On the Movies
Music’s descriptive magic, written by women and about women
Marin Alsop & Laura Karpman, co-curators
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DateJuly 24, 2026
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VenueHunter Pavilion
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Donor Gates4:30 PM
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Public Gates5:00 PM
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Ticket Prices$17–$91
All tickets show the “all-in” price, fees included. Availability and prices are subject to change.
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Seating ChartView Seating Chart
“The Female Perspective” Add-On Event Ticket: $65
Tickets for this special add-on event do not include admission for tonight’s concert, which must be purchased additionally.
Join us before the Breaking Barriers signature concert for a discussion with Ravinia Chief Conductor Marin Alsop, Oscar-nominated composer Laura Karpman, and special guests from the making and study of cinema, sharing the stories within the stories being told through music on screen. This engaging panel conversation also includes a private dinner in celebration of Women Composers in Film.
Donor PresaleMore About This Pre‑Concert Event
“The Female Perspective” is hosted from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Tree Top Lounge.
Reserved Seat Ticket: $38–$91
Reserved Block Ticket: $17
Price per person; must reserve full block of 2, 4, or 6
General Admission Ticket: $17
Special pricing for guests ages 15 and under, as well as 65 and above: More Info
Wintrust Chair & Table Rental Reservation
The Park View is open with a classic dining menu and full-service bar, and the Freehling Room is open to eligible Ravinia donors. Reservations are recommended for dinner.
Ravinia Café and Concession Stands are open with hot food plus chilled grab-and-go, drinks, ice cream, and snacks.
Cashless: Cash will not be accepted at Dining Pavilion restaurants, bars, or concessions. Please bring a credit/debit card or other cashless forms of payment.
About the Performance
Ravinia is grateful for the support of
Susan & Don Civgin
Breaking Barriers Sponsor
Daniela O’Leary-Gill & George Gill
Breaking Barriers Sponsor
Ellen Rudnick & Paul Earle
Breaking Barriers Sponsor
Marin Alsop and Oscar-nominated composer Laura Karpman co-curate highlights on original orchestral music’s magic in screen storytelling. A 30-year veteran of prestige TV, documentary, game, and Marvel scores, Karpman has collaborated with some of the most renowned filmmakers of our time, including Francis Ford Coppola, Cord Jefferson, Nia DaCosta, and Steven Spielberg. Nominated for an Oscar in 2024 for her work on American Fiction, Karpman continues to push the boundaries of storytelling with her powerful, imaginative scores.
With performances by Alsop and the CSO, Karpman demonstrates how music can guide interpretation of a film scene, sharpening dramatic tension and revealing layers of meaning that might otherwise remain unseen. Together, Karpman and Alsop bring the focus to women composers—long under-represented on the screen—sharing music by the likes of Shirley Walker, Hildur Guðnadóttir, Rachel Portman, and Chanda Dancy. Alsop premieres Karpman’s Unsung, featuring music for iconic female characters who never before had a theme, and Taki Alsop Fellow Chi-Yuan Lin leads Star Wars themes by John Williams and Natalie Holt, the first woman to compose for the storied franchise.
This centerpiece of the fifth Breaking Barriers Festival is bookended by a pre-concert panel and, before Saturday’s concert, an extended live demonstration of music setting film moods.
Performers
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop, conductor and co-curator
Laura Karpman, composer and co-curator
Chi-Yuan Lin, guest conductor
Program
8:00 PM – Hunter Pavilion
The Science of Scoring: “Perception & Touch of Evil” Bernard Herrmann: “Scène d’amour” from Vertigo
Arturo Márquez: Danzón No. 2
Henry Mancini: Original scene audio from Touch of Evil
“The Female Lens” Suite Anna Meredith: Nautilus (arr. Jack Ross)
Chanda Dancy: Main Titles from Lawmen: Bass Reeves
Rachel Portman: Main Titles from Cider House Rules
Hildur Guðnadóttir: “Confessions” from A Haunting in Venice
Germaine Franco: Encanto Suite
Natalie Holt: “Hanging Out” from Obi-Wan Kenobi
John Williams: Star Wars Title Theme Conducted by Chi-Yuan Lin
–Intermission–
Leonard Bernstein: Symphonic Suite from ‘On the Waterfront’
Laura Karpman: Unsung: A Symphonic Suite for the Superhero Women of Classic Hollywood (Ravinia commission, Premiere)
SAT, JULY 25, 2026 • Pre‑Concert Event
Workshop/Performance: “The Science of Scoring”
6:00 p.m. in the Sandra K. Crown Theater
As Oscar-nominated composer Laura Karpman explains it, “the absolute magic of music in film is contingent on a strange bargain between an audience and a composer—it’s pure witchcraft.” Karpman and Ravinia Chief Conductor Marin Alsop lead an interactive presentation with a studio-size ensemble, workshopping sounds that demonstrate “The Science of Scoring” to create heroic, sad, suspenseful, and more moods.
This interactive performance and master class will run approximately 50 minutes, without intermission.
“The Science of Scoring” precedes tomorrow evening’s concert by St. Vincent with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Tickets to this special event do not include park admission for the evening, which must be purchased additionally.