Our Clients

 “COT’s filmed production was rather astonishingly crafted from a single performance captured live on the stage of Chicago’s Studebaker Theatre by Valhalla Media, working in tandem with Dye as stage director. Six cameras were employed to create a visual pastiche that cleverly combined superimposed imagery and split screen techniques with the powerful frisson of live theatre.”

— Mark Thomas Ketterson, Opera News

 “COT's livestream of the performance was an impressive feat, particularly as the crew had to set up after the museum's five o'clock closing for a 7:30 curtain .... the performance was captured with crisp clarity by Valhalla Media.”

-- Mark Thomas Ketterson, Opera News

 “COT’s production went off without a hitch Saturday night—a remarkable achievement considering the ever-present technological pitfalls as well as the logistical complexities of a live opera relay from a museum space. Kudos to stage director Crystal Manich for natural movements, technical director Joseph Staffa for seamless transitions between different museum areas, and the entire video production team at Valhalla Media.”

-- Lawrence Johnson, Chicago Classical Review

 “One of the most impressive virtual presentations I’ve seen lately was Chicago Opera Theater’s production of “Taking Up Serpents” by composer Kamala Sankaram and librettist Jerre Dye. The production was recorded at the Studebaker Theater in a single take. The production was a collaboration with the appropriately named company Valhalla Media, and the result is visually appealing but also impressively musical.”

-- Seth Boustead, New City Music

 “Rather than prerecord the performance, then edit it, COT opted to stream the production live from the Studebaker Theater, on South Michigan Avenue. This was a risk, considering that it involved multiple voices, a small instrumental ensemble and rolling subtitles that tracked the opera’s progress. It all proceeded quite smoothly...there’s something about a live event that raises the intensity level of everyone’s work, and that fervor was unmistakable in this 90-minute presentation.”

-- Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

 “In such a reverberant venue, one might fear for the sound turning to mud, but the sound engineers have done an excellent job in avoiding this. The broadcast sound quality is exceptionally clear”

-- David Darlin, Bachtrack

 “The performance was captured by Valhalla Media with visual clarity and excellent audio.”

-- Mark Thomas Ketterson, Opera News