Chicago Sports

Carlos Harris is only a junior, but he’s one of the city’s most seasoned varsity basketball players. He’s the guy that Curie coach Mike Oliver wants with the ball in his hands when the game is on the line.

Harris demonstrated why twice in the final seconds of No. 15 Curie’s 50-48 upset of top-ranked Simeon on Thursday.

The host Condors had the ball with the game tied and 20 seconds on the clock. Harris found himself wide open in the paint with 12 seconds left. There was no one within three feet of him. Somehow, he resisted the urge to shoot the ball and Oliver called a timeout.

“It was too soon,” Harris said. “I knew we were going to call a timeout when it got closer to ten seconds so I had to wait.”

The decision paid off handsomely. After the timeout, Harris drove the lane and drained the game-winning floater with just a bit fewer than two seconds left to play. There was no time for Simeon (20-2, 7-2 Red-South/Central) to recover.

“I was kind of nervous to take that shot,” Harris said. “But I was also confident. That was a big game and I want to be a leader for this team, so I had to take that shot.”

Harris finished with 11 points and six rebounds. He was just 4-for-15 shooting.

“I missed a lot of shots, definitely,” Harris said. “But I had to keep being aggressive.”

Curie (16-9, 6-2) led by four at halftime. Simeon built a lead by the fourth quarter. A free throw by Wes Rubin but the Wolverines ahead 46-42 with 2:32 left.

The big momentum swing came a minute later. Curie senior Jeremy Harrington Jr. blocked Miles Rubin in the post and kept the rebound. On the next possession Harrington hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 46 and the fans in the Condors’ recently redone gym went wild.

Harrington, 6-5, and senior Chikosi Ofoma, 6-7, both give up several inches to Simeon’s 6-10 Rubin twins.

“They are much taller than us, so we have to be physical with them,” Harrington said. “We have to play rough and make the refs call the fouls. They foul us, we foul them and just play basketball.”

Harrington had eight points and 10 rebounds and Ofoma scored seven for Curie. Senior guard Shawn Brown added 11 points.

Curie lost four games last week. It was a difficult stretch for the Condors, who had several players suspended after a fight ended their game against Proviso East prematurely.

“It makes me feel good that the kids know how to deal with adversity,” Oliver said. “Basketball is supposed to be the outlet for them. We had to put that in the past.”

Simeon turned the ball over 20 times and was out rebounded 32-25.

“Just too many turnovers and they were mainly unforced,” Simeon coach Robert Smith said. “It wasn’t due to pressure or anything. We’re just trying to make home run plays instead of keeping it simple.”

Curie was clearly razor focused in the pregame. The Condors sat on the bench for a solid ten minutes. There was no talking. They just stared straight ahead while Simeon finished warmups.

“We were locked in,” Harris said. “Usually, we are playing around too much. Not today. We wanted this win because people had been doubting us. But we are coming to win the city.”

Kenwood beat Phillips 71-44 on Thursday to win the Red-South/Central and grab a No. 1 seed in the city tournament, which starts next week.

“I’m not too concerned,” Smith said. “This wasn’t for a championship, and we were going to finish second in the conference regardless. I’m not mad. We just have to clean up some things.”

Watch the final minute of Simeon at Curie:

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Supporters of a new plan to subsidize a proposed Arlington Heights stadium for the Chicago Bears are drawing up a play that is so far missing a quarterback in Springfield.

In fact, most of its backers are still in the huddle.

No legislation has been filed, and no sponsors have been named for the measure that would create a new class of tax incentive called a PILOT. That stands for payment in lieu of taxes.

It would allow the Bears to pay to Arlington Heights a negotiated sum for the property taxes on the 326-acre site of the old Arlington International Racecourse. The amount presumably would be less than what the team would be liable for as it pursues its stadium and other buildings that would add to the property’s value.

“As we have said publicly, property tax certainty is necessary for the Arlington Park project to move forward. We continue to do our due diligence on how that can be accomplished,” the Bears said in a statement.

In a summary of the proposal, the team said 35 other states have a similar tax incentive to attract major developments, leaving Illinois at a disadvantage. The Bears’ proposal would apply the PILOT incentive only for projects with more than a $500 million capital investment. A stadium alone in Arlington Heights is estimated to cost at least $2.5 billion.

A key issue with the Bears’ proposal is whether Arlington Heights-area schools would be involved in negotiating any payments. Any development that would add families to the area would increase school enrollment — and by extension the need for funding, now largely supplied through property taxes.

A draft of the legislation said a municipality and private developer can mutually terminate the incentive at any time, but the developer must agree to stay at the property for at least 20 years.

The Bears have enlisted consultants, one of the state’s leading business groups and a road builders’ association to promote the legislation.

The idea was floated in Springfield weeks ago, including in a meeting with high-level Democratic staffers that included at least one representative of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office. But the plan was initially met with a resounding no, a source with knowledge of the meeting told the Sun-Times.

But now, supporters of the incentive, including the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, are trying to round up support — using the argument that without state support for the Bears, the team could pack up and leave.

“I think it needs to happen by the end of this session. If not, you’re going to start to have other states make their cases on why the Chicago Bears should be the St. Louis Bears,” said Todd Maisch, president of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce. “That’s just the reality of the world. And people may not like it, but everybody wants the Chicago Bears to remain the Chicago Bears. It can get a little messy. But I think we’re going to reach a positive balance.”

Maisch also fought back the characterization that it is a “Bears bailout,” which is how many view any subsidies for a team that took in $520 million in revenue in 2021, according to Forbes.

“I would reject the notion it’s a bailout. There’s competition across state and industries.Let’s recognize that there’s a competition for investments across the nation, whether it be light manufacturing, transportation or whether it be sports teams,” Maisch said.

In September, the Bears laid out the groundwork to seek some sort of public subsidy for a massive, mixed-use stadium development they are exploring on the Arlington Heights site. The team said it wouldn’t seek public funding for stadium construction, but would ask for “additional funding and assistance” for a broader, mixed-use development it called one of the largest in Illinois history.

Pritzker has said he does not support public financing of the stadium.

And in the waning days of the Illinois General Assembly’s lame duck session, legislators passed the Invest in Illinois Act, which includes the following language: “the Department [of Commerce and Economic Opportunity] shall not award economic incentives to a professional sports organization that moves its operation from one location in the State to another location in the State.”

That was in reference to discretionary funds being used for closing costs. That bill has yet to make it to the governor’s desk.

State Rep. Mark Walker, D-Arlington Heights, said he has reviewed the latest proposal — and has a lot of questions, including how the Board of Appeals and Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi would feel about freezing such a large assessment for 20 years.

“I wouldn’t call it a subsidy. It really is much more of paying fewer taxes. I think the plan is interesting. I think it’s new. We don’t do this in the state.

“The difficulty I have is that it requires the municipalities to negotiate on behalf of the school districts, and I’m not so sure the school district shouldn’t have more power on what happens with the tax money that should go to them that they do this in this plan,” Walker said. “I’m not sure yet. That’s a shortcoming.”

Walker also called it an “interesting proposition for the state to move companies here,” but not necessarily for companies who are just seeking to relocate to other parts of the state.

Walker said he hasn’t been asked to sponsor the bill.

“I could be considered a sponsor. Would I choose to sponsor is a whole different question. I think it’s out of the wind. They’re trying to see who would be best.”

State Rep. Mary Beth Canty, D-Arlington Heights, told the Sun-Times the proposal deserves “careful review” before it’s considered. Canty is also on the Arlington Park Village Board.

“Like any commitment of taxpayer dollars, the proposed subsidy plan for a new Chicago Bears’ stadium deserves careful review before we decide whether to proceed,” Canty said in an email to the Sun-Times.

“While I am excited at the prospect of bringing new economic development opportunities to our community, we have to clearly evaluate potential returns on our expenditure, and if it is the state’s place to get involved in this project.”

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Throughout his time in this city, David Montgomery has been the ideal Chicago Bears running back.

David Montgomery has received more attention in recent weeks than any other upcoming Bears free agent. He should be re-signed by the Bears. Pay whatever it takes to get Saquon Barkley here? Or would it be better to avoid the free agency position and proceed with Khalil Herbert and a new rookie?

The amount of money Montgomery would demand in negotiations with Ryan Poles has been discussed among all the hype. However, Montgomery advised followers to tune out the buzz on Thursday.

The shit people pull out of there ass, next time you talk to “ David Montgomery” let me know 😂😂😂🤦🏾‍️ https://t.co/1p1aWdCOsm

— David Montgomery (@MontgomerDavid) January 26, 2023

According to Alex Shapiro “By all accounts, David Montgomery wants to re-sign with the Bears, and the team wants to re-sign him. But Roquan Smith’s situation from the previous season was the same, and the parties were unable to come to an understanding. Since Montgomery and Herbert are the only other running backs with contracts until 2023, the team will need to look elsewhere to bolster its running back room”.

Among all of the Bears’ running backs in 2022, Montgomery proved to be the team’s best pass blocker and pass receiver. He was also the go-to player in tight yardage situations or the low red zone.

Montgomery has amassed 3,609 yards on 915 carries and 26 rushing touchdowns over his four seasons with the Bears. In addition, he has four touchdowns and 155 catches for 1,240 receiving yards.

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A lawsuit filed by a Chicago woman accuses the maker of Fireball Cinnamon Whisky of deceiving consumers by selling miniature bottles that look identical to the popular spirit but don’t actually contain any whisky.

The suit was filed this month by Anna Marquez in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois and names Sazerac Co. as the defendant.

The subject of the lawsuit are 50 milliliter bottles of Fireball Cinnamon that contain a malt beverage with a lower alcohol content than the whisky version and are sold for 99 cents in gas stations and convenience stores.

The lawsuit claims the smaller bottles look exactly like those that do contain whisky and “appear identical but for the word “Whisky” on the front label, which most purchasers seeking alcohol will not even detect.”

Both bottles have a red cap and feature a yellow label with a red dragon-like figure on the front.

The label on Fireball Cinnamon describes the drink as a “Malt Beverage with Natural Whisky & Other Flavors,” which “misleads consumers into believing it is or contains distilled spirits,” when in reality it only contains the flavor of whisky, the suit states.

“Expecting those small bottles labeled ‘Fireball Cinnamon’ to contain whisky was an easy mistake to make, and one intended by the manufacturer,” the suit states. “As a result of the false and misleading representations, the Product is sold at a premium price, $0.99 for 50 mL.”

Sazerac says its Fireball Cinnamon product was made to capture “the essence of the Fireball Whisky taste experience consumers love.”

The company offers some guidance on how to tell the difference between the two products on its website: “any package with Fireball ‘Cinnamon Whisky’ on the front label is our whisky-based product. Any product with Fireball ‘Cinnamon’ on the front label, without ‘Whisky’, is either our malt-based or wine-based product.”

The suit states the plaintiff expected the smaller bottles to contain whisky, and she ended up paying more for the beverage than she would have had she known the “representations and omissions were false and misleading, or would not have purchased it.”

The suit is seeking more than $5 million.

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CALGARY, Alberta — The Blackhawks have experienced more offensive success transitioning through the neutral zone this season against teams with high-pressure structures than against teams with more passive structures.

It makes sense. The Hawks lack talent and chemistry, meaning they have a difficult time connecting enough passes to break down a well-organized trap. But the Hawks do employ some speedy forwards, so if given some space to skate, they can win races to get the puck over the blue line.

That contrast has been on vivid display recently. Last week against the Flyers’ aggressive 2-1-2 neutral-zone defense, the Hawks produced one of their best performances of the year.

But against the Kings’ tricky 1-3-1 formation on Sunday and the Canucks’ conservative 1-1-3 formation on Tuesday, the Hawks were thoroughly shut down.

“We play our best in the neutral [zone] when we don’t come back and set it up,” Patrick Kane said. “If we have forwards demanding the puck and getting speed — and they’re onside — our best option is to utilize that when [our opponent is] not set up and ready.”

Against the Flyers, Hawks coach Luke Richardson’s game plan worked to perfection. The plan involved one forward “posting up” in stationary position in the middle of the neutral zone while the other two forwards swung to the outside to build up speed.

The Hawks were consistently able — especially in the second period that night — to enter the zone cleanly on breakouts and regroups when their defensemen passed to the post-up guy, who tipped it over to one of the swinging wingers.

It worked for every line, too. At one point, the sequence went from Jake McCabe to Jason Dickinson to Andreas Athanasiou. The following shift, Ian Mitchell, MacKenzie Entwistle and Colin Blackwell executed it.

“[It] created a lot of offense for us,” Richardson said.

Against the Kings and Canucks, however, the Hawks committed turnovers on a fair number of their carry-in attempts and were therefore forced to dump the puck in more often.

Considering the Hawks are the NHL’s worst team at retrieving dump-ins, per All Three Zones, that proved rarely fruitful.

“We just had a lot of trouble [against L.A.], and it was [due to a] lack of energy and skating,” Richardson said. “[In Vancouver], it was just a lack of execution, whether it be getting it out of our zone cleanly or handling the puck in the neutral zone. We went offside a few times.

“You have to get even more simple when things aren’t going 100% perfectly. You’ve got to be one-touching out of your zone, one-touching in the neutral zone and playing [it] behind the other team. Tonight, we wanted to connect tape-to-tape, and it just wasn’t going tape-to-tape.”

There were a few bright spots against the Canucks. Sam Lafferty’s soft goal followed a legitimately good zone entry. Seth Jones’ ‘D’-to-‘D’ pass to McCabe caught the Canucks favoring the right side, giving Lafferty an easy carry-in on the left.

Minutes later, Jack Johnson tracked down a cleared puck and made a sooner-than-expected pass up to Kane just outside the blue line. The Canucks scrambled to get their three players back to “line up like a wall,” Richardson said, and Kane was able to find Dickinson cutting behind the wall for a scoring chance.

“Even [against] the teams that do trap up, if we can play a little faster [while] they’re trying to change somebody or set up their system, [that can help],” Richardson said.

Kane mentioned that creating an isolated two-on-one advantage against an outside defender in a 1-3-1 trap can also be an effective way to break it down.

But he believes the Hawks have struggled to attack bunkered-in neutral-zone defenses dating back to their 2017 playoff series against the Predators. And this year’s talent-lacking team hasn’t broken that pattern.

Numbers behind the story

Overall this season, the Hawks have carried the puck across the attacking blue line — rather than dumped it in — on just 43.4% of their offensive-zone entry attempts, per All Three Zones. That’s the second-lowest rate in the league.

That’s not inherently a bad thing if it’s intentional. The Hurricanes have the league’s lowest carry-in rate at 42.1%, for example, but lead the league by a mile in both forechecking pressures and recovered dump-ins. But for the Hawks, with their league-worst recovered dump-in rate, it’s suboptimal.

Four Hawks forwards have individual carry-in rates above the league average, per All Three Zones: Sam Lafferty (51.2%), Kane (56.8%), Athanasiou (65.8%) and Max Domi (70.0%). Athanasiou and Domi actually fall well within the league’s upper quartile in that regard.

On the other end of the spectrum, Reese Johnson carries the puck on just 23.1% of his attempts — which puts him bottom-20 league-wide — and Taylor Raddysh isn’t much higher at 26.9%. But Johnson and Raddysh unsurprisingly lead the team in recovered dump-ins, with now-injured Jujhar Khaira being the only other Hawk above league average in that regard.

Lafferty has been particularly effective in the neutral zone recently. In the Hawks’ win against the Blues (in between the Flyers and Kings matchups), he was almost singlehandedly responsible for their successful zone entries, especially early on. That ability could make him an attractive trade-deadline target for a contender.

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Thursday, January 26, 2023

BIG NORTHERN

Winnebago at Dixon, 7:00

CHICAGO PREP

Cristo Rey at Christ the King, 7:00

METRO SUBURBAN – RED

Ridgewood at St. Edward, 7:00

MID-SUBURBAN – EAST

Elk Grove at Buffalo Grove, 7:30

Hersey at Rolling Meadows, 7:30

Prospect at Wheeling, 7:30

MID-SUBURBAN – WEST

Barrington at Fremd, 7:30

Hoffman Estates at Conant, 7:30

Schaumburg at Palatine, 7:30

NOBLE LEAGUE – GOLD

Bulls Prep at ITW-Speer, 5:30

Johnson at Comer, 5:30

Noble Academy at Butler, 5:30

PUBLIC LEAGUE RED-SOUTH / CENTRAL

Kenwood at Phillips, 5:00

Simeon at Curie, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE WHITE-CENTRAL

Hubbard at Bogan, 5:00

Urban Prep-Englewood at Englewood STEM, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE WHITE-SOUTH

ACE Amandla at South Shore, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE BLUE-CENTRAL

Horizon-Southwest at Solorio, 5:00

Tilden at Back of the Yards, 5:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – RED

Eisenhower at Reavis, 6:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Oak Lawn at Thornton Fr. North, 6:30

NON CONFERENCE

Beecher at Agricultural Science, 5:30

Catalyst-Maria at Brooks, 5:30

Coal City at Plano, 7:00

DRW Prep at Dunbar, 5:00

Excel-Englewood at Harlan, 5:30

Farragut at Perspectives-Lead, 5:00

Juarez at Hancock,5:00

Muchin at Northside, 5:00

Noble Street at Kelly, 5:00

Orr at Austin, 5:00

Providence at Morris, 7:00

Raby at Vocational, 7:00

Richards (Chgo) at Air Force, 5:00

Rickover at Sullivan, 5:00

Rochelle at Stillman Valley, 7:00

Rockford Lutheran at Rockford Christian, 7:00

Sandwich at Oregon, 7:00

Senn at King, 5:00

Shepard at St. Anne, 7:00

Spry at ACERO-Soto, 5:00

Streator at LaSalle-Peru, 6:45

UC-Woodlawn at Alcott, 5:00

Urban Prep-Englewood at Dyett, 5:00

Westlake Christian at Schaumburg Christian, 7:30

Wolcott at Morgan Park Academy, 5:30

TRI-COUNTY TOURNAMENT

at Putnam County

Lowpoint-Washburn vs. Midland, 6:00

Woodland vs. Putnam County, 7:30

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White Sox fans have felt so much angst the last three years that they might have feared the worst as TV announcers Jason Benetti and Steve Stone remained without contracts less than a month before spring training.

The team put those fears to rest Thursday, announcing that Benetti and Stone will be back in the NBC Sports Chicago booth on multiyear deals. Benetti is entering his eighth season with the Sox and Stone his 16th. The chances of either leaving weren’t great, but the drawn-out process had fans concerned that another misstep by the organization was occurring, particularly regarding Benetti.

The biggest part of his negotiation was the number of games he’ll miss for other commitments. Last year, Benetti was the lead voice for Peacock’s package of early Sunday games, which had him leaving the Sox on most weekends. That came off his calendar when he joined Fox, for whom he has called college football and basketball. He’ll add major-league baseball this season.

Benetti’s last contract with the Sox didn’t specify an exact number of games he could miss. The Sox allowed him to call national games when he also worked for ESPN, but there wasn’t a set amount, only what was deemed reasonable. It left the contract up for interpretation.

His new contract is more specific about the number of games he can miss. It’s a common issue for local announcers who do national work, and the Sox have been supportive of Benetti’s efforts to diversify his portfolio. It raises the profile of the team and the network, but both still want their guy on their games as much as possible.

Benetti will be with Fox on many Saturdays, calling regional MLB games in the summer and college football in the fall. He added to his resume Monday, debuting as the host of “Throw it Down with Bill Walton,” an alternative NBA game telecast that streams on NBA League Pass. In the last month, he called his first two NFL games on TV for Fox. Benetti is as versatile as they come.

Stone doesn’t have Benetti’s conflicts, but he figures to take some time off during the season, as he usually does.

New Sox cable channel unlikely

NBCSCH’s rights agreement with the Sox, Blackhawks and Bulls expires in October 2024. Sox and Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf has been exploring his options, including starting his own network with the Blackhawks, as the Sun-Times reported in June.

But industry insiders say Reinsdorf isn’t expected to pull the plug on NBCSCH, certainly not in this media environment. Cable subscriptions are diminishing, and though the bundle remains profitable, it’s not as profitable as it used to be.

Despite layoffs on its digital side, NBCSCH’s linear business is strong. It has quality game production and shoulder programming, and it has generated revenue in a trying time in the industry. Granted, outside of games, it offers few worthy content options, but viewers aren’t turning to the channel for those.

NBCSCH also has strong distribution. Not only is it part of Comcast under NBCUniversal, it’s available in market on four live-TV streaming services: DirecTV Stream, fuboTV, Hulu and YouTubeTV. The Cubs’ Marquee Sports Network has live-TV streaming agreements with only DirecTV Stream and fuboTV.

The worst-case scenario for a regional sports network is playing out with the Bally Sports RSNs, whose owner, Diamond Sports Group (a subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast Group), is heading to bankruptcy court, according to Bloomberg. Marquee, which is jointly owned by the Cubs and Sinclair, is unaffected.

Say what you want about how Reinsdorf runs his teams. When he compares his broadcasting options for them, he knows the best place is right where they are.

Remote patrol

Former Cubs TV voice Chip Caray reportedly will return home to St. Louis to call Cardinals games for Bally Sports Midwest. Caray called the Braves for the last 18 seasons. He replaces Dan McLaughlin, whose 24-season run with the Cards ended in December when he resigned after his third arrest for driving while intoxicated.

Harry Caray, Chip’s grandfather, called the Cardinals from 1945 to ’69, then the White Sox from 1971 to ’81 and the Cubs from 1982 to ’97.

Best wishes to Hawks radio announcer John Wiedeman. His voice has been out of commission, so the team gave him this road trip off to rest it. He’s expected back when the Hawks return from the All-Star break Feb. 7. Joe Brand has done a wonderful job filling in.

Amazon announced that “Air,” which chronicles how Nike signed Michael Jordan, will be released in theatres April 5 before arriving on Prime Video. Ben Affleck directed the film and plays Nike co-founder Phil Knight. Matt Damon is Nike executive Sonny Vaccaro.

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With spring training less than three weeks away, the White Sox announced minor-league contracts with nine free agents, including infielder Hanser Alberto and outfielders Billy Hamilton, Jake Marisnick and Victor Reyes.

Among the 26 non-roster players invited to camp are the organization’s top shortstop prospect Colson Montgomery, Cuban outfield prospects Oscar Colas and Yoelqui Cespedes and right-hander Sean Burke. Colas will be given an opportunity to win the starting job in right field.

Also signed to minor league deals: Right-handers Keynan Middleton and Jesse Scholtens, left-hander Nate Fisher, catcher Sebasti?n Rivero and infielder Erik Gonz?lez.

Per MLB Pipeline, Montgomery (No. 1), Colas (2), Burke (9), Cespedes (12) and right-hander Matthew Thompson (15) are the top Sox prospects to receive non-roster invites. Montgomery (39) and Colas (89) rank among the Baseball America’s top prospects.

Pitchers and catchers report to spring training Feb. 15, including physicals and a workout. Position players report and undergo physicals Feb. 20, the day of the first full-squad workout.

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Faceless tree creatures wearing black suits and ties.

Fourteen winged and masked chefs complete with white uniforms and toques and a dapper, tuxedo-clad fish serving as a butler.

A cannibalistic witch who comes off as a Julia Child-like cook on steroids.

These were some of the eye-opening sights Wednesday evening as Lyric Opera of Chicago opened a revival of a “Hansel and Gretel” production that it first presented in 2001-02 to considerable success and brought back in 2012-13. (In both those cases, it was presented during the holidays, a longtime tradition with this work.)

Even though German composer Engelbert Humperdinck’s classic 19th-century operatic adaptation of the well-known Grimms’ fairy tale calls out for fantastical treatment, this imaginative, unconventional and sometimes surreal take still manages to deliciously defy expectations.

This version, first seen at the Welsh National Opera in 1998, was conceived by stage director Richard Jones and revived here by Eric Einhorn. The sets by John Macfarlane downplay any storybook quaintness and do away with the usual forest and gingerbread house.

Instead, the opera opens in a meager kitchen from vaguely post-World War II Europe painted in washed-out whites and grays. The forest is shown as a kind of black, walled chasm and inside the witch’s house is a stark, industrial kitchen.

If it all sounds a little grim, well, that’s the point. “Hansel and Gretel” is, after all, a harrowing story, and as this opera and particularly this interpretation make clear, hunger and its pernicious effects are a central theme throughout.

But don’t worry, this production, which runs about 2 1/4 hours with one intermission, offers plenty of fun and wonder, too. And ultimately, that’s why it works so well, because like the fairy tale on which it is based, it manages to find just the right balance of darkness and lightness.

In addition to a story that is almost universally known, this opera also has another significant asset in its favor, a beautiful score by Humperdinck (1854-1921) suffused with Wagner-influenced romanticism and children’s folk songs.

To lead this production, the company turned to a familiar figure: Andrew Davis, who served as its music director from 2000 through 2021 and has led 700 performances with the company. He brought a sure hand to this opera, drawing rich, involving playing from Lyric’s fine 65-piece pit orchestra beginning with the long, evocative overture and capably pacing the action on stage.

Before the curtain rose Wednesday evening, Anthony Freud, Lyric’s president, general director and chief executive director, announced from the stage that the company had named Davis as music director emeritus. It is a much-deserved appointment and a shrewd move on the part of the company, because it assures Davis’ return in future seasons.

The company assembled a strong cast for “Hansel and Gretel,” including the return of one of the most popular performers from the 2012-13 revival: mezzo-soprano Jill Grove, a Lyric regular. She offers a high-octane, wonderfully over-the-top portrayal of the witch, bounding around the kitchen and switching back and forth from a false syrupy hospitableness to the character’s true malevolence.

Taking on the title roles are soprano Heidi Stober as Gretel and mezzo-soprano Samantha Hankey as Hansel. Well-matched as actors and singers, the two are completely believable as children and siblings in the way they carry themselves and taunt and support each other.

Stober and Hankey expend enormous quantities of energy as they dance and romp around in their highly physical portrayals, really letting loose as they tear up the witch’s kitchen after they triumphantly push her into the oven in Act 3.

Deserving particular praise is Stober, who is back for her third appearance at Lyric. The technically secure soprano has appeared in this role with major companies like New York’s Metropolitan Opera, and she convincingly conveys both the strength and youthful vulnerability of Gretel and compellingly handles Humperdinck’s poignant writing for this character.

Also meriting mention is the return of Uniting Voices Chicago (formerly Chicago Children’s Choir), which offers a moving song of thanks after children turned into gingerbread come back to life following the witch’s demise.

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The fatal extra-alarm fire in a Kenwood high-rise started in an apartment bedroom and was caused by “careless use of smoking materials,” officials said Thursday.

The fire started in a 15th floor apartment of the complex in the 4800 block of South Lake Park Avenue Wednesday morning. “Careless use of smoking materials ignited combustibles in a bedroom,” fire officials said Thursday, ruling the cause accidental.

The apartment’s smoke alarm was not working at the time, the Chicago Fire Department said in a statement.

The fire quickly spread along the outside wall of the highrise building, eventually reaching up nine floors. One person was killed and eight other residents were injured, officials said. The person who died has not yet been identified, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

The building has failed seven inspections since Oct. 27, 2021, according to city records.

On Nov. 7 last year, it was cited for having cracked masonry on exterior walls, not having fire tags on certain doors and for failing to have a required examination report of the building, according to records from the city Department of Buildings.

The last inspection, on Dec. 1, 2022, cited management for failing to provide an annual fire alarm test for the building, according to the records.

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