Ravinia 2023 Issue 3

MORGAN JAMES Morgan James is a Juilliard-trained singer, actress, songwriter, and recording artist. A frequent orchestra pops soloist, she recently appeared with the Nashville Symphony and Sinfonia Gulf Coast in “Get Happy,” a pro- gram honoring Judy Garland’s centennial, and in the past year she premiered a new show—“Symphonic Soul: The Magic of the Memphis Sound”—with the Virginia Sym- phony, Sinfonia Gulf Coast, and Wheeling (WV) Symphony. James has a special affinity for the music of Leonard Bernstein, having toured a solo program with conductor Teddy Abrams to the Breckinridge Music Festival, Rhode Island and Malaysian Philharmonics, Louisville Orchestra, and Colorado, Utah, and Wichita Symphonies, as well as appeared in the Philadelphia Orchestra’s concert pre- sentation of West Side Story . Additionally, James has been featured in four produc- tions of Bernstein’s Mass —at Ravinia with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as well as with the Louisville Orchestra, the Philadel- phia Orchestra (including a cast recording on Deutsche Grammophon), and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center (recorded on Naxos). Her concert credits also include appearanc- es at the Sun Valley Music Festival and with the Cleveland, Ocean City, and American Pops Orchestras and the Atlanta, Charlotte, Detroit, Houston, San Diego, and Spokane Symphonies, among other ensembles. On Broadway, James has been featured in five original casts: The Addams Family , Wonder- land , Godspell , and Motown: The Musical , as well as Kristin Chenoweth’s For the Girls . She routinely tours both sides of the Atlantic with her soul band and has also done so with Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox, additionally appearing on 10 of the group’s music videos and its Australian tours. As a recording art- ist, James most recently released Nobody’s Fool , her fifth studio album of original music alongside Memphis Magnetic , A Very Magnet- ic Christmas , Reckless Abandon , and her debut Hunter . She has also recorded multiple covers of complete albums, including The Beatles’ “White Album” and Joni Mitchell’s Blue , and a live album dedicated to the music of Nina Simone. Morgan James made her Ravinia de- but in the 2018 production of Bernstein’s Mass and returned in 2021 for a Bernstein program. CAPATHIA JENKINS A Brooklyn-born and raised singer and actor, Capathia Jenkins recently premiered her or- chestra pops program “She’s Got Soul” with the Houston Symphony and has performanc- es scheduled with the Cleveland Orchestra, Calgary and Colorado Springs Philharmon- ics, and Asheville, Baltimore, Seattle, Tucson, and Utah Symphonies, among other ensem- bles. An active concert artist, Jenkins has also appeared with the Pittsburgh Symphony with Marvin Hamlisch, later singing in a tribute concert to the late composer-conductor at the Library of Congress, as well as with the Cincinnati, New York, and Philly Pops, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, and the National, San Diego, San Francisco, and Toronto Symphonies. She has been a so- loist at the Festival Český Krumlov in Cze- chia multiple times, and she appeared in the “Broadway Ambassadors to Cuba” concert as part of the Festival de Teatro de la Habana. On Broadway, Jenkins made her debut cre- ating the role of Harriet Jackson in The Civ- il War , and she starred as Medda in the hit Disney production of Newsies . Her credits also include creating the role of The Washing Machine in Caroline, Or Change as well as ap- pearances in Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me and The Look of Love , and Off-Broadway she starred in the 2000 revival of Godspell and (mis) Understanding Mammy: The Hattie Mc- Daniel Story , for which she was nominated for a Drama Desk Award. She has also appeared in presentations of Nora Ephron’s Love, Loss, and What I Wore , and in the live NBC tele- vised production of The Wiz . Jenkins’s tele- vision and film credits include 30 Rock , the Practice , Law & Order SVU , The Sopranos , Law & Order , and Musical Chairs , as well as soundtracks to Nine , Chicago , and Legally Blonde 2 . She has also recorded a solo album, Phenomenal Woman , with Louis Rosen and recently released the single “I Am Strong.” Capathia Jenkins is making her Ravinia and Chicago Symphony Orchestra debuts. PAVILION 11:00 AM & 4:30 PM SUNDAY, JULY 30, 2023 LAURIE BERKNER Visit the KidsLawn at the north corner of the park (see map inside the back cover) for family fun with interactive, large-scale percussion instruments and more activites, including a performance by the LAURA DOHERTY DUO 9:45 AM & 3:15 PM LAURIE BERKNER While Laurie Berkner never planned to be a children’s performer, looking back on her ca- reer it almost seems inevitable. While grow- ing up in Princeton, NJ, Berkner was always involved in music, whether singing in choirs, playing in bands, or performing in musi- cal theater. In high school and throughout college (at Rutgers University), she toured Europe with several choirs and orchestras as a soloist and guitarist. After graduation, Berkner spent several years as a children’s music specialist at New York–area preschool and day care centers before becoming a pro- fessional musician in 1992. She maintains a busy touring schedule and has performed at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and the White House, among many venues. Berkner was the first recording artist ever to perform in music videos on Nick Jr. and was a frequent pres- ence on the network’s Jack’s Big Music Show series. Her music videos now appear regular- ly on Sprout House and The Laurie Berkner Band’s YouTube channel, and she is often fea- tured on SiriusXM’s Kids Place Live . In 2018, she created a 10-chapter Audible Original Series titled Laurie Berkner’s Song and Story Kitchen . Berkner has released 12 bestselling, award-winning albums: Whaddaya Think of That (1997), Buzz Buzz (1998), Victor Vito (1999), Under a Shady Tree (2002), Rocketship Run (2008), The Best of The Laurie Berkner Band (2010), A Laurie Berkner Christmas (2012), Laurie Berkner Lullabies (2014), The Ultimate Laurie Berkner Band Collection (2014), Laurie Berkner’s Favorite Classic Kids’ Songs (2015), Superhero (2016), and Laurie Berkner: The Dance Remixes (2017). She has also released seven digital collections of her songs: Laurie Berkner’s Food Songs , Lau- rie Berkner’s Animal Songs , Laurie Berkner’s Transportation Songs , Laurie Berkner’s Class- room Favorites , Laurie Berkner’s Movement Songs , Laurie Berkner’s Nature Songs , and Love . Berkner recently authored three picture books for Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, each based on one of her beloved songs— We Are the Dinosaurs , Pillowland , and Monster Boogie —having previously writ- ten two Barnes & Noble Nook Kids e-books. Laurie Berkner first played at Ravinia in 2004, and today is her 12th season at the festival. RAVINIA MAGAZINE • JULY 17 – JULY 30, 2023 44