The season will begin with a gala performance of Bizet's Carmen, starring Denyce Graves and Neil Shicoff and conducted by Davis. Other revivals include Rossini's La Cenerentola, with Vesselina Kasarova and Juan Diego Fl‹rez making his Lyric debut; Mozart's The Magic Flute, with Jonathan Lemalu in his Lyric debut; and Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier, with Susan Graham.
The new production of Rigoletto, directed by Stefano Viziolo, replaces a five-year-old Christopher Alden staging. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Alden's sexually explicit production drew dozens of complaints from Lyric subscribers. By contrast, a press release from the company describes the Viziolo version as "new but traditional."
Orfeo ed Euridice is directed by Robert Carson; countertenor David Daniels stars. The new staging of Manon Lescaut is directed by Olivier Tambosi and conducted by Bruno Bartoletti, the Lyric's artistic director emeritus; Karita Mattila sings the title role.