Photo Flash: Sneak Peek - Opera Comes Alive in THE MAGIC VICTROLA Family Show Tomorrow at the Lyric

Lyric Unlimited's all-new family presentation, The Magic Victrola takes place tomorrow, Saturday, January 17 at 3pm at the Civic Opera House in downtown Chicago. BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek below!

The Magic Victrola combines some of the opera world's most beloved arias with a clever, newly written story that introduces children to the music and stories of famous operas in a fun and engaging way. The presentation runs 60 minutes with no intermission, and there will be six large screens with HD video projection, giving an up-close view of the action from all areas of the opera house.

Caroline Heffernan and Logan Neuschaefer play Gracie and Sam, two children who are staying with their grandfather (Richard Henzel) for the summer and discover his collection of opera records in the attic, along with an old-fashioned Victrola player that has magical qualities. When they put on the first record, the bird catcher Papageno (Ryan Opera Center baritone Will Liverman) from Mozart's The Magic Flute appears and encourages Gracie and Sam to play more records, which causes scenes from The Magic Flute, The Tales of Hoffmann, L'Elisir d'Amore, Lakmé, Carmen, and Gianni Schicchi to come to life.

Opera excerpts will be performed by Liverman, mezzo-soprano J'nai Bridges, tenor Jonathan Johnson, mezzo-soprano Julie Miller, and sopranos Hlengiwe Mkhwanazi and Laura Wilde-all members of The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center. Conductor Philip Morehead leads the Lyric Opera Orchestra.

The Magic Victrola is directed by David Kersnar, founding ensemble member of the Lookingglass Theatre Company, who also co-wrote the script with Jacqueline Russell, founder and artistic director of the Chicago Children's Theatre. The sets and costumes are by Scott Marr, Lyric's production design director, with lighting designed by Chris Maravich, Lyric's lighting director, and wigs and makeup by Sarah Hatten, Lyric's wigmaster and makeup designer.

Founded in 1954, Lyric Opera of Chicago's mission is to express and promote the life-changing, transformational, revelatory power of great opera. Lyric exists to provide a broad, deep, and relevant cultural service to Chicago and the nation, and to advance the development of the art form.

Lyric is dedicated to producing and performing consistently thrilling, entertaining, and thought-provoking opera with a balanced repertoire of core classics, lesser-known masterpieces, and new works; to creating an innovative and wide-ranging program of community engagement and educational activities; and to developing exceptional emerging operatic talent.

Under the leadership of general director Anthony Freud, music director Sir Andrew Davis, and creative consultant Renée Fleming, Lyric strives to become the great North American Opera Company for the 21st century: a globally significant arts organization embodying the core values of excellence, relevance, and fiscal responsibility. For more information, visit lyricopera.org.

Launched in 2012, Lyric Unlimited is a long-term, evolving initiative that encompasses company activities that are not part of Lyric's mainstage season. Its mission is to provide a relevant cultural service to communities throughout the Chicago area and to advance the development of opera by exploring how opera as an art form can resonate more powerfully with people of multiple backgrounds, ethnicities, and interests. Lyric Unlimited leads the development of innovative partnerships with a wide range of cultural, community, and educational organizations to create a breadth of programming through which Chicagoans of all ages can connect with Lyric. In the 2013-14 season, more than 111,000 children, students, and adults participated in Lyric Unlimited activities. For more information, visit lyricopera.org/LyricUnlimited.

Limited tickets, starting at just $10 for children and $20 for adults (18+), are still available at lyricopera.org/victrola or 312-827-5600.

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