Tannhauser at Lyric Opera

Chicago Sun Times - Recommended

"...Longtime Lyric music director Andrew Davis, who is conducting "Tannhäuser" for the first time, adroitly shapes the complex, unfolding drama, paying due attention to the all-important balances in this opera and highlighting its many intimate musical moments."

Stage and Cinema - Somewhat Recommended

"...Although Amber Wagner and Michaela Schuster (as Venus) both put in credible performances as Tannhäuser’s competing love interests, it is Gerald Finley as Wolfram who embodies his role best. His tender devotion to Elisabeth and piteous compassion for Tannhäuser find emotive expression in both gesture and voice. Yet, it is Finley’s lyrical and moving “Song to the Evening Star” that ultimately gains him the audience’s rapt attention. As Tannhäuser finally comes to a close nearly four and a half hours after it began, one is left lamenting the way Wagner’s beautifully-performed music has been so ill-served by poor staging and direction in this unsatisfying production."

ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended

"...Wagner’s complex score is in good hands with Sir Andrew Davis as he extracts all the subtly and dramatic nuances from Wagner’s musical genius. John Botha, Amber Wagner, and Gerald Finley lead this fantastic cast of Wagnerian singers. Don’t let the anti-Wagner crowd keep you away form entering this captivating evening of pure music and singing that will engulf you into the artistic world of opera that Wagner develops. The sheer beauty, the rich vocals, and the sweeping grandeur of Wagner’s music are an experience you’ll not soon forget. Tannhauser is a grand opera that will totally enchant and satisfy music lovers. It is also a grand story. If you try Tannhauser, you’ll become a Wagnerian. That’s a good thing."

The Fourth Walsh - Highly Recommended

"...There is a LOT to love about this TANNHAUSER. And it’s earned. The opera starts out hot and heavy. We are swept off our feet with the high-octane, raw-energy of the dancers. Once the physicality focus dissipates, the intellectual sparring ignites the stage in unforgettably haunting melodies. This isn’t just a fling. We don’t just fall in love with TANNHAUSER. We grow in love. And our love is sustained for the duration of the opera."

NewCity Chicago - Somewhat Recommended

"...Director Tim Albery's post-apocalyptic production does nothing to illuminate the story. In concert, set designer Michael Levine gives us hours of a revolving table, a bed and some rubble. Jon Morrell's generic costumes embarrass and, in the case of those designed for the ballet, hamper. Jasmin Vardimon's choreography is no bacchanal; if rolling and tumbling and shirt-ripping and hair whipping in perfect symmetry is suggestive of wild abandon, I have a grave misunderstanding of the phrase."