LuPone, McDonald, Cerveris and Hearn Set For Ravina's 'STEPHEN SONDHEIM'S 80TH BIRTHDAY GALA' On 7/31/2010

On July 31, 2010, Ravinia Festival will honor great American composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim on the occasion of his 80th birthday, with an all-star cast of soloists who have been featured in Ravinia's musical initiative. The evening reunites the on-stage and behind-the-scenes talents that created Ravinia Festival's acclaimed productions of the Sondheim shows A Little Night Music, Passion, Sunday in the Park with George, Anyone Can Whistle, Sweeney Todd and Gypsy, among others. Highlights of these musicals will be presented by Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, Michael Cerveris and George Hearn, under the baton of Paul Gemignani and the direction of Lonny Price.

Ravinia President and CEO Welz Kauffman launched the Sondheim 75 series in 2001 to honor the musical icon's career with five annual concert productions of Sondheim works. The series opened with Sweeney Todd in 2001, and continued with A Little Night Music (2002), Passion (2003), Sunday in the Park with George (2004), and Anyone can Whistle (2005), all of which won rave reviews. Sondheim visited the festival for these productions and participated in pre-concert talks. Ravinia also presented shows with lyrics written by Sondheim, including West Side Story and the phenomenal first teaming of Patti LuPone and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for Gypsy. LuPone then took the role to Broadway and saluted Ravinia upon her acceptance of the 2008 Tony Award for Best Actress in Gypsy. In 2005, the Lincoln Center Festival featured Ravinia's cast of Passion for its own presentation of the musical, a production that was broadcast Live Nationally on PBS.

"The genius of Sondheim can't be questioned. The star power of Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, George Hearn and Michael Cerveris make them all without peer. The stage mastery of Lonny Price and Paul Gemignani is unimpeachable. Add all this magic to the natural beauty of Ravinia Festival, and you've got a Gala event for the ages," said Ravinia President and CEO Welz Kauffman. "In a season brimming with special anniversaries, what better way to celebrate Sondheim's 80th birthday than by recreating the greatest hits Ravinia has had with his music and these stars over the past decade?"

This special black-tie event will begin on the lawn at 5:00 p.m. with a cocktail reception, followed by a 7:00 p.m. performance which will have no intermission. Immediately following the concert, dinner will be served in the Gala Marquee on the north lawn.

For more information or to purchase tickets to the benefit dinner, please call 847-266-5045 or visit gala@ravinia.org. Ravinia Festival is a not-for-profit organization.

For more information on Ravinia, please visit www.ravinia.org.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.