Regional NewsBrian Stokes Mitchell, Heather Headley, Alexandra Billings Are Part of August 7 Stephen Sondheim Tribute at Ravinia Festival
Yours, Stephen Sondheim also features the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Kevin Stites.
By
Andrew Gans
August 07, 2022
Brian Stokes Mitchell, Heather Headley, and Alexandra Billings
The Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, Illinois, pays tribute to the late Tony-winning composer-lyricist Stephen Sondheim August 7.
Yours, Stephen Sondheim: His Letters, Mentorship, and Music with the CSO is presented at 5 PM featuring Tony winners Brian Stokes Mitchell (Kiss Me, Kate; Ragtime) and Heather Headley (Aida, The Lion King) as well as Alexandra Billings (Wicked), Susan Moniz, Bethany Thomas, Devin DeSantis, and the Chicago Artists Chorale.
Conceived by actor/director Rob Lindley, the evening celebrates the letters, mentorship, and music of Pulitzer Prize winner Sondheim, who passed away November 26, 2021, at the age of 91.
The event also features the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by music director Kevin Stites. Attendees can expect to hear songs from Company, Follies, Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George, Anyone Can Whistle, Sweeney Todd, A Little Night Music, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Merrily We Roll Along, and more.
The Ravinia has presented limited engagements of several Sondheim musicals, many featuring Tony winners Patti LuPone and Audra McDonald, including Sunday in the Park With George, Anyone Can Whistle, and A Little Night Music. LuPone also first took on the role of Rose in the Ravinia production of Sondheim, Arthur Laurents, and Jule Styne's Gypsy.
Next year, Carnegie Hall's house band will perform Bernstein’s “Kaddish” Symphony, unfinished works by Schubert, and the final concert of Conductor Bernard Labadie.
