Liliom will be one of the highlights of the Joffrey Ballet’s new season. (Courtesy of Czech National Ballet, Photo by Sergei Gherciu)
The world of theater, dance, and music in Chicago flourish in September, with performances drawing audiences to the many different productions that have a wide variety of artists as well as a number of Jewish connections.
At Ravinia, the season continues
Dame Jane Glover is a British Jewish conductor and musicologist and the daughter of a Hungarian Jewish mother immigrant. She will conduct a program of works by Handel and Haydn on Sept. 3, at Ravinia Festival, joined by an orchestra and chorus.
She will also be accompanied by the British cellist Steven Isserlis. According to a story in a 2014 issue of the Jewish Journal, Isserlis noted that his grandfather was a Russian Jew who was among a group of musicians and their families. They were allowed by Vladimir Lenin to tour abroad, “displaying the Soviet Union’s cultural prowess,” he said, “but none of them returned,” noting that music saved his family. He studied at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio, and made his first record at the age of 25.
Isserlis, a London native, has performed with the Israel Symphony Orchestra and countless others. In an interview, he quipped, “I practice my cello, and I’m Jewish, so I’m a practicing Jew.” He also noted that his heritage could be “traced back to a long line of prominent figures including Rabbi Moses Isserlis, composer Felix Mendelssohn, and even Karl Marx.
Also performing at the Ravinia Festival will be pianist Olga Kern, who has noted that she “was born to play Rachmaninoff, and that she would kick her pregnant mother [while in utero] when her mother played his Third Piano Concerto during her pregnancy.”
For her Sept. 6 concert, Kern will play music by Rachmaninoff, as well as works by Schumann (“Carnaval” miniatures); and preludes, etudes, and more by Gershwin, Debussy, Scriabin, Beethoven, and Tchaikovsky.
Ravinia is located at 200 Ravinia Park Road in Highland Park. For tickets, visit Ravinia.org/events or call 847-266-5100.
Liliom, a ballet that inspired a musical
One of the great highlights of the new Joffrey Ballet season is sure to be a production of
Liliom, choreographed by John Neumeier and set to music by Academy Award-winning composer Michel Legrand.
The story that drives this work, a narrative ballet, is inspired by playwright Ferenc Molnár’s 1909 play of the same name. Molnár, the intensely gifted Jewish-born Hungarian author and dramatist, initially established his reputation in 1908. Then, in 1940, he emigrated to the U.S. to escape from the Nazis, later adopting American citizenship.
Described as “Neumeier’s adaptation,” Liliom chronicles a charismatic, yet self-destructive carnival barker—the titular Liliom—whose fierce love for Julie is unraveled by pride, poverty, and rage.
Set against the backdrop of an American amusement park during the Great Depression, passion turns toward crime—and ultimately, tragedy. Then, granted a chance to return to Earth after death, Liliom confronts the consequences of his choices and attempts one final act of grace during which the barker seeks redemption.
If this seems familiar, the ballet is the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein 1945 musical Carousel.
The performance runs Sept. 17-27 at the Lyric Opera House at 20 N. Wacker Drive. For tickets, visit lyricopera.org or call 312-332-2244.
Where hope grows
Looking for a great break with nothing to prepare between the high holidays? The Hecktman Family JCC is gearing up for the fourth annual Growing Hope Concert on Sept. 17. Tony Award-winning actress and singer Ali Stroker and Israeli American hip-hop artist Kosha Dillz will take the stage along with other surprises.
In late 2023, JCC Chicago launched Growing Hope, a movement focused on positivity, kindness, and want for a better world. Culminating with a concert in partnership with the Chicago Cubs, Growing Hope has evolved into a state-wide platform that includes educational programs, visual arts, and performances that build bridges, create community, and offer truly joyful experiences.
The fourth annual Growing Hope Concert will be held on Sept. 17, from 6-8 p.m. at Gallagher Way in Wrigleyville. Registration is free, but tickets are going fast. Get tickets at
JCC Chicago.org/growinghope.
Hedy Weiss, a longtime Chicago arts critic, was the Theater and Dance Critic for the Chicago Sun-Times from 1984 to 2018. She currently writes for WTTW-TV’s website and contributes to its Chicago Tonight program.
