New Philharmonic, the professional orchestra in residence at the McAninch Arts Center (MAC), and Music Director/Conductor Kirk Muspratt perform three celebratory New Year’s Eve concerts at 1:30, 5 and 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 31. Acclaimed soprano and MAC favorite Alisa Jordheim, hailed as “vocally resplendent” and “powerful” (San Francisco Chronicle), is featured in the highly entertaining program incorporating classical, opera and pops music with a champagne toast. There is limited ticket availability for the 1:30 and 5 p.m. concerts – best ticket availability is for the 8:30 p.m. concert.
The skilled musicians of New Philharmonic will be showcased in Johann Strauss Jr.’s “Tik-Tak Polka,” Op. 365, one of six works that Strauss arranged with motifs from his third operetta “Die Fledermaus,” and his “Blue Danube Waltz,” Op. 314, one of the most popular pieces of music in the classical repertoire. Also in the program: Paul Lincke’s “Berliner Luft,” the unofficial anthem of Berlin, Johann Strauss Sr.’s celebratory “Radetzky March” and music from popular films including Alfred Hitchcock’s 1945 thriller “Spellbound,” William Wyler’s epic 1958 western “The Big Country,” the Academy Award-winning 1997 film “Titanic” and Walt Disney Pictures 1991 sci-fi adventure flick, “The Rocketeer.”
Jordheim will be featured in “Meine Lippen” from Lehar’s musical comedy “Guiditta;” Goundod’s popular waltz song “Je veux vivre” from “Romeo and Juliet,” and Lerner and Lowe’s “I Could Have Danced All Night,” from the Tony Award-winning musical and Academy Award-winning film “My Fair Lady” before leading the audience in a rousing sing-along of the traditional “Auld Lang Syne.”
Maestro Muspratt and New Philharmonic. Courtesy of the McAninch Arts Center
MAC audiences have enjoyed Jordheim’s appearances with New Philharmonic in the “Merry Widow” (2020), “A Night of Broadway and Opera” (2021) and, most recently, as Adina in the concert opera presentation of “The Elixir of Love” (2025). Lauded by the San Francisco Chronicle as “vocally resplendent” and possessing “impeccable coloratura,” her other notable roles just in the 2024-2025 season included Violetta in “La Traviata” with Opera Western Reserve, La Fée in “Cendrillon” with Opera Orlando, Daria/Prima Donna in Donizetti's “Viva la Mamma” with Florentine Opera, and the Young Girl in Cipullo's “After Life” with Music of Remembrance in Seattle and San Francisco. She also performed “Carmina Burana” with both the Pacific Symphony and Evansville Philharmonic, and holiday concerts with San Diego Opera and the Spreckels Organ Society. Jordheim recently returned to the role of Gilda in “Rigoletto” with both the Pacific Symphony and Amarillo Opera and made her Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra debut singing Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 and Prangcharoen’s “Endless Tears.”
Jordheim’s honors and awards include a grand prize winner of the Rose Bampton Award and a Career Development Grant from The Sullivan Foundation Competition, two-time winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council District Auditions, winner of the Kaleidoscope International Vocal Competition, winner of the Irwin Scherzer Encouragement Award from the George London Foundation, and winner of the Edith Newfield Scholarship in the Musicians Club of Women Music Scholarship Competition.
Tickets
New Philharmonic presents three New Year’s Eve Concerts at the McAninch Arts Center, 425 Fawell Blvd. on the campus of College of DuPage, Wednesday, Dec. 31 at 1:30, 5 and 8:30 p.m. Tickets are $70 – $80. For tickets visit www.AtTheMAC.org or call 630.942.4000.
The McAninch Box Office is generally open Tuesday – Saturday, noon – 6 p.m. and two hours prior to performance. Holiday hours: November -- closed Thanksgiving Day. December – closed Dec 24 – 26; open: Dec. 27, 30 & 31, 12 – 6 p.m. (holiday hours vary). The Box Office will be closed Jan. 1 – 5 and will reopen on Jan. 6, 12 – 6 p.m.
These performances are sponsored by Sullivan Taylor Family Trust. Chicago's Home for Jazz, WDCB 90.9 FM is the Media Sponsor.
About New Philharmonic
New Philharmonic, the only professional orchestra based in DuPage County, Ill., has inspired classical music enthusiasts in Chicago and the suburbs for nearly five decades. It continues to thrive with the goal of giving innovative treatment to both classic compositions and modern works while striving to make the music accessible to new audiences and youth through a variety of educational efforts. New Philharmonic was recently honored with the Illinois Council of Orchestras’ 2020 ICO Award in the category of Programming of the Year. Today, under the direction of Music Director/Conductor Kirk Muspratt, named 2018 Conductor of the Year (Professional Orchestra) by Illinois Council of Orchestras, and recipient of a 2025 honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of Lethbridge, New Philharmonic consists of more than 60 professional musicians and typically performs more than a dozen concerts a year, reaching more than 7,500 from the greater Chicago area annually.
2025-2026 season support for New Philharmonic is provided in part by the DuPage Foundation, a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, Brookdale Glen Ellyn; Sullivan Taylor Family Trust, Frank Modruson and Lynne Shigley, Anonymous, and the College of DuPage Foundation. Media sponsor is 90.9 FM WDCB Public Radio.
About the MAC
McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage is located 25 miles west of Chicago near I-88 and I-355. It houses three indoor performance spaces (780-seat proscenium Belushi Performance Hall; 186-seat soft-thrust Playhouse Theatre; and a versatile black box Studio Theatre), outdoor Lakeside Pavilion, plus the Cleve Carney Museum of Art and classrooms for the college’s academic programming. The MAC has presented theater, music, dance and visual art to more than 1.5 million people since its opening in 1986 and typically welcomes more than 100,000 patrons from the greater Chicago area to more than 230 performances each season.
The mission of the MAC is to foster enlightened educational and performance opportunities, which encourage artistic expression, establish a lasting relationship between people and art, and enrich the cultural vitality of the community. For more information about the MAC, visit www.AtTheMAC.org or @AtTheMAC on Facebook and Instagram.
Support for the McAninch Arts Center is provided in part by Brookdale Senior Living Glen Ellyn, Anonymous, College of DuPage Foundation, Sullivan Taylor Family Trust, DuPage Foundation, Ball Horticultural, Frank Modruson & Lynne Shigley, Enjoy Illinois, Illinois Arts Council, a state agency. Media Sponsor is WDCB 90.9 FM, Hotel Sponsor is DoubleTree by Hilton Lisle/Naperville.
Established as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable organization in 1967, the College of DuPage Foundation raises monetary and in-kind gifts to increase access to education and to enhance cultural opportunities for the surrounding community. For more information about the College of DuPage Foundation, visit www.foundation.cod.edu or call 630.942.2462.