Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan is set to transform the band’s masterful 1995 album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness into an opera. Collaborating with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the album will come to life in opera form to celebrate its 30th anniversary.
Titled A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness, the production will run for seven nights from November 21–30, 2025. The event will feature Corgan, guest artists, and the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra and Chorus. Newly commissioned arrangements and orchestrations by Corgan and James Lowe, who also conducts, will bring the album’s music to life in such a unique setting. Costumes will be designed by House of Gilles, led by Gilles and Chloé Mendel Corgan.
Corgan comments:
“It is thrilling to collaborate with Lyric head John Mangum, my musical partner James Lowe, and all of the artists at Lyric in reimagining this very special and historic album, and to discover how Lyric’s full operatic treatment is helping me experience my own compositions in powerful new ways. Opera and rock both tell stories of heightened emotions, and I am excited for both fans of my music and traditional opera fans to hear some truly inspired work; for the balance here is to honor both traditions in a magisterial way.”
Tickets go on sale to the general public on April 11 at 10:00 a.m. via this location.
