Brian Dickie

WFMT/President Obama bonus offer!

So we had out two hours of fame with our season preview on WFMT, Chicago's classical music station, this morning.  Well in Chicago anyway, with however many thousands of listeners. WFMT's Carolyn Paulin, a distinguished producer as well as an ocasional presenter, was our host and kept us pretty well in line.  Andrew Patner, the station's "Critic at Large" was the link man extraordinaire, and other guests included Jane Glover on line from Milwaukee (where she is conducting Handel's Semele with the Florentine Opera), and Alexander Platt who is conducting our Carmen but who spoke this morning almost exclusively about Owen Wingrave.  These two appeared on the telephone while we had the director of Carmen, Andrew Eggert, in the studio.  

The object of the exercise of course was to sell tickets.  And this was achieved.  We had the great incentive to subscribers of a $25 gift voucher for President Obama's favorite restaurant in Hyde Park, the Dixie Kitchen and Bait Shop.  And click here and you can see the President's enthusiastic verdict on this great establishment.

As a special deal for reader's of this blog who want to subscribe and take advantage of this offer, go to the COT website and sign up now.  Having chosen your subscription you will see a screen that asks you to put in a  "Promo code".  Enter WFMT and you will get your Dixie Kitchen bonus!  This offer is only good to the end of this weekend.  Go for it!

An Abduction from (or for) the recession

I was at the dress rehearsal of the Lyric's Abduction from the Seraglio this afternoon.  It is a new production by Chas Rader-Schieber which opens on Monday evening.  I may have missed the point - but it seemed to me that that here was a wonderful example of what can happen when money is tight.  The first Act was somewhat lavish, modeled maybe on the charming court theater in Drottningholm with all the stage machinery and decorations fit for the late 18th century.  Act 2 indicated some economies - we had just a revolving platform with a tree and that was about it.  And third act was black legs and borders and a door.  That was all.  The question I had was whether this was the original plan or a dramatic response to our new realities. 

Now this kind of minimalism is exactly what I am urged to provide at COT - but I am not sure that this is the answer.  Anyway we will see - we will also be tightening our belts.  I am sure that we will also have to find some clever ideas in the area of creative minimalism.

Apart from that there was an excellently balanced cast who will no doubt come up trumps at the opening on Monday evneing after a couple of free days after an exhausting rehearsal period.  All are of sterling quality - two terrific tenors in Matthew Polenzani and Steve Davislim, and Lyric's own much loved Erin Wall as Constanze and the debutante Aleksandra Kurzak as Blonde.  Andrea Silvestrelli was the crowd's favorite as Osmin.  And in the hands of the superlative Mozartian Andrew Davis we can be confident that it will settle down as a polished ensemble performance of musical distinction.

Tomorrow I am am up bright and early (early anyway) and have to be up at WFMT's studios for a two hour COT season preview special.  Tune in between 9 and 11 am.

Waiting for Henry

We had a meeting of the Chicago College of the Performing Arts advisory board this afternoon.  There was a small turn out only.  We are now in a state of limbo all waiting for the new Dean Henry Fogel to begin.  He was not able to be present today so we went into holding pattern.  Somewhat frustrating - but that is the nature of transition.   I believe everyone is pumped up and ready in anticipation of some brave new initiatives from the enterprising Henry Fogel - someone never content with the status quo.  So we are looking forward to the next period of development at the CCPA. 

And for us at COT this means, I am sure, a strengthening of the already strong relationship we have through the Performance Diploma program;   it is particularly strong this year with some exceptionally talented young singers benefitting from this excellent combined academic and practical development program.

Today the rain has been tipping down - all afternoon anyway with no sign of letting up.  Just like being back in England really!

Good turn out for Jim Palermo!

At 5.30 pm we all gathered at the Walnut Room in what used to be Marshall Field's, an old established Chicago institution which became Macy's to general disgust a couple of years ago.  But the Walnut Room remains and they have a spacious wine bar where we feted Jim this evening.  

We were a motley crowd including Steve Robinson of WFMT, Deborah Rutter of the CSO, Karen Fishman of Music of the Baroque, Jim Hirsch of the Sinfonietta, Jim Ginsburg of Cedille Records, Josephine Lee of the Childrens Choir, Shauna Quill and Rebecca Levy of the U of C Presents, and Helen Vasey from the City's cultural department.  A good and lovely crowd all devoted to Jim and grateful to him for what he has brought to our community over the years.  We all came bearing gifts for the poor man who now has to cart them to Denver.  But they should provide a regular reminder to him of his position in the affections of his Chicago colleagues.

Wednesday routine - and what it takes

At this stage of the game we have production meetings every Wednesday morning.  As we get closer to the action they happen more frequently, and when we are up and running they are a daily - or more often nightly - occurrence.

This is the hidden part of the iceberg - where two thirds or more of the activity happens.  Productions do not just somehow miraculously appear on the stage.  They are the product of an immense amount of talented and deliberate work by a largely invisible team of professionals.  We have just three productions a season so it should not be such a big deal.  But they are all new. Not just new to us which is the definition of new with some companies even if the production in question has seen dozens of outings in other places over the years, but actually NEW, meaning never done before, made to measure, and just for us. And so they arise out of a creative process which includes director, and designers - usually three - one each for set, costumes, and light.  So there are lots of issues on a daily basis to be considered and decided on.

And they are all completed within about six weeks.  So our wonderful Production Manager Claude Binder, and his assistant Bradley Vernatter, are just entering a somewhat stressful period.  But the two of them are as cool as can be which is reassuring for us all.  And they have assembled a multi talented team of free lance staff in all areas, be it stage management, props, wardrobe, wigs, make up and so forth......

All you professionals out there know this.  But it is a fact that the general audience has no idea of the detailed work that is done to get the show off the ground.  This is employment for a large number of artists and crafts people, of professionals in a wide variety of disciplines.  So that tiddly $50 million for the arts from the stimulus package can be put to work with disproportionate effect.

And now this evening for Jim Palermo's send off party..............

This arts community

It is a very sad moment when one of our number leaves us, and this week someone who has played a magnificent role in Chicago's musical life since he arrived here in 1995, will be moving on.  To the delights of Denver in this case, to become President of the Colorado Symphony.  This is our good friend Jim Palermo (left).  And we had a nice one-on-one farewell lunch today. Tomorrow evening is a bigger affair when the great and the good of this city's music world join together with Jim for a final cocktail or three.

Other than that it has been a calm day.  I had a fruitful meeting with our Finance committee chairman, and a delightful telephone interview with the excellent Lucia Mauro on the subject of La clemenza di Tito.  She is a very good writer on music but devotes more of her time to dance.  And in addition to writing she teaches at Loyola and is an accomplished photographer. A woman of many and varied skills!  So all once again in a day's work.

Back in the groove

Having a week off at this time of the year is a good refresher there is no doubt.  But of course it means that on return there is a bundle to do.  But given that we are somewhat behind in deciding on the final detail on the 2010 season, for good if tiresome financial reasons, the timing was ok!  So this will be a week of agreeing all the strategies for our subscription renewal campaign to get it finally launched no later than early April.

Meanwhile all the departments here are going at 110% as we approach the season with our tiny staff, assisted by some of the most capable interns we have ever had.  Companies like ours good not proceed without these finely tuned and incredibly hard working young people.  I hope that they get as much out of it as we get out of them!

This evening our friends at Music of the Baroque have the B minor Mass at the Harris Theater.  Alas I can not make it this time.  But even at this late stage some of you might want to make your way over on this chilly evening.  With Jane Glover up in Milwaukee where she is conducting Semele for the Florentine Opera this coming weekend, it will be MOB's Principal Guest Conductor Nicholas Kraemer in charge this evening.

Save the date and time - tune in to WFMT next Saturday morning at 9 am for two hours of COT stuff. - a season preview and lots of special offers.  Not to be missed.  And you will be able to hear my dulcet tones - speaking not singing that is.

A funny thing happened on the way to the office

This was months ago - a couple of guys were carting some movies up to Roger Ebert's screening room in our building on Lake Street.  We share offices with an assorted bunch of people in some way connected with the business of pleasure and entertainment.  And the fabled Ebert is one of our fellow tenants.  The delivery men were bring a print of a yet to be released movie called Slumdog Millionaire.  Seemed to an unprepossessing title, a foreign movie, but the guys reported "its really good!".

Well tonight it just won eight Oscars including best movie.  So always just listen to the guys who know. 

I am back in Chicago, and thrilled to see the wins for Danny Boyle and Kate Winslet.  And the remarkable Sean Penn - we need more like him.

But its now back to opera tomorrow after our break.  Lots of activity in the weeks to come.

Last day in paradise

Its time to go home and we will be there on Sunday evening.  Meanwhile we had a quiet last day here in Sanibel, apart from the distraction of my teleconferenced Executive Committee meeting.  It turned out to be reasonably satisfactory under the circumstances.  Enough said for the moment.  Not quite as cozy as these white pelicans though!

This evening we went on a lovely sunset trip around Tarpon Bay - peaceful and a million miles away from the rest of the wicked world.  We will be back to the snowy north tomorrow evening. Poor Chicago appears to have had a big (final?) dumping of snow bringing this winter to some broken records.

And on top of that the "bendy" buses seem to be falling apart and have been recalled for inspection.  This is reminiscent of a problem that afflicted the London buses of the articulated variety.  They kept bursting into flames!  So I guess the rush our on Monday will be a more than usual trial.

That's all for this weekend.  I will be back on Monday.  Good night!

Still here and somewhat relaxed..........

 
It appears to be snowing in Chicago, dumping some 8 to 10 inches on the city in the next 24 hours.  So we are pretty happy to be here, as you can see from the new picture of me up there on the left on the beach this afternoon.  Sanibel is one of the top five places in the world for shells.  Can you see a single person here looting the place?

And its a pretty nice quiet place for the birds as well though here they decided to take off at the crucial moment of the click. That was pretty much it for the day.  But in the background a good deal of stuff back in the office.  We have an Executive Committee of the Board meeting tomorrow by teleconferencing.  And there is a deal of preparation to do for that given the important issues involved.  So we may appear to be at play but......