Ravinia 2026 Issue 6

Dobro and fiddle virtuosos Jerry Douglas and Alison Krauss at Ravinia in 2014, their most recent appearance with Union Station at the festival rough the years, Krauss and Union Station have become synonymous with a collection of enduring songs, from “When You Say Nothing at All” and “Baby, Now at I’ve Found You” to “ e Lucky One” and “Let Me Touch You for a While.” Much of Douglas’s time lately has been spent on tour in support of Krauss and Union Station’s album Arcadia, which debuted at number one on Bill- board ’s bluegrass chart upon its release and includes songs such as “Looks Like the End of the Road,” “ e Wrong Way,” and “One Ray of Shine”—the group’s rst LP together in years, twice the gap between their previous number-one bluegrass albums, ’s Paper Airplane and ’s Lonely Runs Both Ways . “It’s been kind of a blur, but it’s a pleasant blur,” says Douglas of life on the road with Union Station bandmates Barry Bales, Ron Block, and Russell Moore, who took over the touring and studio roles previously held by longtime member Dan Tyminski last year. “ is tour and this band are a huge part of my life,” says Douglas. “It’s not like we’ve struggled through all of this. We didn’t. It’s just joy.” Krauss expressed much the same sentiment when talking to the Chicago Sun-Times last year. “It’s very pleasant on the road, and I have come to realize that there’s a much more consistent life on the road,” she said. “It’s very predict- able, and it’s nice to be so focused when you’re out there.” at a ection for life on the road will certainly be on display September , when Krauss and Union Station return to the Ravinia Festival stage together for the rst time since . [In the interim, Krauss appeared during her tour supporting her solo country album Windy City and in with Robert Plant following their second album together, ’s Raise the Roof .] e Ravinia Festival stop carries a little extra meaning for the group, considering both Krauss and Douglas are born-and-bred Midwesterners. “We’ve played a lot in the Midwest this year, and it’s really been great,” says Douglas, who grew up in northeast- ern Ohio. “It’s vital, and it’s alive, and we don’t play [all around] there o en enough. We make people go to big cities, but the Midwest is where we are from. at’s where our hearts are, I think.” “I have always thought—that’s why Midwestern people are so blessed,” Krauss told the Chicago Sun-Times in . “ ey can’t hide behind anything. You can see for miles. You can’t hide anywhere. You’ve got to tell the truth.” And Ravinia Festival always has a way of standing out to Krauss and the band. “You look in the amphitheater, and you see one huge audience, but there is one twice as big on the lawn,” says Douglas. “It’s funny because we never see those people, but we know they are there.” Surprisingly enough, Douglas says he’s never actually ventured out onto those legendary paths that wind their way through the lawn outside the Hunt- er Pavilion. But he’s going to change that this time around. “I’m going to go for a walk out there,” says Douglas. “I think we’re going to lm some little vignettes—I’m going to play a little bit, talk a little bit. I re- member playing there every time and knowing that there’s another audience right out there.” And on September , Douglas and his bandmates will return to an audience eager for new music from Alison Krauss & Union Station. “We’re nishing up do- ing the nal touches on another record,” Douglas says. “It’s practically nished and just has a few things to do. So that makes me wonder, are we going to keep touring?” Our question, exactly. “We’re just deciding from one year to the next whether we’re going to keep going,” Douglas says. “ is year was a no-brainer. So many more places we needed to play, like I said, the middle of the country. But yeah, we have another record, so we may have another tour.” It’s a question Krauss may soon ask of her beloved bandmates. “She usually reaches out to every- body and says, ‘You guys, really, you want to keep doing this?’ And I mean, who would say no?” Tricia Despres is a Chicago-area freelance entertainment writer whose work has appeared in the Chicago Sun- Times , Taste of Country , People , and numerous local, regional, and national publications. X: @CHIWriter RAVINIAMAGAZINE • SEPTEMBER 7 – SEPTEMBER 23 , 2026 8 PREVIOUSSPREAD:RANDEEST.NICHOLAS;THISPAGE:RUSSELLJENKINS/RAVINIA