Porchlight Music Theatre is proud to announce the return of its free summer concert series Broadway in your Backyard, July 14 - 23, sponsored by Chicago Free For All Fund. Broadway in your Backyard is directed by Artistic Director Michael Weber, music directed by Linda Madonia and starring Tafadzwa Diener, Nik Kmiecik, Lorenzo Rush Jr and Ava Stovall. For more information go to PorchlightMusicTheatre.org.
Now in its fifth year, this free to the public series has become one of Porchlight’s most popular offerings with thousands of people enjoying Porchlight favorite artists performing hits and beloved songs from the Broadway and Hollywood musical song books including Hello, Dolly!, Hamilton, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Toy Story, The Wiz and others.
The 2025 Broadway in your Backyard season is
Berger Park - Waterfront Cafe, 6205 N. Sheridan Rd.
Monday, July 14 at 6 p.m.
Northcenter Town Square, 4100 N. Damen Ave.
Tuesday, July 15 at 6 p.m.
Ping Tom Memorial Park Pagoda, 239 W. 18th St.
Wednesday, July 16 at 6 p.m.
Portage Park, 4100 N. Long Ave.
Monday, July 21 at 6 p.m.
Welles Park, 2333 W. Sunnyside Ave.
Tuesday, July 22 at 6 p.m.
This appearance also includes a performance from PMTeens, Porchlight’s teen performers enrolled in its summer education programming, a “Kids’ Day” at Welles Park with activities and treats for children, while supplies last and a Porchlight Young Professionals picnic.
Washington Square Park, 901 N. Clark St.
Wednesday, July 23 at 6 p.m.
ABOUT PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE
Porchlight Music Theatre, in its 30th season, is the award-winning center for music theatre in Chicago. Through live performance, youth education and community outreach, we impact thousands of lives each season, bringing the magic of musicals to our theatre home at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts in the Gold Coast and to neighborhoods across the city. Porchlight has built a national reputation for boldly reimagining classic musicals, supporting new works and young performers, and showcasing Chicago’s most notable music theatre artists, all through the intimate and powerful theatrical lens of the “Chicago Style.”
Porchlight's history over three decades includes more than 70 mainstage works with 15 Chicago premieres and five world premieres.
Porchlight's education and outreach programs serve schools, youth of all ages and skill levels and community organizations. Porchlight annually awards dozens of full scholarships and hundreds of free tickets to ensure accessibility and real engagement with this uniquely American art form.
The company’s many honors include 178 Joseph Jefferson Award (Jeff) nominations and 50 Jeff awards, as well as 44 Black Theatre Alliance (BTA) nominations and 15 BTA awards. In 2019, Porchlight graduated to the Large Theatre tier of the Equity Jeff Awards and has been honored with seven awards in this tier to date including Best Ensemble for Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies (2019) and Best Production-Revue for Blues in the Night (2022).
Through the global pandemic, Porchlight emerged as one of Chicago’s leaders in virtual programming, quickly launching a host of free offerings like Sondheim @ 90 Roundtables, Movie Musical Mondays, Porchlight by Request: Command Performances and WPMT: Classic Musicals from the Golden Age of Radio. In 2021, Porchlight launched its annual summer series, Broadway in your Backyard, performing at parks and venues throughout the city.
