FREE Event: Lyric Opera of Chicago: "Earth to Kenzie"

This fall, Lyric Opera of Chicago's 2026, Opera in the Neighborhoods education program will present: Earth to Kenzie,  an opera for grades 3-6.    

You’ll meet Kenzie, a fifth grader with homework, asthma, and a big imagination. When she and her mother have to move into a family shelter, Kenzie finds refuge in the world of video games alongside her avatar, Edwin, in her quest for confidence — and a way home. 

2:30 PM Pre-Show with the MIC Academy 's Tahlia Quartet
The Tahlia Quartet includes violinists Emily Chen and Annalise Song, violist Neena Agrawal, and cellist Katarina Kenney, and is coached by Rodolfo Vieira. 

As chamber musicians, the four students have collectively won numerous prizes in the St. Paul String Quartet Competition, Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, Rembrandt Chamber Competition, Barnett Chamber Music Competition, and the Chicago Chamber Music Competition. They have previously performed as members of Quartet Meraviglia, Tikaani Quartet, Porphyrion Quartet, Elysian Quartet, and Pondrom Quartet.

String Quartet in D Major, Op. 71, No. 2, Hob. III:70 (1793)            Joseph Haydn (1732–1809)
     I. Adagio – Allegro

Crisantemi (“Chrysanthemums”) C-sharp minor, SC 65            Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924) 
     Andante mesto

Lyric Opera of Chicago has been a partner in Chicago arts education and engagement for more than three decades. Through in-school artist residencies that give students hands-on experience with professional artists, opportunities to see opera at small and large scales that spark the imagination through the power of storytelling, and events both in neighborhoods and within the historic Lyric Opera House that provide new experiences fostering a deep connection with music, the Negaunee Education Programs are about igniting a lifelong passion for opera.