Riveting, all-out, all-encompassing.
That’s the kind of towering performance Sondra Radvanovsky delivers in Lyric Opera of Chicago’s first-ever production of “Medea,” adding a memorable chapter to an already distinguished career and opening the company’s 2025-26 with a thunderclap.
Like “Norma” and a few other similar operas, Luigi Cherubini’s 1797 take on the well-known mythological sorceress is only produced when a company finds the rare singer with the endurance, vocal power and commanding presence to handle its all-demanding title role.
Lyric leaders believed they had just such an artist in this familiar soprano, who has appeared in more than 10 of the company’s productions since 2002-03, and she proved them right in spades, checking off every box.
Combining compelling acting with an extraordinary range of vocal shadings and timbres from almost guttural utterances to child-like bursts, Radvanovsky vividly conveys the character’s swirling mix of violent jealousy and anguished vulnerability.
The opera, originally written in French, is based on Euripides’ ancient tragedy, “Medea,” and Pierre Corneille’s 1635 play, “Médée.” This co-production with three other companies, including the Metropolitan Opera in New York, uses the 1909 Italian translation, revived in 1953 for legendary soprano Maria Callas.
The blood flows in this tale of betrayal and vengeance, with the action picking up after Medea helps Jason (Giasone in this opera) with his legendary search for the Golden Fleece and the two became married.
But during the long journey, Jason abandons Medea for a younger woman, taking their two children with him. The scorned wife travels to Corinth where he is about to wed Glauce, making a stunning entrance about a half-hour in Act 1 that includes slithering down several stairs like a serpent as she hurls threats.
Is Medea, with her black-smudged eyes and stringy hair, completely mad, or is she an abused wife who has reached her limit and sees no way out? The answer seems to be some combination of the two, with Radvanovsky’s portrayal capturing both her blind rage and complex humanity.
Scottish director David McVicar, who has staged 10 operas for Lyric and also served as set designer here, knows how to bring an edginess to his productions without going too far. In this outing, he has ratcheted up the drama to its near breaking point, heightening Medea’s inner conflicts and never shirking from the opera’s gory violence.
The staging’s most eye-catching visual conceit is a giant mirror at the back of the stage, tilted slightly toward the front, which reflects what is happening on stage. This gives audiences a wonderfully disorienting overhead and straight-on view of the action at the same time.
McVicar put this effect to use in all kinds of spectacular ways, including positioning the candelabra-covered table in the wedding banquet in such a way that it seemed to wrap straight upward or making Medea look like she was floating in the air at the same time that she was splayed on the floor at the start of Act 3.
Death and destruction hang ominously over this whole production. In the masterful lighting, originally designed by Paule Constable, blackness constantly shrouds the front of the stage and shadows and darkness intrude upon and dampen even the most brightly lit scenes.
While “Medea” rises or falls on the performance of its central character, that does not mean that the other roles are insignificant, far from it. Matthew Polenzani, another Lyric regular, is one of today’s top tenors and he amply displays his vocal artistry in the role Giasone (Jason), but he did not match the intensity or impact of Radvanovsky. At least in part, that was perhaps intentional, an attempt to show this supposed hero’s own weaknesses and shortcomings.
More clear-cut were the fine performances by the supporting cast. These included Alfred Walker, with his clear, stentorian bass-baritone voice and aptly regal presence as King Creonte, and soprano Elena Villalón making her Lyric debut as Glauce. She makes the most of her Act 1 aria, singing with brightness and agility.
The standout, though, was mezzo-soprano Zoie Reams, who portrays Medea’s servant, Neris. With her supple, expressive voice and ample power, her Act 2 aria, with its entrancing accompaniment by principal bassoonist Preman Tilson, is one of the opera’s high points.
Lyric’s music director Enrique Mazzola also played a key role in this production’s success, displaying a nice feel for Cherubini’s between-periods musical style and keeping the flow of the action taut and on point.
As the curtain came down at the end on opening night, spontaneous, whispered cries of “Wow!” could be heard across the audience — the perfect, one-word response to this barn burner of a season opener.