Ravinia Festival Announces 2012 Season: Idina Menzel, Barbara Cook & More!

Ravinia Festival President and CEO Welz Kauffman announced the festival's 2012 season, which offers more than 100 separate events exemplifying most musical genres, including the 77^th residency of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The summer boasts a variety of music's legends from Philip Glass to James Taylor, along with 43 debuts, including Glee and Wicked star Idina Menzel, reggae master Jimmy Cliff, classic rocker Santana, Grammy-and-Oscar sensation Esperanza Spalding, and Musical America's "conductor of the year" Jaap van Zweden.  Ravinia Music Director James Conlon celebrates the 35^th anniversary of his own festival debut as his contract is extended through 2014. 

"The great thing about Ravinia Festival is you can make it your summer 'staycation' because we have such a wide variety of offerings, with a new performance almost every night. Where else can you find performances by violinist Itzhak Perlman, cellists Yo-Yo Ma and Johannes Moser, Latin guitarist Carlos Santana, blues guitarist Derek Trucks, ukulele performer Jake Shimabukuro 

and even the great Steve Martin on banjo? And that's just a few of the string players. Don't get me started on piano."

UBS returns as lead sponsor of Ravinia Festival for the ninth consecutive year. 

"For UBS, the relationship with Ravinia Festival is based on a shared passion for collaboration and excellence. In the same way musicians and a conductor rely on one another, UBS strives to work collaboratively with clients to deliver the tailored strategies that help them pursue their financial goals. That is why UBS has a long history of supporting the arts around the globe," said Robert Wolf, President, UBS Investment Bank. "We consider these partnerships to be an integral part of UBS's long and rich history as a worldwide supporter of the arts as they reflect our commitment to investing in cultural expression and making the arts accessible to our clients, our employees and our communities. UBS is pleased to be the Lead Sponsor of the Ravinia Festival and join the community in experiencing some of the finest music that Chicago has to offer." 

"Ravinia Festival is proud to be one of Chicagoland's premier cultural destinations, and we thank all of our supporters-whether they come out for a single show or whether they dig deep to make sure Ravinia can achieve its three-pronged mission of keeping our environment family- friendly, sustaining classical music and returning music to the schools that need it most," said Ravinia Festival Chairman Robert D. Krebs. "Of course, a special thank-you must go to UBS, which returns this summer as our lead sponsor for the eighth consecutive year. UBS is recognized worldwide for its dedication to the arts, and we at Ravinia are honored by this association." 

 

James Conlon AND THE CSO

Conlon first guest-conducted at Ravinia in 1977 by invitation of James Levine. He was appointed to his current position in 2005, and his contract has been extended through 2014. Conlon's tenure has brought such successes as the critically acclaimed multiyear Mahler Symphony and Mozart Piano Concerto cycles; the Breaking the Silence series, which endeavors to return entartete music to its rightful place in the canon; a series of Mozart operas with the CSO in the Martin Theatre; and world premieres including 2011's hugely successful Ravinia commission of Nico Muhly's concerto for orchestra and pianists The 5 Browns, The Edge of the World. Elsewhere in 2011, Conlon led the first Wagner "Ring" Cycle at the Los Angeles Opera, where he also serves as music director; and CSO Music Director Ricardo Muti invited him to conduct La Bohème in Rome and lead the CSO downtown at Symphony Center. 

"My work at Ravinia gives me the opportunity to do many wonderful things, but none makes me more proud than welcoming back James Conlon to lead the incomparable Chicago 

Symphony Orchestra," Kauffman said. "I believe we have assembled a season to please every musical taste in 2012, and I look forward to working with James on topping ourselves."

One of the highlights of Conlon's 2012 season promises to be the American premiere of Kurt Weill's complete first stage work, Magical Night. The pantomime-which at Ravinia will feature T. Daniel Productions-is based on a scenario by Wladimir Boritsch. It received its world premiere in Berlin in 1922, but by the time it made its only other appearance, in New York in 1925, portions of the original score were already missing and the gaps filled in by music from other composers. After that performance the orchestrations disappeared for 80 years, until an original set of instrumental parts was discovered in 2006 at Yale University, where they had been stored in the wrong safe after being deposited there by Boritch's widow. This set was used to create this Kurt Weill critical edition, which received its world premiere at Covent Garden in London last December. This July 19 premiere continues Conlon's Breaking the Silence series, which famously explores the forgotten work of composers whose lives were ravaged and often ended by the Third Reich. 

 

WOMEN'S BOARD ANNIVERSARY/GALA

Ravinia celebrates a second milestone in 2012 as its Women's Board, founded in 1962, marks its 50^th anniversary. Special events are planned throughout the year to recognize the accomplishments of this volunteer board, which has contributed more than $25 million to the festival through its philanthropic efforts and business management of Ravinia gift shop and this year's re-launch of a lawn-chair- and table-rental service. The biggest of these celebrations comes on July 21, when the Women's Board hosts its annual Gala Benefit Evening. Titled "Leading Ladies," the CSO concert, conducted by Conlon, will team Broadway legend Patti LuPone for the first time 

with the Metropolitan Opera's premier Puccini soprano Patricia Racette for the biggest songs and arias from both worlds, including intimate moments around the piano. The concert will also feature orchestral masterworks, including the overtures from Schubert's Rosamunde and Wagner's Tannhäuser that were performed by the CSO in the inaugural year of the Women's Board. 

 

THREE GENERATIONS OF BROADWAY STARS

LuPone is one of three generations of Broadway leading ladies to perform with the CSO this summer. Idina Menzel, star of Wicked and Glee, makes her Ravinia and CSO debuts with hit-making conductor Marvin Hamlisch on July 8; Ashley Brown, who won raves as Mary Poppins and is now making her Lyric Opera debut in the acclaimed Showboat, sings American favorites on July 4 and 

Barbara Cook celebrates her 85^th birthday with her CSO debut on July 15, with Richard Kaufman on the podium.

 

CONDUCTOR DEBUTS

Richard Kaufman, famous for leading the CSO movie nights downtown, is one of four conductors making their Ravinia debuts with the CSO this summer. Steven Reineke, music director of the New York Pops and protégé of Ravinia's beloved Erich Kunzel, will lead the CSO through an evening of American Music on July 4 that runs the gamut from patriotic anthems to Disney hits and Broadway favorites. Hailed by Musical America as "conductor of the year," Jaap van Zweden, who at just 18 years old became the youngest concertmaster of the esteemed Concertgebouw Orchestra (a position he held until 1995), was encouraged to conduct by none other than Leonard Bernstein. He will conduct the CSO in Mahler's Symphony No. 6 on July 7. Gianandrea Noseda, conductor laureate of the BBC Philharmonic, leads an all-Rachmaninoff evening on Aug. 2, featuring Cardiff "Singer of the World" competition-winner soprano Nicole Cabell and multiple award-winning pianist Sean Botkin.

 

MOZART OPERAS

Conlon continues another popular tradition by returning with the CSO to Ravinia's intimate, 850-seat Martin Theatre for two Mozart operas, Idomeneo and The Magic Flute, each performed in repertory as an evening performance and a matinee, August 16-19.  With all-star casts including Michael York, Nathan Gunn, Richard Croft, Susanna Philips and Morris Robinson, these Mozart masterworks follow on the heels of such sold-out "Mozart in the Martin" operas as Don Giovanni, Così fan tutte, The Marriage of Figaro and The Abduction from the Seraglio. 

 

THE PLANETS/ONE SCORE, ONE CHICAGO

Based on the Chicago Public Library's One Book, One Chicago, Ravinia's One Score, One Chicago endeavors to engage the entire community in a single musical masterpiece. The 2012 selection is Holst's The Planets. The work was selected in recognition of the Solar System's governing role today as in ancient civilizations, such as the Romans, who named the planets after their gods and goddesses. The work will be performed by the CSO and the women of the Chicago Symphony Chorus on July 31 under the baton of John Axelrod, on a program that also includes Gabriela Montero performing Grieg's Piano Concerto. Holst's own two-piano transcription of the work will 

also be brought into schools through Ravinia's REACH*TEACH*PLAY education programs, and a resource guide will be available at ravinia.org prior to the performance. The film Gustav Holst's The Planets, a suite of seven videos by Emmy-nominated astronomer Jose Francisco Salgado, will be 

shown on the video screens in the pavilion and a large screen set up on the lawn. Astronomers will also be stationed with telescopes in the park to offer viewing of the night skies.

 

TRIBUTE CONCERTS 

Four concerts pay tribute to music legends. Jazz singer Nnenna Freelon gives a concert of the great songs of the late Lena Horne on June 22. One of the world's top mezzo-sopranos, Stephanie Blythe returns to Ravinia with a salute to Kate Smith on July 2. Popular cabaret singer and songwriter Ann Hampton Callaway and the acclaimed jazz group the John Pizzarelli Quartet join forces with the CSO conducted by Ted Sperling to pay tribute to master songwriter Harold Arlen in a program titled Over the Rainbow on Aug. 5. Folk legend Woody Guthrie never performed at Ravinia, but this summer his son Arlo Guthrie, who has appeared here a dozen times, and folk/country singer Mary Chapin Carpenter return to Ravinia on Aug. 19 in celebration of Woody's centennial.

Back by popular demand on Aug. 28, Momix dance company presents an encore staging of Botanica, which received its Chicago premiere at Ravinia last summer. With an eclectic score ranging from birdsong to Vivaldi, Botanica puts its dancers through recreations of nature's changing imagery, supported by stunning costumes, one-of-a-kind props, magical puppetry and colorful projections.  

 

DANCE

By popular demand, Momix Dance Company returns to Ravinia's Ruth Page Festival of Dance with an encore performance of its visually stunning ode to nature, Botanica, for one night only, Aug. 28. Concert Dance, Inc. presents the world premiere of a new work choreographed to Debussy's Clair de Lune on June 7 and 8, and River North Dance Company brings a jazz-based program to the festival on Aug. 21. 

 

CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERTS/RECITALS

Following on his acclaimed Ravinia premieres of Orion and Book of Longing, American composer Philip Glass celebrates his 75^th birthday in concert June 23 with violinist Timothy Fain, 

performing a sampling of one of the most remarkable compositional catalogues of our time, which includes eight symphonies, 26 operas, nine ballets, 13 concertos and nearly 40 film scores (three of which received Academy Award nominations). On Aug. 14 superstar soprano Kiri Te Kanawa 

returns for an evening of arias and songs by Vivaldi, Liszt, R. Strauss, Barber, Berlioz, Massenet and Korngold. The event will reunite her with colleague pianist Kevin Murphy, the new director of the Steans Music Institute's program for voice, for which Dame Kiri will offer a vocal master class that is open to the public on Aug. 12. Other vocal artists appearing in the Martin include baritone Matthias Goerne with former Ravinia music director Christoph Eschenbach at the piano (July 16) and baritone Gerald Finley (Aug. 9), who also offers a vocal master class on Aug. 10.

Violinist Midori tackles the Everest of the violin repertoire, Bach's Sonatas and Partitas for Unaccompanied Violin, in two evenings, July 3 and 5. Additional instrumental virtuosos appearing in the Martin Theatre include guitarist Angel Romero in his first Ravinia recital in 20 years (July 8) ; and pianists Denis Matsuev (July 30), Vladimir Feltsman (Aug. 15), and Misha and Cipa Dichter (July 29). Instrumental ensembles include performances by violinists Miriam Fried and Pamela Frank, violists Kim Kashkashian and Paul Biss, cellist Ralph Kirshbaum and pianist Leon Fleisher (June 21), Zukerman ChamberPlayers (June 26), the Benedetti, Elschenbroich, Grynyuk Trio (July 12), the Emerson String Quartet (July 6), Tokyo String Quartet (July 24), the Martinez-Urioste-Brey Trio (Aug. 5), and the Juilliard String Quartet (Sept. 6).

Ravinia's most intimate performance space, the 450-seat Bennett Gordon Hall, is home to 22 classical concerts that cost only $10 for a reserved seat. Ravinia launched the series to popular acclaim last summer. This year's series features pianist Jade Simmons, who recently performed for President Obama, on Aug. 16; cellist and actor Zuill Bailey with SMI pianist Awadigin Pratt in an all-Brahms evening on Aug. 18; pianist Daniil Trifonov  in an evening including Chopin's 12 Etudes on Aug. 19; pianist Sara Davis Buechner on a program featuring the American premiere of Yukiko Nishimura's Ten Etudes on Aug. 21; Wolfgang Schmidt with cello sonatas accompanied by Marta Aznavoorian on Aug. 22; violinist Rachel Barton Pine on Aug. 23; SMI alumnus Inon Barnatan, performing piano works by Debussy, Schubert and more on Aug. 26; pianist Orion Weiss with works by Bach, Schumann and Brahms on Sept. 3; and cellist Johannes Moser joining Weiss on Poulenc's Sonata for Cello and Piano on Sept. 4. The series also features five performances by participants in Ravinia Festival's Steans Music Institute, with a Jazz Showcase 

on June 15; two concerts for piano and strings on July 9 and 16; a vocal concert of French songs on Aug. 6; and one of songs by American composers on Aug. 13.

 

THREE STAR-STUDDED CLOSING 'KNIGHTS'

They've been called "the future of classical music" in the PBS special We Are The Knights, and they've made an indelible impression on Ravinia audiences in two previous performances and by working with Chicago Public School students in the festival's REACH*TEACH*PLAY education programs. Now the uniquely innovative chamber orchestra The Knights will bring Ravinia Festival's 2012 summer season to a rousing conclusion with three performances, each showcasing a superstar soloist. 

"Closing the season with a tremendously accomplished chamber ensemble harkens to the 1980s when the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra regularly commanded the stage with superstar soloists as the festival came to an end," Kauffman said. 

As core members of his groundbreaking Silk Road Project, the Knights are close collaborators of cellist Yo-Yo Ma, who calls theirs a "vibrant, energetic, collaborative culture." Ma who will perform with them on Sept. 7 on a program including Wagner's Siegfried Idyll, Schumann's Cello Concerto In A Minor and Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun. 

The next night, Sept. 8, The Knights join forces for the first time with legendary violinist Itzhak Perlman. Perlman applies his legendary tone to Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto, perhaps the most popular violin concerto of all time.

Finally, on Sept. 9, the ensemble reunites with soprano Dawn Upshaw, who has sung frequently with the group, including on a tour of Germany. Upshaw's purely focused soprano will be heard on a program of primarily Francophile delights, among them Debussy's Syrinx, Couperin's Les nations, Ravel's Chansons Madécasses and Milhaud's La création du monde

 

NEW THIS YEAR

New this year, Ravinia Festival is launching a revamped website at www.ravinia.org that will make it easy to purchase concert tickets, make dining reservations, rent chairs and tables in advance and allow guests to keep track of their Ravinia schedules. A new smartphone application that complements this website will be released for both the iPhone and Android platforms. The app will allow guests navigational guidance on the grounds, information-sharing with other concert-goers and help finding their friends on the lawn. 

Ravinia has also extensively renovated its north parking lot, incorporating permeable paving. This is the latest project in Kauffman's focused mission to improve Ravinia's infrastructure. Notable achievements include the construction of a new dining pavilion that expanded temperature-controlled seating, the installation of video screens in the pavilion that allow audiences to more 

closely watch the musicians on stage, and last year's unveiling of the new grand entrance and pedestrian underpass to the train tracks.

 

STEANS MUSIC INSTITUTE (SMI)

Ravinia's summer music conservatory, the Steans Music Institute, provides 60-70 fully funded fellowships each summer to young professional musicians from around the world who come to study with SMI's esteemed faculty as well as headliners who play the festival. Miriam Fried heads the SMI program for piano and strings, David Baker runs the program for jazz, and this summer Kevin Murphy takes over the program for singers. In addition to individual and group study, the fellows perform a series of free preview concerts throughout the summer. SMI master 

classes are free and open to the public and this summer instrumental master classes will be led by pianist Menahem Pressler, June 26; cellist Gary Hoffman, July 5; and violinist Ida Kavafian on July 10. Three vocal master classes will be led by James Conlon on July 28; Gerald Finley on Aug. 10; and Kiri Te Kanawa on Aug. 12.

 

GUEST ROSTER 

Ravinia will present a vast array of guest artists in 2012. A complete chronological listing of programs and artists is available separately. An asterisk (*) denotes Ravinia Festival debut.

 

Baritone: Gerald Finley (Aug. 9); Matthias Goerne (July 16); Nathan Gunn (Aug. 16, 18);
Brian Mulligan (Aug. 16, 17, 18, 19);

Bass: Morris Robinson (Aug. 16, 17, 18, 19);

Cello: Zuill Bailey (Aug. 18); Leonard Elschenbroich (July 13); Ralph Kirshbaum (June 21);
Yo-Yo Ma (Sept. 7); Johannes Moser* (Sept. 4); Wolfgang Schmidt* (Aug. 22);

Conductor/Musical Director: John Axelrod (July 31); James Conlon (July 19, 23, 25, 26, 29,
Aug. 7, 8, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20) ; Christoph Eschenbach (July 13, 14); Rob Fisher (July 21);
Marvin Hamlisch (July 8); Eric Jacobsen (Sept. 8);  Richard Kaufman* (July 15); Gianandrea Noseda* (Aug. 2); Steven Reineke* (July 4); Ted Sperling (Aug. 5); Jaap van Zweden* (July 7);

Dance Company: Concert Dance, Inc. (June 7, 8); River North Dance Chicago (Aug. 21); Momix
(Aug. 28);
Director: Michael Ehrman* (Aug. 16, 18); David Lefkowich (Aug. 17, 19);

Guitar: Angel Romero (July 8);

Ensemble/Orchestra: A Far Cry*(July 1); Benedetti, Elschenbroich, Gryunyuk Trio (July 12); Chicago Symphony Chorus (Aug. 16, 17, 19); Chicago Symphony Orchestra (July 4, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 19, 21, 25, 26, 29, 31, Aug. 2, 5, 7, 8, 16, 17, 18, 19); Chicago Symphony Orchestra String 

Players (July 23); Emerson String Quartet (July 6); Fifth House Ensemble* (June 16); John Pizzarelli Quartet (Aug. 5); Juilliard String Quartet (Sept. 6); The Knights (Sept. 7, 8, 9); Lincoln Trio (Aug. 24); Martinez-Urioste-Brey Piano Trio (Aug. 5); Piano and Strings Artists from Ravinia's Steans Music Institute (July 9, 16); Ravinia Festival Orchestra (June 9, July 10); Soloists from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Aug. 20); T. Daniel Productions (July 19); Tokyo String Quartet (July 24); Vocal Artists from Ravinia's Steans Music Institute (Aug. 6, 13); Women of the Chicago Symphony Chorus (July 31); Zukerman ChamberPlayers (June 26);

Kraft Great Kids Concerts: Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra, George Stelluto, Conductor* (July 7); Ralph's World (July 14); River North Dance Chicago (Aug. 21); Ruth Page Civic Ballet (Sept. 8);

Mezzo-soprano: Stephanie Blythe (July 2); Ruxandra Donose (Aug. 17, 19); Lauren McNeese (Aug. 16, 18); Ronnita Miller (Aug. 16, 18); Dawn Upshaw (Sept. 9);

Narrator: Michael York (Aug. 16, 18);

Piano: Behzod Abduraimov* (Aug. 31); Marta Aznavoorian (Aug. 22); Inon Barnatan (Aug. 26); Jonathan Biss (Aug. 1); Sean Botkin (Aug. 2, 28); Yefim Bronfman (Aug. 8); Sara Davis Buechner 

 (Aug. 21); Cipa Dichter (July 29); Misha Dichter (July 29); Christoph Eschenbach (July 16); Vladimir Feltsman (Aug. 15); Leon Fleisher (June 21); Philip Glass (June 23); David Greilsammer (Aug 17); Denis Matsuev (July 29, 30); Gabriela Montero (July 31); Kevin Murphy (Aug. 9, 14); Awadigin Pratt (Aug. 18); Jade Simmons* (Aug. 16); Craig Terry (July 2); Jean Yves Thibaudet (Aug. 7); Daniil Trifonov* (Aug. 19);

Rock/Country/Folk/R&B/Jazz: A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor (June 23); Tony Bennett (Aug. 18); The Blues Brothers starring Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belushi and The Sacred Hearts* (July 11); BoDeans (July 20); Colbie Caillat (June 29); Glen Campbell* (June 28); Mary Chapin Carpenter (Aug. 19); Chicago Children's Choir (June 15); Jimmy Cliff *(June 17); 

Crosby, Stills & Nash (Aug. 3); Gavin DeGraw* (June 29); Dr. John (June 10); The Dukes of September featuring Donald Fagen, Michael McDonald and Boz Scaggs* (Aug. 22); Duran Duran* (Aug. 29); Earth, Wind & Fire (June 9); Nnenna Freelon (June 22); Al Green* (June 15); Arlo Guthrie (Aug. 19); Roger Hodgson* (Aug. 23); Iron & Wine* (June 10); John Pizzarelli Quartet (Aug. 5); Diana Krall (July 17); Sarah McLachlan* (June 30); Sergio Mendes (June 27); Natalie Merchant* (July 10); Ronnie Milsap (June 28); Ramsey Lewis and His Electric Band (June 27); Reginald Robinson* (Aug. 25); Santana* (July 9); Seal* (July 22); Esperanza Spalding* (June 25);
Steans Music Institute Jazz Showcase (June 15); Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers (June 24); James Taylor (July 27, 28); Tedeschi Trucks Band* (July 18); Train (Aug. 11, 12);

Soprano: Janai Brugger* (July 19, Aug. 16, 18); Nicole Cabell (Aug. 2); Erika Miklosa* (Aug. 16, 18); Ailyn Pérez (Aug. 16, 18); Susanna Phillips* (Aug. 17, 19); Patricia Racette (July 21); Rachel Schutz* (July 23); Kiri Te Kanawa (Aug. 14); Tamara Wilson* (Aug. 17, 19); Lei Xu (Aug. 16);

Tenor: Charles Castronovo* (Aug. 16, 18); Richard Croft (Aug. 17, 19); Alex Mansoori (Aug. 16, 18);

Ukelele: Jake Shimabukuro (July 1);

Violin: Joshua Bell (July 25); Nicola Benedetti* (July 13); Timothy Fain (June 23); Pamela Frank (June 21); Miriam Fried (June 21, Aug. 1); Midori (July 3, 5); Itzhak Perlman (Sept. 8); Rachel Barton Pine (Aug. 23); Erik Schumann (July 14); Yuan-Qing Yu (Aug. 24);

Viola: Paul Biss (June 21); Kim Kashkashian (June 21); Matsumi Rostad* (Aug. 24);

Vocalist: Ashley Brown* (July 4); Ann Hampton Callaway (Aug. 5); Barbara Cook (July 15); Patti LuPone (July 21); Idina Menzel* (July 8).

 

 

 

RAVINIA GENERAL INFORMATION

 

2012 FESTIVAL SPONSORS 

UBS, a global financial services firm, returns as lead sponsor of Ravinia's 2012 season. UBS draws on its 150-year heritage to serve private, institutional and corporate clients worldwide, as well as retail clients in Switzerland. Its business strategy is centered on its pre-eminent global wealth management businesses and its universal bank in Switzerland. Together with a client-focused Investment Bank and a strong, well-diversified Global Asset Management business, UBS will drive further growth and expand its premier wealth management franchise. 

Ravinia Festival gratefully acknowledges the generous support of its sponsors for the 2012 festival season, which include the following individuals, corporations, agencies and foundations (listed alphabetically): Allstate Insurance Company; Aaron Alt and Jennifer Konz-Alt; Megan P. and John L. Anderson; Associated Agencies, Inc.; Bank of America; Charles and Margery Barancik; Beam; BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois; BMO Harris Bank; Camping World/Good Sam; Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation; The Dancing Skies Foundation; Deloitte LLP; Discover; Ernst & Young LLP; Exelon; Andrew J. Filipowski and Melissa Oliver; FirstMerit Bank; Fortune Brands Home & Security; Grant Thornton LLP; Greenberg Traurig, LLP; Linda and Jeffrey Hammes; Maxine and Tom Hunter; Illinois Tool Works; Jenner & Block; J.P. Morgan Chase & Co; Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP; Kirkland & Ellis LLP; KPMG LLP; Kraft Foods Foundation; Latham & Watkins LLP; The Madigan Family; Sharon and Eden Martin; McGladrey; Negaunee Foundation; Robert Pinkert; Pinkert Industrial Group; Mrs. June Bild Pinsof; Madeleine P. and Harvey R. Plonsker; PNC Bank; The PrivateBank; Diana and Bruce Rauner; RBC Wealth Management; Sara Lee Foundation; Smart Family Foundation, Inc.; Avy and Marcie Stein, L. Walter Stearns, Eugene A. Dizon; Tawani Foundation; Terlato Wines International; United Airlines; Ventas; Walgreens; The Westin Chicago North Shore; Women's Board of Ravinia Festival; Zadek Family Foundation; and Zurich.

Support also has been provided in cooperation with the Mozart Opera Consortium; the Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation; Ravinia Orchestral Consortium; the Kurt Weill Foundation for Music; in honor of Sandra K. Crown; and in memory of Keene H. Addington II, Keren-Or Bernbaum from Harriet and Harry H. Bernbaum, Edward Gordon, Joyce Gray from The Avrum Family; Frances W. Pick; Howard A. Stotler and JacK Wing from Joan Wing and Family. 

 

 

United Airlines is the official airline of Ravinia Festival. Steinway Piano Gallery of Northbrook is the official piano of Ravinia Festival. Discover Card is the official card of Ravinia 

Festival. Terlato Wines International is the official wine sponsor of Ravinia Festival. Midtown Athletic Club is the official club of Ravinia Festival. WFMT 98.7 FM is the official classical music station of Ravinia Festival 

 

TICKETS

Tickets are on sale now with a donation to the not-for-profit festival. General sales begin on April 26 exclusively at Ravinia.org. Phone sales begin May 20 at 847-266-5100. Ravinia will hold its annual Customer Appreciation Day on May 19, at which tickets purchased in person at the box office will be discounted by 20 percent (excluding the July 21 Gala).

Ravinia Festival is located at Lake Cook and Green Bay roads in Highland Park. Ravinia welcomes all festival fans to follow, connect and interact online at backstage.ravinia.org, facebook.com (search Ravinia Festival) and twitter.com/raviniafestival. Ravinia Festival is a not-for-profit organization.