The companies

In alphabetical order:

Chicago City Opera is a professional opera company focused on bringing dynamic and intimate productions to communities across Chicagoland. With a unique performer-focused production model, CCO is committed to creating positive and equitable experiences for our communities on both sides of the stage.

Editor's Note: Many of CCO's offerings present grand operatic classics with clever cuts and cast reductions, allowing audiences and singers to experience these pieces without a multimillion-dollar investment as a barrier to entry. Conductor Alexandra Enyart leads these productions with stellar musicianship and top-notch singers in many atypical venues.

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Chicago Fringe Opera is dedicated to presenting innovative vocal works with an emphasis on new and contemporary styles, engaging with the Chicago community through intimate and immersive performance experiences, and fostering and empowering local artists.

Editor's Note: CFO can be found producing lush, modern operas or experimenting with the very boundaries of what opera can be. Producing Artistic Director George Cederquist is creative and ambitious, steering the company toward a range of performance art events beyond "standard" productions.

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Founded in 2024, Great Lakes Operetta (GLO) produces operettas (also known as light operas, comic operas, or lyrical theater works), re-imagined for contemporary audiences. Operetta is an underrated genre that combines classical-style singing with the musical theater world’s traditions of dialogue scenes, dance breaks, and (usually) happy endings. Great Lakes Operetta’s 3-fold mission is performance, revival, and education. The 501(c)(3) organization is based in Northbrook but performs throughout the greater Chicago area.

Editor's Note: GLO's SarahAnn Sutter and Kristin Weed have been hosting concerts and fundraising events, bringing the community together and building connections. They've been meticulously scaling up the organization, beginning with multiple concerts and a TYA (Theatre for Young Audiences) production in their inaugural season. Their upcoming 2026 performance of Orpheus in the Underworld represents a major landmark for the company. If you appreciate operetta and want to experience what the genre has to offer in addition to Gilbert & Sullivan, start here.

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Thompson Street Opera Company intentionally and inclusively collaborates with artists to create productions that challenge the status quo through artistic and social innovation.

Editor's Note: TSOC has been a powerful force in amplifying the voices of living composers. You never know where you'll discover the next Puccini if you think that opera only counts if it was written before the 1900's. Many of these new pieces are one-acts, which Artistic Director Claire DiVizio presents in double bills with a chamber orchestra (or whatever the composer may call for). If you're curious what modern opera sounds like, what kinds of stories living composers are telling, attend these shows.

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A special mention to these two local operetta companies. They both have decades-long histories of presenting Gilbert & Sullivan in Hyde Park and the north side. While they're not storefront companies themselves, they are supportive colleagues and collaborators - the scene wouldn't be the same without them.

• The Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company
• The Savoyaires