Five Broadway Stars Headline Illinois Conservatory for the Arts ‘A Night of Broadway’ Gala
Illinois Conservatory for the Arts (ICA), a non-profit arts education institution in the Western suburbs, will host its 3rd annual A Night of Broadway benefit Gala & Concert featuring its greatest all-star lineup of Broadway stars to date: J. Harrison Ghee, the first openly non-binary performer to win the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical in 2023 for their performance in Some Like it Hot; Amber Iman, 2024 Tony Award-nominated actress for her role in Lempicka; local favorite Karen Mason, an Arlington Heights native who originated the role of Tanya in the Broadway production of Mamma Mia; Aisha Jackson, the first Black actress to play Anna in Frozen on Broadway and current star of The Notebook on Broadway; and Myles Frost, winner of the 2022 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Michael Jackson in MJ the Musical. Backed by a 20-piece orchestra led by Broadway veteran music director (The Who’s Tommy) Valerie Gebert, the soloists will present a program of hits from Broadway and popular music.
The musical program for the evening features the five all-star soloists performing numbers from Broadway and popular music including some of the most iconic songs from the shows that made them famous. The repertoire includes Jackson singing “Brave” by Sara Bareilles, “Human Heart” from The Notebook and “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from Funny Girl; Frost singing “Smile” by Michael Jackson and “Can You Feel It” from MJ The Musical; Mason singing “I Don’t Want to Know” from Dear World, “You’ve Got a Friend” by Carole King, and “Colored Lights” from The Rink; Iman singing “Hold On” from Secret Garden and “Imagine” by John Legend; and Ghee singing “You Could’ve Knocked Me Over With A Feather” from Some Like it Hot “Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries” from Fosse, and closing with the LGBTQ+ anthem “I Am What I Am” from La Cage aux Folles.
“For the past three years, we have had the honor of bringing some of the biggest names on Broadway today to the Western suburbs for this extremely special event,” said ICA Executive Director Dylan Ladd. “In addition to giving audiences the rare opportunity to see these power-house music theater stars in concert together, A Night of Broadway is an important fundraising opportunity for us, ensuring that we have the ability to continue providing high quality arts education to Chicagoland youth.”
Founded in 2020, the Illinois Conservatory for the Arts (originally Academy of the Arts) is a non-profit educational institution in the Western suburbs of Chicago. Led by professional artists, Executive Director and co-founder Dylan Ladd and Artistic Director Chadaé Nichol, ICA offers high-level arts education for adolescents and teens through year-round extracurricular classes and weeklong intensives.
Night of Broadway takes place at Wentz Concert Hall at North Central College, 171 E Chicago Ave. in Naperville on Friday evening, February 21, 2025.
Attendees for the performance have the option of purchasing a ticket for either the full evening Gala with VIP concert seating, starting at 5:00 PM, or concert-only seating and after-party access, starting at 7:30 PM. Concert-only tickets start at $50 with Gala tickets starting at $250.The Gala features a festive cocktail hour, plated dinner, silent auction, and a DJ-hosted after-party where guests can mingle with the performers. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit ilconservatory.org/events.
