Lyric Opera Lyric Opera of Chicago to hold dance auditions for The Listeners

CHICAGO (8/23/24) —  Lyric Opera of Chicago will hold auditions for solo dancers with significant stage experience for its upcoming production of The Listeners, by renowned composer/librettist team Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek. The production will be directed by the acclaimed theater artist Lileana Blain-Cruz, with choreography by Raja Feather Kelly. August Tye is the ballet mistress.

The Listeners is casting one (1) female-presenting dancer and one (1) female-presenting cover for a key role in the opera, embodied as a coyote. The choreographer, Raja Feather Kelly, is seeking to audition dancers with a background in modern dance and strong acting abilities. This role will require a significant amount of floor work and strong knee support will be critical.

Kelly describes the dancer character of the coyote as:

The dancer’s character, the Coyote, is a shapeshifter. A mysterious, otherworldly guide into the unknown. The dancer should feel ancient and weathered, as if they have been part of the land forever. The perfect dancer will have an intensity, and the ability to carry a kind of foreboding/ominous energy.

Please note that the top of the costume is open knit and may require some level of comfort with partial nudity.

Dancers of all ethnicities are encouraged to apply.

Rehearsals will begin March 3, 2025, with five (5) performances running from Sunday, March 30 through Friday, April 11, 2025.

The deadline to register for this audition is Wednesday, September 4, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. Chicago time.

The schedule for Sunday, September 8 (20 N Wacker Drive) is as follows:

9:00 a.m. - Check in: must arrive by 9:30 a.m.
10:00 a.m. - Warm-up class (mandatory)
11:00 a.m. - Auditions begin

For further information on audition requirements and registration, please email your résumé and headshot via attachment to [email protected]. Auditions will be by invitation only.

Please be prepared to show a government-issued photo identification card to gain access to the audition. All applicants must have valid eligibility to work in the United States. The company will not apply for working permits for foreign dancers.

Artists at Lyric are represented by the American Guild of Musical Artists. Should you be hired for The Listeners you will be required to join this union, if you are not already a member.

Lyric Opera of Chicago is committed to creating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Lyric Opera of Chicago does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, disability, parental status, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable laws. We encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply.

^{Lyric’s presentation of Mazzoli and Vavrek’s The Listeners is generously made possible by Lead Sponsor the Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation with additional support from production sponsor the Zell Family Foundation.}

^{Maestro Enrique Mazzola is generously sponsored by Alice & John Butler, H. Gael Neeson, Sylvia Neil & Daniel Fischel, and the Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation as members of the Enrique Circle.}

^{Major support for The New Work Fund provided by the Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation, David W. Carpenter and Orit K. Carpenter, in loving memory of David W. Carpenter, and Virginia Tobiason.}