A crowd of musical theater fans gathered at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park recently for Broadway in Chicago's Summer Concert.
The popular annual event introduces audience members to the upcoming roster of shows that will star on Broadway in Chicago stages through the Spring 2027 season.
Broadway in Chicago recently presented its Summer Concert. Photo by Eloise Marie Valadez.
Performing at this year's Summer Concert were cast members who star in the shows "Dirty Dancing," "The Who's Tommy," "Jekyll & Hyde," "Operation Mincemeat," "Waitress," "Jersey Boys," "The Sound of Music," Maybe Happy Ending," "The Bodyguard," "Disney's The Lion King," "The Notebook," "The Outsiders" and "Heathers The Musical."
Among songs in the concert spotlight were "Pinball Wizard," "Can't Take My Eyes Off You," "I Wanna Dance With Somebody," "This Is The Moment" and others.
Actor/singer Coby Oram, who stars as Frankie Valli in "Jersey Boys," said he was happy to be performing at the annual Summer Concert. Oram said his "Jersey Boys" life started in 2022. "I performed (in the show) on the cruise line Norwegian Bliss," Oram said. The singer said it was "cool" taking on the Frankie Valli role in the national tour now "because he's a real person" and not just a fictional character.
"The Bodyguard" was one of the featured shows at Broadway in Chicago's Summer Concert. Photo by Eloise Marie Valadez
Brooke Bailey, who stars in "The Bodyguard," was also on hand to perform at the concert. Bailey said she's looking forward to bringing "The Bodyguard" to Chicago.
"I feel so blessed to be back in another national tour," Bailey said. The singer/actress plays Rachel Marron, the character Whitney Houston portrayed in the movie "The Bodyguard." Bailey said she's honored to be singing the hits that Houston made famous.
"I'm really excited to be performing in 'Dirty Dancing'," said Ethan Peterson, who portrays character Billy in the show. "It's so timeless," Peterson said about the "coming-of-age story.
Peterson praised the music from the show and added the touring production is very high-energy. "My mom is a huge fan" of the movie," he added.
Lisa Howard and Sydney K. Borchers also performed at the concert. Howard, who stars as the Reverend Mother in "The Sound of Music" and Borchers, who portrays Maria, sang hit songs from the show. They both said they're looking forward to bringing the iconic musical to Chicago.
Lisa Howard, left, and Sydney K. Borchers performed songs from "The Sound of Music" at The Broadway in Chicago Summer Concert. Photo by Eloise Marie Valadez.
The following list is just a sample of Broadway in Chicago shows coming to the stage.
- "Jekyll & Hyde," Through Nov. 8
- "Dirty Dancing The Musical," Through Sept. 20
- "Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical," Sept. 29-Oct. 11
- "Waitress," Oct. 13- Oct. 18
-"The Book of Mormon," Oct. 23-Nov. 1
- "Jersey Boys," Nov. 10-Nov. 22
- "Blue Man Group A New Holiday Surprise," Nov. 24-Dec. 13
- "The Hip Hop Nutcracker," Nov. 24-Nov. 29
-"The Sound of Music," Dec. 22-Dec. 27
-"The Bodyguard," April 6- April 18, 2027
Visit www.BroadwayInChicago.com for more information