Adventures of an Opera-Singing CEO

Crain’s 40 under 40 is possibly the coolest award I have seen for some time. The award happened sort of like this:

1. Got a call telling me I got Crain’s 40 under 40

2. Was sent to a (really fun) photoshoot in the Crain’s building in Chicago where they have their own photography studio

3. Took a photo

4. Got another call about an interview

5. Did the interview

6. Got a call from the photographer about the cover shot from the piece

7. Set up a time

8. Woke up in the middle of the night with about 17 awesome ideas about how best in photos to capture an opera-singing CEO

9. Called the photographer, set up two photoshoots

10. Took a photo on a chaise louge with a laptop in Chicago’s Athenaeum theater, the theater where the sun does not shine, cars get towed, and the natives are most certainly denizens of hell (although it IS a gorgeous 1000 seat opera theater)

11. Moved to the basement to do another photoshoot in the dressing rooms, using this incredibly cool frame that the photographer made that makes it look like the picture is taken through the dressing room mirror

12. Did another interview

13. The writer, Brandon Coppell, followed me to the Lyric opera for a lesson. My coach Celeste (LOVE her) did not bat an eyelash, even when I sang a bad rendition of O mio babbino caro to illustrate an oversung Italian aria

14. Went back to the office and took more pictures

15. Got a call saying that they wanted to do an interactive video

16. Went back to the Lyric to do an interactive video and sound clip where I am singing, CEOing and generally being me (albeit me followed by a man with a boom mike, camera and determined expression)

17. The piece comes out!! And it is amazing. AND here is the link:

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/mag/article.pl?article_id=28763

Steve Serio, Brandon Coppell and Crain’s Chicago are the bomb.