Ravinia 2019, Issue 1, Week 1

JOSH GROBAN A California native, Josh Groban was a stu- dent of musical theater at the Los Angeles High School for the Arts and the Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan en route to becoming an internationally renowned singer, songwrit- er, and actor whose baritone voice is instantly recognizable among his peers. After pairing up with producer/arranger David Foster in the late ’90s, Groban quickly broke out with his 2001 eponymous debut album and the single “To Where You Are,” also making a pair of guest appearances on the hit TV show Ally McBeal around the same time. His 2002 PBS special fur- ther raised his profile and set the stage for his sophomore release, Closer (2003), to become a Billboard number-one album in addition to his second multiplatinum seller. Groban earned his first Grammy nomination for its single “You Raise Me Up,” also his first Billboard Hot 100 hit. He became the best-selling recording artist of 2007 thanks to his albums Awake and the Grammy-nominated Noël , and 2010 saw the release of his fifth straight platinum studio album, Illuminations . All That Echoes followed in 2013, becoming his third chart-topper and his first to debut atop Billboard ’s top 200 albums. Groban returned to his musical theater roots on 2015’s Stages , a collection of some of the greatest Broadway songs of all time, chosen by Groban because of their combination of “incredible mel- ody with an incredible story.” Recorded with a 75-piece orchestra between studios in Los Ange- les and London’s Abbey Road, the disc featured songs from Les Misérables , Carousel , Sunday in the Park with George , Sweeney Todd , Into the Woods , Phantom of the Opera , and more, as well as special guests Chris Botti, Kelly Clarkson, and Audra McDonald. In 2016, Groban made his Broadway debut in Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 , receiving a glowing review from the New York Times . He has also acted on episodes of Glee , The Simpsons , The Office , CSI: NY , It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia , and The Crazy Ones . His most recent album, Bridges , was released last fall. Josh Groban made his Ravinia debut in 2013 and tonight makes his first return to the festival. 8:00 PM FRIDAY, JUNE 7, 2019 PAVILION BRIDGES TOUR JOSH GROBAN MAY 31 – JUNE 9, 2019 | RAVINIA MAGAZINE 99