DuPage Symphony to play musical 'Treasures of the Silver Screen'

Judy Garland. Is that you? With your pup and your basket skipping along the yellow brick road?

And Sylvester Stallone, all sweaty at the top of those stairs. You did it again!

Oh, and Titanic. Such a majestic ship. So sad to see it go.

Again.

These highly acclaimed movies replay over and over in their songs, and the DuPage Symphony Orchestra will bring them all to Cantigny Park in Wheaton for its outdoor concert performance, "Treasures of the Silver Screen."

The concert begins at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 23, on the park's Military Park lawn, where listeners are invited to bring lawn chairs, spread blankets and enjoy a trip down memory lane via famous scores from some of the greatest Hollywood hits of all time.

"Most music evokes some kind of imagery in people's heads," said Patricia Fragen, a violinist who serves as the symphony's marketing co-chairman. "You get a sense of dance or season or energy."

People will remember where they were in their lives when they first experienced films such "Gone with the Wind," "Lawrence of Arabia," "Exodus" and "The Magnificent Seven," she said.

"You hear 'Rocky' and you immediately see Sylvester Stallone running up the steps and you can't help but do that," she said. "When they hear 'Over the Rainbow,' they'll see Judy Garland and her blue gingham apron."

That's why Cantigny is such a great setting for families, Fragen said, because it's the perfect time to introduce young, new listeners to the symphony's sounds. And it gives adults an opportunity to reminisce.

"It's relaxed and it is an opportunity to do the 'hey, remember when,'" she said.

The performance concludes Cantigny Park's three-concert summer symphony series.

Audience members are free to enjoy the concert with a packed picnic and bottle of wine or other beverage of choice, said Laura Evans, Cantigny's director of visitor services.

Or, she said, they can order a symphonic supper from a full menu of food and drink by calling Cantigny's Jeannie Chase at (630) 260-8260.

Under the direction of Barbara Schubert, the 85-member DuPage Symphony Orchestra begins its 58th year this fall with a five-concert subscription season at Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville. The season begins in October and runs through May.

Information to purchase tickets for the subscription season will be available at the Cantigny performance, as well as on the symphony's website, www.dupagesymphony.org.

Cantigny Park is a 500-acre park near Winfield and Roosevelt roads in Wheaton that includes two history museums, a golf course and gardens.

Tickets for "Treasures of the Silver Screen" are $15 per person at the gate.

For information about the symphony's performance at Cantigny, call (630) 668-5161 or visit cantigny.org.

If you go

If you go

What: DuPage Symphony Orchestra's "Treasures of the Silver Screen"

When: 8 p.m. Saturday, July 23

Where: Cantigny Park, 1S151 Winfield Road, Wheaton

Cost: $15

Info: (630) 668-5161 or cantigny.org