Rodrick Dixon News

The Auditorium Theatre's signature production Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah celebrates 15 years in Chicago, and is one of the first performances to kick off the Year of Chicago Music, on January 18 and 19, 2020, in addition to a special Student Matinee performance on January 17. The jazz-gospel twist on George Frideric Handel's classic Messiah oratorio premiered at the Auditorium in 2006, and has been inspiring and uplifting audiences ever since.

On November 16, 2019, the Auditorium Theatre continues its 130th anniversary season with a salute to the living legend Stephen Sondheim in a one-night-only event, directed and produced by local cabaret star Joan Curto.

Single tickets for Michigan Opera Theatre's (MOT) 2019-20 season will go on sale Monday, Aug. 12. The MOT opera series features a?oeDon Giovanni,a?? a?oeSweeney Todd,a?? a?oeGianni Schicchi/Buoso's Ghost,a?? a?oeChampiona?? and a?oePagliacci.a?? The dance series includes performances by the Joffrey Ballet, Malandain Ballet Biarritz and Dance Theatre of Harlem and concludes with American Ballet Theatre's (ABT) a?oeSwan Lake.a??

Hannibal Lokumbe will culminate his three-year tenure as Philadelphia Orchestra composer-in-residence with the world premiere ofHealing Tones, March 28-30, in Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, conducted by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin. The piece will be dedicated to the Tree of Life congregation in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the wake of the tragic shooting that occurred there in October 2018. Audrey Glickman, a survivor of the attack, will play the shofar during the three world premiere concerts.

The Chicago theatre community will ring in 2019 with major events, getting the Year of Chicago Theatre off to an exciting start.

The Auditorium Theatre is proud to continue to extend the impact of its signature show Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah beyond the stage with programs offered to schools, community groups, and correctional facilities. Too Hot, hosted annually on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend in honor of his life and legacy, is a joyous, uplifting show that puts a jazz, gospel, rock, and blues twist on Handel's classic Messiah oratorio. The production features soloists Rodrick Dixon (tenor), Alfreda Burke (soprano), Karen Marie Richardson (alto), the famed Detroit pianist Alvin Waddles, a 100-person choir, an orchestra, and a jazz combo.

In the Auditorium Theatre's 129th year of existence, we honored the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the 13th annual Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah; asked "What's This?" on Halloween with a special screening and the Midwest premiere of Disney in Concert's The Nightmare Before Christmas; and sang along to timeless classics like "December 1963 (Oh, What a Night)" and "Grease" with Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. We reveled alongside the dancers from Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; celebrated Ballet Nacional de Cuba's return to Chicago following a 15-year absence; highlighted top local dance companies, including Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Giordano Dance Chicago; and got transported to Mexico with the colorful music and dance of Ballet Folklorico de Mexico de Amalia Hernandez. We also hosted the 14th  year of our Hearts to Art summer camp, a performing arts camp for young people who have experienced the death of a parent; welcomed over 5,000 students to our Student Matinees; and brought thousands of people from across the city to the theatre through our ADMIT ONE program.

For the 14th consecutive year, the Auditorium Theatre proudly presents Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah over Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend. Celebrating Dr. King's vision of "beloved community" - a world without poverty, bigotry, and violence - Too Hot is a true Chicago show that unites people from all across the city as they sing, dance, and clap along with the performers. 

The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Louis Langree present this season's One City concert program November 9-10, at Music Hall. The Orchestra, May Festival Chorus, members of the Classical Roots Community Mass Choir and guest vocal soloists Angel Blue, Jennifer Johnson Cano, Rodrick Dixon, and Dashon Burton.will perform Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. The program opens with the world premiere of Ode by CSO Composer-in-Residence Jonathan Bailey Holland.

Chief Executive Officer Tania Castroverde Moskalenko announces the Auditorium Theatre's 2018-19 Season, which includes exciting premieres, inspiring speakers, innovative contemporary artists, and legendary performers.

Michigan Opera Theatre CEO and President Wayne S. Brown and Principal Conductor Stephen Lord today announced the company's 2018-19 opera season.  MOT's 48th opera season will be the second under Lord's artistic leadership and celebrates masterworks of literature turned opera, with "Eugene Onegin" (Pyotr Tchaikovsky), "Candide" (Leonard Bernstein) and "The Grapes of Wrath" (Ricky Ian Gordon/Michael Korie). The season also includes a staple of the opera repertoire, "The Barber of Seville" (Gioachino Rossini) and a fairytale opera, "Hansel and Gretel" (Engelbert Humperdinck). The season begins Sept. 29 with a gala concert featuring opera superstar Renee Fleming.  

 Fresh off a year that saw five weeks of successful international tour dates and two Grammy nominations, t he Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra ( CSO ) and Music Director Louis Langre e announced the Orchestra's highly - anticipated 2018 - 19 season at the recently renovated and widely celebrated Cincinnati Music Hall. In addition to the 20 - concert program subscription s eason, the CSO will present a one - night - only, all - orchestral gala performance on September 22 with Mr. Langree on the conducting podium that kicks off the fall arts season in Cincinnati. This gala concert is an all - French program that includes audience favorites by Ravel, Debussy, and Dukas. The 2018 - 19 season not only showcases great orchestral repertoire, exciting new works, and acclaimed artists from around t h e globe but also features seven CSO musicians as featured soloists.

On January 13 and 14, 2018, the Auditorium Theatre presents the 13th annual performance of Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah. Traditionally held on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend, Too Hot celebrates Dr. King's message of 'beloved community.'

On January 13 and 14, 2018, the Auditorium Theatre presents the 13th annual performance of Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah. Traditionally held on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend, Too Hot celebrates Dr. King's message of 'beloved community.' The show features acclaimed soloists Rodrick Dixon, Alfreda Burke, and Karen Marie Richardson; legendary Detroit pianist Alvin Waddles; a choir of over 100 members led by Bill Fraher, director of concert choirs at Old St. Patrick's Church; a chamber orchestra conducted by Suzanne Mallare Acton, the assistant music director at Michigan Opera Theatre in Detroit, MI; and a world-class jazz band featuring electric bass, electric guitar, string bass, and more. Too Hot, which was originally conceived by conductor Marin Alsop and arranged by Bob Christianson and Gary Anderson, puts a twist on George Frideric Handel's classic oratorio, infusing the music with jazz, gospel, rock, and blues.

On January 13 and 14, 2018, the Auditorium Theatre presents the 13th annual performance of Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah. Traditionally held on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend, Too Hot celebrates Dr. King's message of 'beloved community.'

On January 13 and 14, 2018, the Auditorium Theatre presents the 13th annual performance of Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah. Traditionally held on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend, Too Hot celebrates Dr. King's message of 'beloved community.' The show features acclaimed soloists Rodrick Dixon, Alfreda Burke, and Karen Marie Richardson; legendary Detroit pianist Alvin Waddles; a choir of over 100 members led by Bill Fraher, director of concert choirs at Old St. Patrick's Church; a chamber orchestra conducted by Suzanne Mallare Acton, the assistant music director at Michigan Opera Theatre in Detroit, MI; and a world-class jazz band featuring electric bass, electric guitar, string bass, and more. Too Hot, which was originally conceived by conductor Marin Alsop and arranged by Bob Christianson and Gary Anderson, puts a twist on George Frideric Handel's classic oratorio, infusing the music with jazz, gospel, rock, and blues.

The Orpheum Theatre Group announced today that a Memphis-produced engagement of Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz Gospel Messiah will play April 21-22, 2018, at the historic Orpheum Theatre.

The Auditorium Theatre has announced its upcoming shows through January 14, 2018. Scroll down for details!

The Auditorium Theatre has announced its upcoming shows through January 14, 2018. Scroll down for details!

The Auditorium Theatre announces its 2017-18 Season under new Chief Executive Officer, Tania Castroverde Moskalenko, and its new tagline, "The Theatre for the People."