Naperville loves a good show tune. So this year, the park district will give people twice as many options to hear them.
After a successful debut last summer — more than 800 people attended the shows in 2021 — performers from BrightSide Theatre have partnered with the Naperville Park District to expand its Summer in the Park series from three to six shows. This year’s theme, “The Golden Age of Broadway,” will highlight classic songs from musicals dating from the late 1940s to 1960.
“These are still challenging times for people, and this is a great way to bring people together to hear some of the best songs ever written for the theater,” said Julie Ann Kornak, executive director of BrightSide Theatre. “One really big piece of this for us is the inclusivity of it all. Anyone can come to this because it’s free.”
The shows will be held at two venues this year: Those on Wednesdays — June 29, July 13 and July 27 — will be at the Wagner Family Pavilion, located at the 95th Street Community Plaza. Thursday shows on June 30, July 28 and Aug. 11 will be at the Millennium Carillon Amphitheater.
“We like that the park district has given us these two great venues in different parts of the city so that a wider audience will have access to the shows,” Kornak said.
The show features three female and two male singers, backed up by a four-piece band, performing selections from shows like “My Fair Lady,” “West Side Story,” “Peter Pan,” “The Music Man” and “South Pacific,” among others.
“The golden age of Broadway has this incredibly deep songbook, and we’re still performing these shows now,” Kornak said. “Look at ‘West Side Story,’ which was just done as a movie again, or ‘The Music Man,’ which is on Broadway right now with Hugh Jackman. These are shows and music people want to see and hear, even after all this time.”
Kornak said the performers on stage will offer a number of different selections, taking advantage of the variety of the voices on stage.
“Sometimes we’ll all be singing, and sometimes it will be just the men or just the women,” she said. “And we’ll have some solos and some medleys. We’ll take advantage of what we have on the stage.”
Some of the songs she expects to perform include “I Feel Pretty,” from “West Side Story;” “Too Damn Hot,” from “Kiss Me, Kate;” “Everything’s Coming up Roses,” from “Gypsy;” and “You’re the Top,” from “Anything Goes.”
“If you did theater in high school, you probably learned a lot of these songs — I know I did,” Kornak said. “They really stick with you.”
The Summer in the Parks series is also a good way to introduce the next generation to these American classics.
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“It’s like a little bit of Ravinia here in Naperville,” Kornak said. “I hope everyone brings a chair or blanket, brings their picnic dinner, and has a great time.”
Summer in the Parks: The Golden Age of Broadway
When: 7 p.m. June 29 and 30; July 13; July 27 and 28; Aug. 11
Where: Wednesday shows at Wagner Family Pavilion, 95th Street Community Plaza, 3109 Cedar Glade Drive, Naperville; Thursday shows at the Millennium Carillon Amphitheater, 443 Aurora Ave., Naperville
Tickets: Free
Information: 630-848-5000; napervilleparks.org/summerintheparks
Jeff Banowetz is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.