Proving that sportscasting is only one of his talents, opera buff Tim Weigel emceed the 14th annual “Fantasy of the Opera Gala,” a benefit for the Lyric Opera of Chicago held at the Civic Opera House last Saturday.
Weigel, a longtime Lyric subscriber, vamped and clowned during the cabaret portion of the evening with an assortment of artists, including opera singer Jennifer Dudley (who performed a Gershwin tune). At one point, his piano accompanist yanked him offstage with a hook.
As an homage to the Lyric’s production of “Madama Butterfly,” gala organizers transformed the lower level of the opera house into the “Ginza Club,” where sake, sushi and other Japanese delicacies were served. The evening was enlivened by the loud pounding of the MBT Taiko Drum Ensemble.
The $200 per person benefit, sponsored by Lyric’s Guild Board of Directors, featured food from about 30 area restaurants, including Coco Pazzo, Gordon and Nick’s Fishmarket. The black-tie crowd danced until 1 a.m. to the music of Stu Hirsh and his orchestra.
– Also Saturday, approximately 800 guests turned out to raise money for this year’s featured exhibition “Real to Reel: African Americans in Film,” the 1998 Black Creativity Program at the Museum of Science and Industry. The Black Creativity Gala, headed by Mary Frances Casselberry, netted about $180,000 for the program, which runs until March 1.
On hand for the black-tie celebration were Chicago actress Irma P. Hall (“Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil”), WGCI-FM honcho Marv Dyson, who also is chairman of the Black Creativity Advisory Committee, and Paula Banks , president of the Amoco Foundation, a sponsor of the event. Tickets were $300 per person.
– Coming up: The Piven Theatre Workshop (training ground of actors John and Joan Cusack, and Jeremy Piven, of TV’s “Ellen,” among others) presents soprano Catherine Malfitano in “An Intimate Evening of Cabaret” on Jan. 29.
The fundraiser for the Evanston workshop begins with cocktails at 6:30 p.m. at The Casino, 195 E. Delaware St. A 7:30 p.m. performance follows, ending with a buffet dinner at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are $250 per person. Call 773-665-0845 for information.
– On March 14, all five members of the original Fifth Dimension pop group will regroup to perform at “Celebrate the Children,” a fundraiser for the Infant Welfare Society that is sponsored by WGN-TV’s Children’s Charities, a fund of the Robert R. McCormick Tribune Foundation. The evening begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers. Tickets are $225 per person. For information call 312-751-2800, ext. 245.
———-
Please submit items in writing three weeks in advance to The Chicago Tribune, Amanda Barrett Hamel, Places, Parties, People 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill., 60611.
