World Premiere of Five Commissioned Performances
at Chicago Live! in ‘25
Navy Pier Announces Full Lineup of 100+ Artists and Ensembles for Fifth Annual Chicago Live! Festival
CHICAGO — With Chicago Live! just under a month away, Navy Pier has announced the full lineup of individual artists and performing arts organizations who will bring Navy Pier to lift over the course of the completely free two-day event.
Taking place Saturday, Sept. 20 through Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, at Chicago’s Navy Pier, Chicago Live! is the Midwest’s largest free performing arts festival with more than 100 performances across 5 stages. This festival serves as a testament to the incredibly vibrant arts community in Chicago that shapes so much of the city’s culture.
In celebration of five years of Chicago Live!, festivalgoers will experience the world premiere of five artistic works created specifically for Chicago Live!. These five pieces commissioned by Navy Pier will be making their world debuts throughout the weekend, performed by:
Victor Garcia – Saturday, 1:30 PM at Lake Stage
Grammy-nominated musician Victor Garcia will debut All of Us, a composition written to honor the struggle, sacrifice, and success of the immigrants that have come to this country. The piece, comprised of two movements, is “dedicated to all those currently fighting an uphill battle to create a home here: we see and respect your strength and resilience.”
Throughout his career, Garcia has been referred to as a “musical force to be reckoned with.” A talented multi-tool musician, Garcia not only plays trumpet but also sings and plays percussion.
Giordano Dance Chicago – Saturday, 5:30 PM at East Stage
Created as part of the Giordano on Giordano initiative, which empowers company members to choreograph new works, Giordano Dance Chicago (GDC) will unveil Interlinked. Choregraphed by company member, Simon Schuh, this work explores the woven connections that shape our everyday lives, highlighting both the athleticism and risk inherent in dance, revealing rawness and vulnerability through intense, physically demanding motion.
Established in 1963, GDC is America’s original jazz dance company. Now in its 63rd season, GDC is an iconic cultural institution dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the Giordano Technique.
Lake Shore Symphony Orchestra, Russell Vinick, Music Director – Sunday, 12 PM at East Stage
Composed by Music Director Russell Vinick, the Lake Shore Symphony Orchestra will premiere the new composition Waves of Celebration. This lively overture pays tribute to the fifth anniversary milestone of the Chicago Live! by making use of five note motives and harmonies that include the interval of a fifth — but music fans don’t need to know any of this in order to enjoy this energetic, celebratory overture.
The Lake Shore Symphony Orchestra (LSSO) is a not-for-profit symphony orchestra whose primary focus it to engage, inspire, and educate through music’s extraordinary power, to create an opportunity for Chicago area musicians to perform a wide variety of symphonic music, and to provide youth, seniors, and persons with limited access to the arts high quality, affordable, and enlightening music.
Aerial Dance Chicago – Sunday, 1:30 PM at Lake Stage
Aerial Dance Chicago will share the world premiere of MONSTER choreographed by Founder and Artistic Director Chloe Jensen. This piece explores the complex relationships between one’s inner and outer worlds. Through powerful partnering, poignant motifs, and innovative aerial choreography, Jensen illustrates the electricity of an overactive mind and takes the audience on a journey from chaos to a place of contemplative acceptance.
Serving as Chicago’s premier dance center dedicated to the art of aerial dancing, ADC continues to transcend the limits of dance and inspire people to rise to their highest potential.
Momenta Dance Company – Sunday, 5:30 PM at East Stage
MOMENTA Dance Company is proud to present HABANERA, choreographed by Artistic Director Sarah Najera, and featuring six dancers with and without disabilities. Set to Bizet’s excerpt from “Carmen” of the same name, HABANERA is a physical embodiment of the music that translates the score into movements that fluidly, and sometimes humorously, shift between sustained lyrical phrases, stylized movements, and striking tableaux.
Momenta cultivates and presents repertory and contemporary dance works that strive to educate, innovate, and amplify the artistry of students and professionals, inclusive of artists with disabilities.
In addition to the five world premiere performances, Chicago Live! in ’25 will feature dozens of star-studded performances, curating an unforgettable weekend of music, dance, theater, and more. The complete lineup of performers includes;
333 (Three Thirty Three) ★ About Face Theatre ★ Actors Gymnasium ★ Aerial Dance Chicago ★ AIRMW – Shubukai ★ Alexandra Bowden ★ Alexis Lombre ★ Amy Lowe & KingKatz ★ Anthony Rapp ★ Ayodele Drum & Dance ★ Ballet Folklorico Sones Mexicanos ★ Black Bear Combo ★ Cabinet of Curiosity ★ Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre ★ ChiArts ★ Chicago Blues Supersession ★ Chicago Children’s Theatre ★ Chicago Dance Crash ★ Chicago Fringe Opera ★ Chicago Magic Lounge ★ Chicago Movement Collective ★ Chicago Repertory Ballet ★ Chicago Samba ★ Chicago Shakespeare Theater ★ CMDC & Hiplet Next ★ Culture Shock Chicago ★ Dancing Queen: An ABBA Salute ★ DanceWorks Chicago ★ Dee Alexander ★ Deeply Rooted Dance Theater ★ Detox ★ DJ Readerz ★ Ensemble Español Spanish Dance Theater ★ Erik and Jessie and Everyone You Know ★ Fiddlerock! ★ Forward Momentum ★ Giordano Dance Chicago ★ Grainger Academy of The Joffrey Ballet ★ Gwydion Theatre Company ★ Honey West ★ House of DOV with Family Junket ★ Joel Hall Dancers ★ Joanna Connor ★ John Vincent ★ Jersey Girls ★ K.I.M. ★ Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts ★ Kokandy Productions ★ Korean Performing Arts Institute of Chicago ★ Lake Shore Symphony Orchestra ★ Lakeview Orchestra ★ Lazy Susan Theatre Company ★ Liquid Soul ★ Little Fire Artist Collective ★ Lookingglass Theatre Company ★ M.A.D.D. Rhythms ★ Margaret Murphy and The Chuck Webb Band ★ Meher Dance Company ★ Meghan Murphy “Big Red” ★ Melody Angel ★ Mimi Marks ★ MOMENTA Dance Company ★ Movement Revolution Dance Crew ★ Mucca Pazza ★ Music Theater Works ★ Muntu Dance Theatre ★ Nicholas Tremulis and the Prodigals ★ Nova Zaii ★ Old Town School of Folk Music/Bear Williams Blues Band ★ Opera Cowgirls ★ PARA.MAR ★ Porchlight Music Theatre ★ PRAA ★ Remy Bumppo Theatre Company ★ Rob Lindley Presents ★ Rose Theatrics ★ Ryan Dempster ★ Samba Bamba ★ Sandra Delgado Experience ★ Second City ★ Soul Children of Chicago ★ South Chicago Dance Theatre ★ Svet ★ Tears Dry On Their Own: Amy Winehouse Tribute ★ Teatro Zinzanni ★ Tellin’ Tales ★ Tenderoni ★ The Black Ensemble Theater ★ The Chicago Philharmonic ★ The Happiness Club ★ The JuJu Exchange ★ The Seldoms ★ Tiffany Topol: Lisa Houseman is Very Talented ★ Tomeka Reid & Junius Paul Duo ★ Too Much Molly ★ Toronzo Cannon ★ Trifecta Dance Collective ★ Trinity Irish Dance Company ★ Universal Togetherness Band ★ Victor Garcia ★ Visceral Dance ★ Windy City Jazz Electric ★ Winifred Haun ★ and More
The complete schedule for Chicago Live! can be found on the Navy Pier website.
About Navy Pier
Located on Lake Michigan, Navy Pier is the most visited destination in the Midwest, stretching more than six city blocks and welcoming nearly 9 million annual guests. Originally opened in 1916 as a shipping and recreation facility, this Chicago landmark showcases over 50 acres of parks, restaurants, attractions, retail shops, sightseeing and dining cruise boats, exposition facilities, and more. The Pier celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2016 with the unveiling of the Centennial Wheel, Polk Bros Park, and Peoples Energy Welcome Pavilion. Today, Navy Pier continues to usher in its second century with ongoing redevelopment efforts including the 223-room Sable hotel, the all-transient Navy Pier Marina, and thrilling new attractions such as Flyover Chicago. The Pier is proud to present free programming designed to inspire and engage communities across the city and globe, including the #1 Fireworks display in the nation. For more information, visit NavyPier.org.