Thinking About a Family Gathering?

Unique in its ability to move young and old, music is—and always has been—the perfect family entertainment.

Around the world and throughout the ages, music has played a central role in bringing people together. It is a shared language that we experience every time we hear a concert at Millennium Park, whether we get up and dance or simply close our eyes to listen. Studies show that the act of listening to music together strengthens family bonds. It fosters learning in children and helps people of all ages live fuller lives. Unique in its ability to move young and old, music is—and always has been—the perfect family entertainment. To that point, the travel website Travelmamas.com ranked Millennium Park number one on its list of the “10 Best Chicago with Kids Activities that Will Please the Whole Family,” citing “excellent cultural events like free music concerts, outdoor film screenings, and seasonal festivals.”

The 2020 Grant Park Music Festival offers ten weeks of concerts (see the season lineup) with broad, multigenerational appeal, with several family-friendly programs utilizing the Jay Pritzker Pavilion’s 40-foot HD screen. These include the ever-popular Independence Day Salute (July 4th) and the annual Broadway extravaganza (July 10th and 11th), a screening of the Hollywood classic Singin’ in the Rain (July 8th) with live orchestral accompaniment, as well as a concert of much-loved children’s works headlined by Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf. An enchanting orchestral menagerie, this animal-themed program (July 29th) opens with the little elephant Babar, and brings out a veritable zoo in Saint-Saens’ Carnival of the Animals.