My Kind of Town, Chicago Is!
Music, Food & Architecture in the Windy City

Join WDAV and beloved afternoon host Myelita Melton in the Windy City for six unforgettable nights as we celebrate the rich culture, music, architecture, and energy of Chicago! The music highlights are spectacular! Riccardo Muti, the preeminent conductor and Chicago Symphony Music Director Emeritus for Life, returns to the podium on your first evening to lead his Chicago Symphony Orchestra, one of the great orchestras in the world, in an all-Rossini program. Dynamic pianist Yuja Wang enthralls us with a recital of music of her choice in a thrilling matinee performance on the CSO stage. And guest conductor Jakub Hrůša will lead the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in a riveting performance of the monumental Shostakovich Seventh Symphony, written during the 872-day siege of Leningrad as an ode to the resistance of oppression. Chicago Lyric Opera’s production of La traviata sets Verdi’s masterpiece of melody and melancholy against the florid glamour of 19th-century France, bringing captivating characters and their tragic tale to life. You will also have a chance to share the powerful theatrical experience of playwright Marsha Norman’s Pulitzer Prize winning ‘night Mother at the Goodman Theatre.

Chicago is justly famed for its architecture and its food. The Chicago Architecture Center takes us on a special coach tour across the city. We will also travel out to the Oak Park suburb to view the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and his Prairie-style architecture, born here in Chicago. We’ll dine at some of the city’s best restaurants and enjoy a unique “dine-around” experience to different neighborhoods to sample a variety of ethnic foods that pay homage to Chicago’s history and food culture.

Our home for six nights is the opulent Palmer House, the city’s longtime jewel and the country’s longest continually operating hotel, rebuilt only two years after the Chicago Fire of 1871. Enjoy engaging musical commentary throughout the trip and plenty of free time to explore more of the city—and shop the “Magic Mile”—complete our discovery of one of the country’s truly great cities in style. As Ol’ blue eyes used to sing: “It’s my kind of town!”