To that end, there’s probably no question that any production of Show Boat will draw in the musical theatre-loving crowd. Its glorious and classically-infused score, serious and well-constructed book tackling an array of major issues of social importance, and richly drawn characters are certainly things that set it apart from the standard musical fare of the 1920s. This biography is for website use only.It’s nearly certain that most aficionados of the American musical theatre would agree that Jerome Kern (Music) and Oscar Hammerstein II’s (Book and Lyrics) Show Boat, based on Edna Ferber’s novel, is one of those memorable shows that has – and will continue to – withstand the test of time for good reason. He is also currently a professor of voice at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and General Director of the Lyric Theater Illinois, where he recently directed Don Giovanni. Gunn recently ventured outside the standard opera repertoire with performances of the title role in Sweeney Todd at the Houston Grand Opera, Camelot and Carousel with the New York Philharmonic (both broadcast on PBS’s Great Performances) and Showboat at Carnegie Hall and the Lyric Opera of Chicago.

He also starred in the Metropolitan Opera’s HD broadcasts of The Magic Flute and The Merry Widow. His growing discography includes Billy Budd (Virgin Classics) which won the 2010 Grammy Award, Rogers & Hammerstein’s Allegro (Sony Masterworks Broadway), Il Barbiere di Siviglia (SONY Classics), and his solo albums Just Before Sunrise (Sony/BMG Masterworks) and American Anthem (EMI). Gunn appears regularly with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra and the London Symphony Orchestra, and has been presented in recitals in New York, Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Toronto, London, and Brussels.

He has sung leading lyric baritone roles and appeared in several world premieres in many of the most renowned opera houses of the world including the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Royal Opera House, Paris Opera, and Bayerische Staatsoper. Baritone Nathan Gunn has made a reputation as one of the most exciting and versatile baritones performing today.

Showboat lyric opera chicago