Top Story »

Mar 27, 2023 – 7:25 pm

Commentary: The emergent paradigm of inclusion, this new arts-wide acknowledgement of stage and concert hall as Everyperson’s forum and welcoming agora for all who wish to assemble there, was on manifest display in recent Chicago Symphony performances at Orchestra Hall. The repertoire showcased its fresh profile in brave new works or just unusual music by a broad range of composers, served up by a wide spectrum of artists. It was a mix highlighted by the CSO subscription debut March 23-26 of an elegant veteran, the African American conductor Thomas Wilkins.

Read the full story »
Latest Arts News
Classical + Opera
Theater + Stage
Streaming + Disc
Chicago Wine Journal

From a long life in the opera world, Muti brings Chicago Symphony gifts of drama and poetry

Sep 26, 2011 – 4:19 am
Riccardo Muti is music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Photo by Todd Rosenbertg)

The distinctive qualities of Riccardo Muti’s genius as a conductor, above all a lyrical sensibility cultivated through decades in the opera house, will shape his tenure as music director of the Chicago Symphony.

Love, reality and other disquieting intrusions

Sep 26, 2011 – 12:04 am
RealThingThumb

In “The Real Thing” at Writers’ Theatre, love’s a moving target. 5 stars!

CD review: Beethoven sonatas, with polish and affection

Sep 24, 2011 – 9:25 pm
Fliter thumb

Ingrid Fliter’s fresh take on three favorite masterpieces. 4 stars!

A journey into the daunting forest of arms diplomacy

Sep 24, 2011 – 8:21 pm
David Parkes and Janet Ulrich Brooks in "A Walk in the Woods"

“A Walk in the Woods” at TimeLine.
Cold War contretemps. 4 stars!

As the Lyric Opera’s poster girl, Fleming proves pitch-perfect

Sep 24, 2011 – 7:41 pm
Soprano Renée Fleming

In a chat with high school singers picked for a new Lyric collaboration with the Merit School of Music, the soprano diva Renée Fleming admits she struck out twice competing in the Met auditions — and taking her driver’s exam.

Protecting the old neighborhood, but redefining the threat

Sep 24, 2011 – 3:36 am
 Karen Aldridge (left) with Stephanie Childers and James Vincent Meredith in "Clybourne Park." ( Photo by Michael Brosilow)

“Clybourne Park” at Steppenwolf. Bias on the block. 5 stars!