Onegin's Dazzling Duo

In Lyric’s Don Giovanni two seasons ago, audiences thrilled to a couple whose scenes together really set the stage ablaze. Mariusz Kwiecień in the sexy title role and Ana María Martínez as the passionate Donna Elvira were an unbeatable combination, leaving Chicago operagoers hoping for a Kwiecień/Martínez reunion at Lyric in a future season. Well, they’ll soon get their wish when the Polish baritone and the Puerto Rican-born soprano return to play the sophisticated title character and the lovesick Tatiana in Tchaikovsky’s glorious Eugene Onegin.

Mariusz, a leading Onegin internationally, will reprise a role he sang at Lyric in the company’s previous presentation of director Robert Carsen’s beautiful production (2007-08 season).  He’s also been acclaimed at Lyric in Pagliacci (opposite Ana María) and The Marriage of Figaro. Tatiana is a role debut for Ana María, eagerly awaited after her Lyric triumphs in leading roles by Leoncavallo, Gounod, Puccini, Verdi, and Dvořák.

Ana María and Mariusz bring to Eugene Onegin an abundance of extraordinary gifts. Count on them to look their parts ideally while singing gloriously, bringing devastating believability to their characters and lavishing on the music the fabulous musicality that has made them two of the most admired artists in the world. The elegance, the sensitivity, and the passion required for Tchaikovsky’s music are theirs to command, and their performances will make Lyric’s Eugene Onegin truly unforgettable.