Richard Christiansen

This week brings a changing of the Heldentenor guard at Lyric Opera: Ben Heppner is handing over Tristan's sword -- not to mention one of the most punishing roles ever...

The following correspondence gleaned from the Arts Club's archives has been slightly edited, but not substantially changed in content. The first letter is dated: Jan. 7, 1943 Dear Mr. Cunningham:...

In this bustling world, Frank Galati has neither cell phone nor computer. But he has a telephone, and an answering machine, and a date book that now has him booked...

- There have been plenty of live recording sessions in Chicago during the last couple of years, but few as promising as the upcoming dates featuring William Russo and the...

I ran into Lou Conte last week, and, as sometimes happens with people who are about to shed great responsibility, he seemed lighter and more carefree than usual. This is...

- The hottest theater in Chicago this winter (and the one where it's hardest to find a parking place) is the good old Theatre Building at 1225 W. Belmont Ave....

A few months back, after I had reviewed a book that called attention to the sexual imagery in Busby Berkeley musicals, I got a call from a reader who said,...

Paul Sills returned to Chicago last week, just for a few days at the DePaul University Theatre School, to teach a new generation of acting students the theater games and...

TELEVISION - Just about everybody's best TV series of last year returns Sunday with 13 new episodes, a whole year after the last batch of 13. They are, however, worth...

Universal Ballet, a Korean-based company with a Russian-born artistic director, is set to make its Chicago debut April 26-30 in the Civic Opera House with, fittingly, full-length Russian and Korean...