Ravinia Festival

Ravinia Festival is a summer performing-arts institution located on a 36-acre parkland in Highland Park, Illinois, north of Chicago. Although it is commonly described as a music festival, Ravinia functions more broadly as an outdoor venue, an indoor concert complex, an educational organization, and a year-round cultural institution. Its programming extends from orchestral and chamber music to opera, jazz, blues, folk, rock, pop, ballet, drama, and concerts for children. The site originated in 1904, when the A.C. Frost Company developed Ravinia as an amusement park intended to encourage ridership on the Chicago and Milwaukee Electric Railroad. The original attraction included a baseball diamond, an electric fountain, dining facilities, and a dance floor. The prairie-style building now known as the Martin Theatre is the principal surviving structure from that early development. The park’s name reflects the steep ravines found along the nearby Lake Michigan shoreline. Ravinia’s first orchestra performance took place on June 17, 1905, when the New York Philharmonic performed under Walter Damrosch. The venue later became particularly associated with opera. During the 1920s, businessman Louis Eckstein promoted ambitious opera seasons featuring artists connected with the Chicago Opera and Metropolitan Opera companies. Ravinia was consequently described as a major summer opera destination, but the expense of mounting opera contributed to financial difficulties and a four-year closure around the beginning of the Great Depression. Local residents, many of them Chicago-area businesspeople, organized a corporation in 1911 to acquire and operate the park after the railroad’s bankruptcy threatened its future. That community-based intervention helped preserve Ravinia as a cultural venue. In 1936, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra began using Ravinia as its permanent summer residence, a relationship that remains central to the festival’s identity. The CSO’s seasonal concerts, often featuring prominent guest soloists and conductors, are presented alongside Ravinia’s broader cross-genre schedule. The festival typically presents approximately 100 to 120 events during its June-to-September season and attracts roughly 400,000 listeners, although attendance and programming vary by year. The experience is distinctive because many patrons sit on the expansive lawn, bring complete meals and alcoholic beverages to concerts, and use the venue as an outdoor social setting as well as a concert hall. Metra’s Union Pacific North Line provides a rail stop immediately outside the grounds, reinforcing the connection between Ravinia and its historic transportation origins. Ravinia’s facilities include the Hunter Pavilion for large-scale concerts, the Martin Theatre for chamber music and smaller theatrical or operatic productions, Bennett Gordon Hall for educational and pre-concert activities, the Sandra K. Crown Theater for intimate multimedia performances, the Carousel for general-admission programming, and the lawn for large audiences. The grounds are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Beyond performance presentation, Ravinia operates education and artist-development programs. Its Reach Teach Play initiative provides music education and outreach in Chicago-area schools, including schools without established music programs. The Steans Music Institute offers summer conservatory programs for emerging jazz musicians, pianists and string players, and singers. Ravinia therefore combines heritage programming, high-profile popular entertainment, orchestral performance, community education, and professional training under one brand. Its continued operation reflects both its local institutional base and its national reputation as one of North America’s oldest outdoor music festivals.

Ravinia began in 1904 as an amusement park created by the A.C. Frost Company to attract passengers to the Chicago and Milwaukee Electric Railroad. Its original amenities included a baseball field, an electric fountain, dining rooms, and a dance floor. The Martin Theatre, originally called the Ravinia Theatre, is the major surviving building from this first phase. The park took its name from the ravines that characterize the Lake Michigan shoreline in the area. The first orchestral concert was held on June 17, 1905, with the New York Philharmonic conducted by Walter Damrosch. Music soon became one of Ravinia’s principal attractions, although the venue continued to operate as a broader amusement and social destination. When the railroad entered bankruptcy, the park’s survival was threatened. In 1911, local residents, especially Chicago-area business leaders, formed a corporation to purchase and operate the property. Ravinia developed a strong reputation for opera during the 1920s. Louis Eckstein organized extensive seasons involving singers and instrumentalists associated with the Chicago Opera and Metropolitan Opera companies. By 1930, the festival had presented artists including Yvonne Gall, Edward Johnson, and Giovanni Martinelli. The financial burden of opera production eventually became unsustainable, and Ravinia closed for four years during the economic crisis surrounding the Great Depression. The venue reopened as a major orchestral institution in 1936, when North Shore residents raised funds to bring in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The CSO established Ravinia as its permanent summer home, creating the institutional relationship that remains the foundation of the festival’s classical identity. Ravinia subsequently expanded its schedule beyond symphonic music, presenting opera, chamber music, jazz, blues, folk, rock, pop, ballet, drama, and family programming. The festival’s physical and cultural model is built around the contrast between formal indoor halls and informal outdoor attendance. The Hunter Pavilion accommodates major concerts, while the Martin Theatre and other smaller spaces support chamber music, opera, educational events, discussions, and intimate performances. The lawn allows patrons to bring meals and drinks and listen through a sound system and, on some occasions, watch a large video display. A Metra station at the entrance provides direct rail access from Chicago and nearby communities. Ravinia also became an important training and education organization. The Steans Music Institute offers intensive summer programs for emerging performers in jazz, piano and strings, and voice. Reach Teach Play extends music education into Chicago-area schools and serves tens of thousands of students and community participants, including students in schools without their own music programs. Its Jazz Mentors and Scholars initiative connects Chicago Public School musicians with professional city musicians. In the twenty-first century, Ravinia has continued to combine the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s residency with a diverse commercial and artistic program. Its stages have hosted major classical artists as well as performers from pop, rock, soul, jazz, country, folk, and contemporary music. The festival also faced institutional controversy when it ended its relationship with James Levine in 2017 after sexual-abuse allegations were reported. In 2023, the Ravinia Festival Association brought a trademark action against Ravinia Brewing Company; the case was settled after the brewery adopted the name Steep Ravine Brewing Company. Ravinia remains an active summer festival and year-round education and performance organization, with the historic park recognized on the National Register of Historic Places.

• 2023

  Trademark lawsuit against Ravinia Brewing Company

  [1]Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org

  The Ravinia Festival Association files a federal trademark lawsuit concerning the brewery’s use of the Ravinia name and related imagery.

• 2017

  James Levine relationship ends

  [1]Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org

  Ravinia terminates its association with conductor James Levine following public allegations of sexual abuse.

• 1936

  Chicago Symphony Orchestra residency begins

  [1]Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org

  After a fundraising effort by North Shore residents, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra makes Ravinia its permanent summer home.

• 1920

  Ravinia becomes a major opera destination

  [1]Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org

  During the 1920s, Louis Eckstein’s opera seasons give Ravinia a national reputation as a prominent summer opera venue.

• 1911

  Local corporation preserves the park

  [1]Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org

  North Shore residents organize a corporation to acquire and operate Ravinia after the railroad’s bankruptcy threatens the park’s future.

• 1905

  First orchestra concert

  [1]Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org

  The New York Philharmonic performs at Ravinia under Walter Damrosch on June 17, establishing the site’s long musical tradition.

• 1904

  Ravinia amusement park is established

  [1]Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org

  The A.C. Frost Company develops Ravinia as an amusement park designed in part to generate passengers for the Chicago and Milwaukee Electric Railroad.

A historic, destination-oriented outdoor performing-arts institution combining orchestral excellence, broad popular programming, picnic-based lawn attendance, artist development, and community music education.

• Music festival · 1905

  Summer Festival Season

  Ravinia’s principal public offering is its seasonal schedule of outdoor and indoor performances, generally running from June through September. The season combines Chicago Symphony Orchestra concerts with opera, chamber music, jazz, blues, folk, rock, pop, country, and family performances. The lawn experience, where patrons may bring meals and drinks, is a defining part of the festival’s identity.

• Orchestral performance · 1936

  Chicago Symphony Orchestra Residency

  Since 1936, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra has used Ravinia as its permanent summer residence. The residency presents symphonic repertoire, guest conductors, and soloists in the Hunter Pavilion and forms the core of Ravinia’s classical-music profile.

• Artist development

  Steans Music Institute

  The Steans Music Institute is Ravinia’s pre-professional summer conservatory program. Its principal tracks focus on jazz, piano and strings, and singers. The institute provides intensive performance training, mentorship, and public performance opportunities for emerging musicians.

• Music education

  Reach Teach Play

  Reach Teach Play is Ravinia’s education and community-engagement initiative. It works with Chicago-area schools and communities, including schools that lack established music programs. Its activities include instrumental instruction, ensemble development, and programs designed to broaden access to live music and music-making.

• Performance venues · 1904

  Ravinia Venues

  The Ravinia grounds include the large Hunter Pavilion, the 850-seat Martin Theatre, Bennett Gordon Hall, the Sandra K. Crown Theater, the Carousel, and the main lawn. Together these spaces allow the organization to present large orchestral concerts, intimate recitals, educational programs, multimedia work, and general-admission outdoor performances.

• 2023

  Trademark dispute with Ravinia Brewing Company

  The Ravinia Festival Association alleged that Ravinia Brewing Company’s name and imagery could confuse consumers about an affiliation with the festival. The dispute ended in a settlement and the brewery’s renaming as Steep Ravine Brewing Company.

  Source

• 2017

  Termination of James Levine relationship

  Ravinia ended its ties with conductor James Levine after allegations of sexual abuse dating back decades were reported. Levine had been designated conductor laureate in April 2017, with planned appearances beginning in 2018.

  Source

Read more

• Reach Teach Play

  Chicago metropolitan area

  Ravinia’s long-running education and outreach initiative brings music learning and performance opportunities to schools and communities in the Chicago area, with particular relevance for schools that do not have their own music programs.

  Outcome. The program serves approximately 50,000 people annually according to the cited reference material and has become a central part of Ravinia’s public-service mission.

  Source
• Jazz Mentors and Scholars

  Chicago Public Schools · Chicago metropolitan area

  This education initiative brings together highly capable Chicago Public School musicians and professional Chicago musicians to form and develop larger ensembles.

  Outcome. The program provides advanced ensemble experience and connects young musicians with working professionals.

  Source

• 2023

  Pursue trademark protection against Ravinia Brewing CompanyOther

  Background

  The festival association argued that the brewery’s use of the Ravinia name and imagery, particularly after expansion and a music-themed beer release, could imply a commercial relationship.

  Action taken

  The association filed a federal trademark infringement lawsuit.

  Aftermath

  The dispute was settled, with the brewery changing its name to Steep Ravine Brewing Company.

  Source

• 2017

  End association with James LevineOther

  Background

  James Levine was named conductor laureate in April 2017, but public allegations of sexual abuse emerged before his planned Ravinia appearances.

  Action taken

  Ravinia severed all ties with Levine and cancelled the planned relationship.

  Aftermath

  Levine did not begin the planned conductor laureate performances at Ravinia.

  Source

• 1936

  Make the Chicago Symphony Orchestra a permanent summer residentStrategy

  Background

  Following the financial failure of expensive opera seasons and Ravinia’s temporary closure, North Shore residents sought a stable artistic anchor for the park.

  Action taken

  Ravinia attracted the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, which established a permanent summer residency at the venue.

  Aftermath

  The residency became the institution’s defining classical-music relationship and helped support Ravinia’s long-term revival as a festival.

  Source

1. 1Ravinia Festivalen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Official Ravinia Festival websiteravinia.org