Review: Warm Up and be Wowed by Opera in a Pool

Eckert Park Pool Opera premier.

140,000 gallons of water are transformed into the River Styx when Chicago Opera Theater gears up for this imaginative retelling of the ancient myth about eternal love.  Orpheus takes his clarinet along in his search for his lost love. Performed first at Ida Crown Natatorium, the COT is going to present this unique show at Welles Park Pool on  December 19, 20, and 22 at 7:30 p.m.

At the first performances at Eckert Park, there were plenty of wait list tickets. In the cold weather, sitting inside the warm humid air of the pool was a pleasant experience in itself. When the lights, music, and performance began it was magical. There are swimmers, Opheus’ boat, a small orchestra, and let’s just say when the fog machine comes on, it is eerie and perfectly suited to the mood of the piece.

This opera is sung in English, but as with all COT performances, the words are on an electronic screen.

Presented with the Chicago Park District in collaboration with the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Orpheus makes his journey into Hades once again.

This Chicago premiere of American composer Ricky Ian Gordon’s Orpheus & Euridice is a partnership with the Chicago Park District‘s Classics in the Parks Series.

Is that why we are taught myth, so that later on when we need them, we can tell our own stories through them? Is that how they came about? At that moment in my life, it is as if, knowing this myth, and it’s eruption inside me, saved me.
…   Ricky Ian Gordan

Advanced ticket reservations have SOLD OUT – but hundreds of Walk-Up Tickets remain!

Walk-up tickets will be distributed on a first come first serve basis beginning at 5:00PM prior to each performance. Please note that 5:00 p.m. is when COT will distribute the tickets.

At the previous performances, people came early to sign up for the waiting list, and then went and had coffee or whatever, returning at 5 p.m. when the tickets are given out. There is a 2 ticket maximum per person in line.