The Ten Tenors tune up for Chicago debut
Already a worldwide sensation, The Ten Tenors are set to make their Chicago debut tonight when they open a five-concert run at the Auditorium Theatre.
The Australia-based group, whose name was inspired by the landmark Three Tenors of two decades ago, bring an eclectic blend of operatic, musical theater and popular contemporary music to the stage. They are close to wrapping up their 2009 North American tour after nearly five months. This week's visit to the Auditorium runs through Sunday.
"We started out 12 years ago just giving concerts in Australia," said Jeff Teale, a native of the Gold Coast, Queensland. "In 2002, the group first went to Germany and did a concert broadcast on Eurovision, and that's what really propelled us internationally. There were something like 20 million viewers for that show.
"Our American tours started in 2003 and since then, Germany and America have been our major touring spots in the world," Teale said, adding that The Ten Tenors now perform some 250 concerts annually on five continents. "However, this will be our very first time in the Windy City, and we're very excited about that. It's amazing that we haven't been to Chicago before. There are many places in America where we haven't been yet, but we're getting there."
One of the more recent members of The Ten Tenors is Ben Clark, who joined in July 2008. Clark studied musical theater at Victoria College of the Arts in Melbourne. He grew up in a small town on the outskirts of that city.
"All the music in the show covers songs of the last 100 years." Clark said. "It takes a journey starting with the classic opera stuff of the early 1900s, then through the American Song Book era of the 1930s and '40s. And, because we've added some contemporary voices to the group, we have moved into today's music as well. We're doing some Queen, Simon and Garfunkel and so on."
A "by popular demand" staple of their concerts is the nostalgic Irish favorite, "Danny Boy."
"For these Chicago concerts we're incorporating Christmas music into the show," Clark said.
Much of this week's music can be heard on The Ten Tenors' best-selling album "Nostalgica," a collection of 20th century classics with Grammy Award-winning producer Simon Franglen and orchestral arrangements by Steven Baker, recorded with the Prague Philharmonic. For this North American tour, the group is accompanied by piano, bass guitar and percussion. The tour wraps up Dec. 20, with final one-week stops in San Diego and Tucson, Ariz.
The Ten Tenors
Where: Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Congress Pkwy., Chicago
When: 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 24, and Friday, Nov. 27; 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 28; 2 p.m. Sunday. Nov. 29
Tickets: $40-$70. Available at Auditorium Theatre Box office, all TicketMaster locations, by phone at (800) 775-2000, or online at BroadwayinChicago.com. For general information about the group, visit TheTenTenors.com.