Lyric Opera of Chicago's OPERATHON 2013 Raises Over $500,000

OPERATHON 2013, Lyric Opera of Chicago's annual live-radio marathon fundraiser on 98.7WFMT, celebrated its 34th anniversary by raising $501,036 during its 16-hour broadcast on Saturday, October 19, exceeding the $500,000 goal.

All proceeds support the education and community-engagement programs that are part of Lyric Unlimited, serving more than 130,000 children, adults, and seniors in the Chicago area each year. These include Opera in the Neighborhoods, OperaKids, the Discovery Series, Community and Pre-Opera Lectures, Senior Matinee and Students at the Opera performances at the Civic Opera House, the Teen Opera Circle and College Opera Circle programs, NExT Discount Student Tickets, Student Backstage Tours, and Teachers' Professional Development Workshops.

"We are deeply grateful to our friends at WFMT for making OPERATHON possible for more than three decades," said Anthony Freud, Lyric's general director. "It is an outstanding collaboration.

"The success of this event is integral to achieving our 2013-14 annual fundraising goal of $21.9 million," Freud continued. "We are extremely grateful to all of our generous supporters who made pledges at all levels, and we deeply appreciate the hard work of the legions of volunteers and Lyric staff members who answered phones and assisted in many other ways behind the scenes. We are very proud of the support shown by the entire extended Lyric Opera family for our outstanding education and community engagement programs, which are part of our Lyric Unlimited initiative."

OPERATHON 2013, sponsored by Walgreens and Ardmore Associates, went on the air at 8:00 a.m. and concluded at midnight, broadcasting from The Pedersen Room Restaurant in the Civic Opera House.

The 16-hour event was anchored by 98.7WFMT's Carolyn Paulin, Peter Van De Graaf, Suzanne Nance, Candice Agree, and David Schwan, and by Lyric's dramaturg Roger Pines, who also selected all the musical excerpts heard throughout the day and night. Steve Robinson, general manager of 98.7WFMT and The WFMT Radio Network, orchestrated activities behind the scenes. WFMT's engineers for the 16-hour broadcast were Don Mueller and Eric Arunas.

OPERATHON 2013 exceeded its $500,000 goal thanks to numerous challenge grants offered by individuals, foundations, corporations, various Lyric Opera Chapters; exceptional participation by the Lloyd E. Rigler-Lawrence E. Deutsch Foundation, and the Lyric Opera of Chicago Overture Society, Richard P. and Susan Kiphart, Dr. and Mrs. Tapas Das Gupta, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Marjan, Allan and Elaine Muchin, Julie and Roger Baskes, Sir Andrew Davis and Gianna Rolandi, and an Anonymous Donor; donations, purchases, and pledges from listeners. Generous sponsors of merchandise for OPERATHON 2013 were Fellowes, Inc., and Sidley Austin LLP. The Season Poster featured in the OPERATHON catalog, designed by La traviata costume designer Cait O'Connor, is generously sponsored by Classic Color.

Flights to New York, Paris, Los Angeles, and London were auctioned on the air, courtesy of American Airlines, Lyric's official airline.

Lyric's general director, Anthony Freud, was in the radio studio for a substantial portion of the 16-hour marathon fundraiser. Several Lyric stars made on-air appearances throughout the fundraiser, including Renée Fleming, Lyric's creative consultant (via recorded conversations); Sir Andrew Davis, Lyric's music director and conductor of Parsifal, Rusalka, and La clemenza di Tito this season; Otello stars Johan Botha, Ana María Martínez, and Antonio Poli plus conductor Bertrand de Billy; Madama Butterfly stars Amanda Echalaz, James Valenti, MaryAnn McCormick, and David Cangelosi; Parsifal stars Paul Groves, Thomas Hampson, plus director John Caird and production designer Johan Engels.

Also participating in the broadcast were Lyric Board president and CEO Kenneth G. Pigott, chairman emeritus Alan Muchin, and vice president James Alexander; returning chorus master Michael Black; members of the Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus (including recent America's Got Talent finalist Branden James); and ensemble members of the Ryan Opera Center, among others.

Because OPERATHON coincided with Lyric's participation in Open House Chicago,live onstage performances by members of the Ryan Opera Center were aired at noon and at 1pm - the first time that live music has been featured on OPERATHON. Singers Julie Anne Miller, Anthony Clark Evans, and Will Liverman performed selections from Roméo et Juliette, Pagliacci, The Barber of Seville, and Carousel accompanied by pianist Maureen Zoltek.

Lyric used social media outlets Facebook and Twitter to engage audiences in OPERATHON. Lyric Opera tweeted all day and encouraged others to do so with #OPERATHON. To view photos from Saturday's radio fundraiser become a Facebook friend of Lyric Opera of Chicago.

OPERATHON 2013 was hosted by Lyric Opera and its 15 Chapters. Sherie Shapiro (Northwest Chapter) and Jonathan Eklund (Lake Geneva) served as the co-chairs.

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