Grab a seat for a private take on what a world-renowned soprano sings for fun. Wilde brings a diverse program of pieces that speak to her, and will speak to us about why she loves them so dearly, and about her relationship with music and this career. After the hour of music and stories, grab a glass of wine and hors d'oeuvres, and ask Wilde herself how she feels about being part of the Chicago Lyric Ring Cycle. November 7 at 7:30pm at The Villa Filomena, an elegant, historic mansion that’s rooted in downtown Milwaukee’s east side neighborhood.
Ms. Wilde will bring an electric repertoire including:
Dich, teure Halle, Wagner
Letters from George to Evelyn: from the Private Papers of a World War II Bride, Alan Smith
Dvorak Gypsy Songs (in Czech)
Half Minutes Songs, Carrie Jacobs Bond
Calamity James, Fein
A 2019 Richard Tucker Foundation career grant recipient, American soprano Laura Wilde has been praised by Opera News as having, “a ravishingly beautiful sound, [and] a fine sense of style and character.” In the 2019/20 season, Ms. Wilde will return to the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Sieglinde in Die Walküre, as well as Freia, Ortlinde and the Third Norn for the full Ring Cycle with Sir Andrew Davis,Staatstheater Stuttgart as Agathe in Der Freischütz and a role debut as Marguerite in Faust, Arizona Opera as Mamah Cheney in the world premiere of Daron Hagen’s Shining Brow, a snapshot of Frank Lloyd Wright’s life in the early 20th century, and a role debut as Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with the Berkshire Opera Festival. Concert and recital appearances include Gretel in Hänsel und Gretel with Sir Andrew Davis with the Melbourne Symphony for her Australian debut, and a solo recital with Craig Terry at the Marcus Center in Milwaukee.
As a member of the The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Ms. Wilde covered Renée Fleming in Capriccio and the role of Marta in The Passenger, performed Marianne Leitmetzerin in Der Rosenkavalier and covered Marschallin. She also covered the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro, Hanna in The Merry Widow and sang the role of Anna in Nabucco. She also appeared on the mainstage as Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly and a Flower Maiden in Parsifal. Additionally, she covered the roles of Berta in Il barbiere di Siviglia, the Foreign Princess in Rusalka, and Vitellia in La clemenza di Tito. In the summer of 2015, Wilde sang the role of Lucy in Grant Park Music Festival’s concert performance of Menotti’s The Telephone.
Originally from Watertown, South Dakota, Wilde’s love of music began with the trumpet. While attending the prestigious Interlochen Arts Camp as a trumpet player, she discovered her classical voice and was encouraged to pursue that musical avenue as well. She attended St. Olaf College for her undergraduate degree, focusing first on trumpet performance. Singing, however, became her true musical passion, and she graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance. Ms. Wilde earned her Master of Music degree from Indiana University, where she studied with Costanza Cuccaro. She is a winner of a 2018 Mabel Dorn Reeder Foundation Award from Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, 2017 Sullivan Grant award winner, 2016 Sara Tucker Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Foundation, the 2016 Luminarts Women’s Voice Fellowship, the 2015 Jerome and Elaine Nerenberg Award, and the 2015 Musicians Club of Women Eleanor Pearce Sherwin Award from the American Opera Society of Chicago. She currently resides in Chicago.