CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA AT THE UNITED CENTER SATURDAY, MARCH 5, 2005 – 7:30PM

Tickets On Sale Sunday, January 9 at 10 a.m.

CHICAGO – January 19, 2005 . . . CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA, the epic stage production, direct from Europe, featuring a live symphony orchestra, dancers, lavish costumes and special effects, plays Chicago for one performance only, Saturday, March 5 at the United Center.

Tickets are $35.00 to $125.00 and go on sale THIS SUNDAY, JANUARY 9 at 10 a.m. Tickets are available at the United Center Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com
or by calling (312) 902-1500.



Conceived and directed by Walter Haupt, Carl Orff’s enthralling score narrates twenty-four scenic images to tell the story of love and death, fortune and misfortune, all beneath
the endlessly turning wheel of life. Visual images blossom into
a medieval garden of desires in a magnificent mystery play, inviting the audience to experience a strange and sensuous fantasy world. Director Walter Haupt was a student and close friend of Orff’s for many years, making him the perfect choice to interpret this monumental opera.

This world-wide tour features Mihail Tchernaev’s monumental stage architecture, exhilarating fire effects, 30 dancers in 300 lavish costumes, opulent decór, a grand symphony orchestra,
a choir, and ballet to create a fascinating performance.



CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA is a
pioneering achievement that redefines the genre of the musical event. No other stage production presents CARMINA BURANA on such a grandiose scale, with all the splendour of an opera.

Further information and a full tour schedule can be found at www.carmina-burana.com.



CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA is sponsored locally by CBS 2 Chicago (WBBMTV) and presented in Chicago by Jam Theatricals, a Chicago-based entertainment company
that produces and presents national touring productions of Broadway shows in more than 30 cities. Jam has presented notable national touring productions including STOMP, Les
Misérables, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Miss Saigon and Riverdance and has produced national tours for the stage, including Eric Idle Exploits Monty Python, Barrage and The Ten Tenors. For two consecutive years, Jam Theatricals has received a Tony Award nomination: Best Revival of a Play
for 2003’s Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune and
Best Play for 2004’s The Retreat from Moscow. This season Jam is co-producing the new musical Monty Python’s
Spamalot and drama Glengarry Glenn Ross.

Maestro Dr. Walter Haupt


THE STORY OF CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA Direct from Europe, CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA just celebrated it 100th show
in Budapest and was first presented in 1995 as an open-air opera. It unleashed a storm of enthusiasm among audiences
and critics alike. Subsequently, it has succeeded like no musical
event before it, in marrying high culture and sheer entertainment to create an emotionally overwhelming audio-visual work of art.

Conceived and directed by Walter Haupt, Carl Orff’s enthralling score narrates twenty-four scenic images to tell the story of love and death, fortune and misfortune, all beneath the
endlessly turning wheel of life. Visual Images blossom into a medieval garden of desires in a magnificent mystery play, inviting the audience to experience a strange and sensuous fantasy world.

Director Walter Haupt was a student and close friend of Orff’s for many years, making him the perfect choice to interpret this monumental opera.

This unified work of art was produced by Franz Abraham/ART CONCERTS GmbH. For CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA the story of success began on the
Königsplatz (King’s Square) in Munich at the Classical Open-Air, presented every summer by ART CONCERTS.
There the most successful classical production in our time was celebrated enthusiastically in the years 1995 to 2000. Since then it has spellbound and entertained nearly one million people worldwide.

The shows, which were presented in the greatest arenas of Rio, Sao Paulo and Lisbon, turned into highly acclaimed media events. The CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA also gave a guest performance in Oslo, Norway as the cultural highlight of the city’s 1000-year anniversary.

At the renowned Baalbeck International Festival in Lebanon
in the summer of 2001, there were two sold out shows
performed amidst beautiful antique ruins to multiple standing ovations and encores.

The arena edition of the show premiered in Lodz, Poland in
October 2002.   8 million TV-viewers followed the live transmission. In the spring of 2003 a total of 15,000 spectators were able to witness two sold out shows at the Palais Omnisports Bercy in Paris.

In November 2004, CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA began the German leg of its current concert hall tour. Audiences will be able to experience the opulent mystery play
in Dortmund, Kiel, Leipzig, Dresden and Stuttgart.

With CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA, ART CONCERTS has become the first German production
company ever to gain ground on the North American market. This venture is a co-production between ART CONCERTS and Jack Utsick presents. In addition, CARMINA BURANA MONUMENTAL OPERA is the first German large-scale production in the classical field of music to also play in Mexico.

The international tour began in Nimes, France on July 11th
2004. Further guest performances have been planned for Canada, the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia-Montenegro, Spain and Portugal. Jack Utsick Presents this North American tour. Headquartered in Miami,
FL and offices across the US, Europe and Asia, Jack Utsick Presents is the third largest independent event producer
in the world.

Below is a link to timeline of Carl Orff's life and
links to additional information.

http://www.orff.de/Timeline.293.0.html?&L=1