Music Theater Works (formerlyLight Opera Works) is a resident professional not-for-profitmusical theatre company in Illinois founded in 1980 byPhilip Kraus,Bridget McDonough, and Ellen Dubinsky.
The company presented over 75 productions ofoperetta andmusical theatre atNorthwestern University's 1,000-seat Cahn Auditorium. Since 1998, in addition to three annual productions, Music Theater Works also produces a fourth, more intimate show, in Northwestern's 450-seat Nichols Concert Hall or the McGall YMCA Children's Center, Second Stage. From 1981 until 2019, Music Theater Works presented 138 productions at these venues.[citation needed]
In 2021, Music Theater Works moved to a residency at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts inSkokie, Illinois, performing in both the 315-seat thrust North Theatre and the 867-seat Center Theatre. By 2023, it had presented more than 150 productions.
Music Theater Works was founded as Light Opera Works inEvanston, Illinois, byPhilip Kraus,Bridget McDonough, and Ellen Dubinsky. Kraus was the first Artistic Director of the company, serving from 1981 through 1999. The first production of the company occurred in 1981 with a staging ofGilbert and Sullivan'sH.M.S. Pinafore.[1] Under Kraus' leadership, the company's main emphasis in programming centered on American, French and Vienneseoperetta in English, andGilbert and Sullivan'sSavoy operas.[2][3] The company produced over 75 productions atNorthwestern University's 1,000-seat Cahn Auditorium.[citation needed] From 1998, in addition to its three annual productions, the company has produced a fourth show, in Northwestern's smaller Nichols Concert Hall or the McGall YMCA Children's Center, Second Stage.[4]
Lara Teeter succeeded Kraus and served as Artistic Director until 2004. He continued to program operettas but added more musical theatre pieces from later in the 20th century. Rudy Hogenmiller took over in 2005 and continued that trend. In 2017, the company changed its name from Light Opera Works to Music Theater Works.[4] In 2019, Hogenmiller and founding General Manager Bridget McDonough retired, to be replaced by Kyle Dougan as Producing Artistic Director.[5]
In 2021, Music Theater Works moved to a residency at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts inSkokie, Illinois,[6] performing in both the 315-seat thrust North Theatre and the 867-seat Center Theatre.[7] In 2023, to celebrate the company's 150th production,The Producers, the Mayor of Skokie issued a proclamation.[8]
In its early years, the company staged all twelve of the full-length extant Gilbert and Sullivan operas, including anElizabethan conceptMikado (1986)[9] and anEdward Gorey/Tim Burton-inspiredRuddigore (1996),[10] as well as the less frequently producedUtopia Limited (1984)[11] andThe Grand Duke (1992).
Its repertory also includedEmmerich Kálmán'sThe Duchess of Chicago (1998),[12]Jerome Moross'The Golden Apple (1995),[13]Karl Millöcker'sThe Beggar Student,[14]Oscar Straus'The Chocolate Soldier (1987)[15] andA Waltz Dream (1992)[16] (both with translations by Kraus and lyricist Gregory Opelka),Victor Herbert'sBabes in Toyland (1994)[17] andThe Red Mill (1992),[18] andLeonard Bernstein'sWonderful Town (1996).[19] The company embarked on aKurt Weill cycle in 1989 beginning withLady in the Dark (1990),[20] and includingOne Touch of Venus (1997)[21] andKnickerbocker Holiday (1993).[22]
In 1998, the company added a fourth, more intimate, show each year in the 250-seat Second Stage or at Nichols Concert Hall.[4] These have included operettas likeThe Isle of Tulipitan (2003),[citation needed]new works such asSoup du Jour (2002) andNo Way to Treat a Lady (2004),revues likeSide by Side by Sondheim (2008), and revivals such asDarling of the Day (2005). At the Nichols Concert Hall atNorthwestern University, the company presentedThe Hunchback of Notre Dame (2019)[23] In 2022, Music Theater Works transitioned from a three show and 1 concert season to one of with all fully staged productions at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts inSkokie, Illinois,[24] where they producedZorro.[25]
Music Theater Works is a member of the League of Chicago Theatres[27] and a founding member of Chicago Performances.[28]
The company's youth program is called YouthREACH. REACH stands for Revitalizing Education and Access for Community Health. Its YouthREACH Kids and Teen Companies provide educational performance opportunities; workshops consist of summer or winter camps where kids rehearse and learn from professionals, ending with a final performance.[29]