Whether you’re new to opera or consider yourself a connoisseur, there’s something for everyone to enjoy this fall in Chicago. Here are four operas we are excited to see in the coming months.

Without Ordo virtutum, a sung morality play about the battle between human virtue and the devil’s temptation, opera as we now know it might not exist. And we have a woman to thank for that. Saint Hildegard of Bingen was a nun and scholar who made contributions to the fields of music, science, religion, and linguistics. On top of composing …

Soprano Whitney Morrison began singing before she could even speak. Through her early years of singing in church, she never thought she would pursue a career in opera. Now, Morrison is one of 12 young artists selected for the 2017/2018 ensemble at Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center. The Ryan Opera Center is one …

June 8 is “National Name Your Poison Day.” Though the origins of this offbeat holiday are unknown, bartenders typically celebrate by asking their patrons to “name their poison,” — that is, to pick their preferred alcoholic beverage. We decided to take a more literal approach to the day’s festivities. Check out this list of 10 operas about poisonous and medicinal plants, taken largely from …

Mark Campbell has written the words to over fifteen operas to date, making him one of the most active librettists alive. When Campbell visited the Windy City, he spoke about his work and explained, “how do you write an opera?”