Breaking: Ravinia Festival’s 2025 Summer Lineup Features More Than 100 Concerts And 40 Artist Debuts
HIGHLAND PARK, IL — Ravinia Festival’s 2025 summer lineup features more than 100 concerts and 40 artist debuts. Highlights include performances by Cynthia Erivo, Lenny Kravitz, Janelle Monáe, Maren Morris, Lang Lang, Beck, and Earth, Wind & Fire, and the 89th Chicago Symphony Orchestra Residency. Heart, John Legend, James Taylor, The Black Crowes, Al Green, The Roots, Diana Krall, and Chicagoare some of the favorites returning to the Ravinia stage, while Kygo, Juanes, Nas, Sutton Foster, Ray LaMontagne, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, and The Mohan Sisters are among those making debuts.
“Ravinia has something for everyone—classical music, rock, pop, R&B, soul, Latin, jazz, country, hip-hop, DJs, movies, musical theater, and more!” says RaviniaⓇ President and CEO Jeffrey P. Haydon. “We are grateful to continue opening our beautiful park for communities throughout Chicagoland to enjoy an evening under the stars with their family and friends, listening to music from their favorite artists and discovering new ones.”
The 2025 festival boasts more orchestral performances than any previous season. From core classics to genre-defying collaborations, Ravinia celebrates the versatility and vitality of classical music. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) will be in residence for six weeks, performing with Ravinia Chief Conductor Marin Alsop and soloists including Garrick Ohlsson, Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Himari, and Tony Award winners Sutton Foster and Kelli O’Hara. As well as interpreting iconic repertoire such as Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, Mahler’s Second Symphony, and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Sheherazade, the CSO will also partner with Beck, Cynthia Erivo, and Oscar winner Morgan Freeman for specially orchestrated performances. The Chicago Philharmonicwill support King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Marvel’s Infinity Saga, Lindsey Stirling, and Nas.
Ravinia’s mission-based programming includes the Breaking Barriers festival, established in 2022 to champion women in classical music. This summer’s festival highlights Women Leaders in Food and Music. Molly Yeh—not only the star of Food Network’s Girl Meets Farm but also a Juilliard-trained percussionist—will join Alsop to co-curate orchestral and chamber concerts, where musical works will be paired with culinary dishes by guest celebrity chefs, including Maneet Chauhan, Jacqueline Eng, Sarah Grueneberg, and Mika Leon. A second initiative, One Score, One ChicagoⓇ, invites more than 2,000 Chicago Public School students each summer to watch the CSO perform the work they’ve been studying through Ravinia’s Reach Teach PlayⓇ programs. This year, it’s Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony.
From superhero-movie scores to ’90s nostalgia, from Fiesta Ravinia to reggae, and from historic venues to picnics on the Lawn, Ravinia 2025 promises something for everyone. Tickets go on sale to the public on Thursday, April 24. Visit ravinia.org
