: 4 roles since 2011/12, most recently Schaunard/ La Bohème and Marullo/ Rigoletto (both 2012/13). The baritone, an alum of the Ryan Opera Center, portrayed Thom earlier this season in the U.S. premiere of The Listeners at Opera Philadelphia. Also this season, Lim returns to the Metropolitan Opera to sing Fiorello in Il barbiere di Siviglia which will be broadcast via Live in HD , and appeared at Hawaii Opera Theatre for performances as Wang Yue in Byron Au Yong’s chamber opera Stuck Elevator . Last season, Lim returned to the Metropolitan Opera to sing Le Dancaïre in Carrie Cracknell’s new production of Carmen and to Nashville Opera to perform the role of Silvio in Pagliacci . He made debuts with Houston Grand Opera in the world premiere of Big Swim , a new commission by composer Meilina Tsui and librettist Melisa Tien, and at the Lotte Concert Hall as Marcello in La Bohème . Other recent engagements include debuts with the Metropolitan Opera as Flemish Deputy in Sir David McVicar’s production of Don Carlos , with Nashville Opera singing Wang Yue in the world premiere of Stuck Elevator, and with Deutsche Oper am Rhein singing Schaunard in La Bohème and Grégorio in a new production of Roméo et Juliette . Among other Chicago appearances, Lim performed the role of Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro and Schaunard in La Bohème under the baton of Sir Andrew Davis with the the Ryan Opera Center and Civic Orchestra at Symphony Center. EMILY MWILA SINA Previously at Lyric: Chorus member since 2022. Mwila recently completed her graduate studies at Mannes School of Music in New York, receiving a Master of Music and Professional Studies Diploma in Voice. Last season at Lyric, she was soprano soloist for Thamos, King of Egypt , and Lucia Paret in Champion . In the 2022/23 Season, she portrayed Evelyn in Fire Shut Up in My Bones . In 2021, she appeared in the chorus of Porgy and Bess at the Metropolitan Opera. She made her operatic debut in New Zealand at Eternity Opera (Zerlina/ Don Giovanni ), and other roles include Susanna/ Le nozze di Figaro , Mae Jones/ Street Scene , and Euridice/ Orfeo ed Euridice . She also joined the ensemble of Anthony Davis’s X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X singing the role of Neighbor/Soprano 1 with Detroit Opera and Omaha Opera, and in the chorus of the Metropolitan Opera production. KELSEA WEBB DANICA Previously at Lyric: Chorus member since 2015. The soprano has been a member of the Lyric Opera Chorus since the 2015/16 Season and covered the role of Masha in The Queen of Spades (2019/20). She sang the title role in Savitri with the Merola Opera Program and Mrs. Patrick de Rocher in Dead Man Walking with Indiana University Opera Theatre. She has also premiered several roles including Sally ( Intoxication: America’s Love Affair with Oil ), Ana ( Ana y su sombr a), the Unicorn ( Mooch the Magnificent ), and Rainbow Crow ( The Firebringers ) in collaboration with the ROK contemporary opera company. Webb took second place in the 2017 Bel Canto Foundation Competition and was a 2016 Finalist in the Luminarts Foundation Competition. She has previously held residencies with the Vancouver International Song Institute, Operaworks, and the Song Continues at Carnegie Hall. MARIE SOKOLOVA EMILY Previously at Lyric: Chorus member since 2008. Sokolova has been a full-time member of the Lyric Opera Chorus since 2008 and has performed various roles and understudies at Lyric in such productions as Ernani , The Magic Flute , Hansel and Gretel , Dead Man Walking , L’elisir d’amore , Elektra , The Passenge r, Die Entführung aus dem Serail , Showboat, and Lulu . She is the recipient of many awards, including a two-time regional finalist with the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition, and has distinguished herself as a soloist in many oratorio and concert works across the country. Sokolova is a graduate of DePauw University and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she earned her Master of Music degree.