Ravinia 2026 Issue 5

HUNTERPAVILION 6:30 PM SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6 , 2026 Tried, Tested, and Trixies Tour SQUEEZE with special guest ADAM ANT † and HAIRCUT 100 † Haircut – – Adam Ant – – Squeeze † Ravinia debut HAIRCUT 100 Formed in in Beckenham, London, by frontman Nick Heyward, bassist Les Nemes, and guitarist Graham Jones, Haircut is a British pop group that rose quickly in the s with four top- singles in the UK—“Love Plus One,” “Favorite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl),” “Fantastic Day,” and “Nobody’s Fool”—and their plati- num-selling debut album Pelican West ( ), where drummer Blair Cunningham joined the fold. However, a er the initial burst of chart success and international touring, the band be- gan to fracture in , and their follow-up album Paint and Paint missed the charts while the singles “Prime Time” and “So Tired” didn’t reach the same heights. Decades later, a er re- uniting for a series of celebrated live performances, the group returned to the stage and studio with new material like “ e Unloving Plum,” “Dynamite,” and “Come Back to Me,” and they released their rst album in over years, Boxing the Compass , in June. Haircut is making its Ravinia debut. OLGAKERN With a vivid stage presence, dazzling tech- nique, and passionate musicality, pianist Olga Kern captivates audiences around the globe. She launched her international reputation with a historic gold medal at the Van Cliburn In- ternational Piano Competition that made her the only woman in more than years to earn the top honor. Kern’s / season featured a return to Carnegie Hall with a solo recital simi- lar to today’s program. With concerts through- out Europe, Asia, and North America, high- lights included performing both Shostakovich piano concertos with the Orchestra dell’Acca- demia Teatro alla Scala and the Toledo Sympho- ny; appearances on Chamber Music San Fran- cisco and the Sun Valley, Britt, and Grant Park Music Festivals; and joining the Polish National Radio Symphony, Las Vegas Philharmonic, and Annapolis, Colorado, Hawai’i, Madison, Santa Fe, and Tucson Symphonies. Across her career, Kern has toured with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and Ukraine National Symphony, and she has performed with such major orchestras as the Minnesota Orchestra; St. Louis, Baltimore, Dal- las, Detroit, Paci c, Prague, Taipei, and Tokyo Symphonies; the national orchestras of the US and Ireland; and the Czech and Gran Canaria Philharmonics. Kern is artistic director of the Olga Kern International Piano Competition and the director of the Kern Foundation Aspiration, and since , she has been on the piano faculty of the Manhattan School of Music. She is the Connie & Marc Jacobson Director of Chamber Music at the Virginia Arts Festival. In recogni- tion of her artistic contributions and cultural leadership, she received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in . Over the past year, Kern has juried the Paderewski Competition in Poland, César Franck Competition in Belgium, and Carmel Klavier Competition in Indiana, and she recently chaired the jury of the Cleveland International Youth Piano Competition. Stein- way Artist and Spirio R piano ambassador, Kern collaborates with designer Alex Teih and jeweler Alex Soldier, whose creations complement the artistry she brings to every performance. Olga Kern made her Ravinia debut in and re- turned in , , and for performanc- es with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. RAVINIAMAGAZINE • AUGUST 24 – SEPTEMBER 6 , 2026 86